nacho dip

finally sharing the recipe for this Kinda Co. cult classic

This recipe is a hug in a blender. Not much beats the comfort factor of warm, gooey nacho dip with some kind of crispy potato for dunking.

And yes, I am aware that this is the second week in a row of sharing a cheese and potato recipe. But honestly if you’re not down for this combo on repeat then you’re in the wrong place.

warm cheese + crispy potatoes = happiness

As kids we would go to visit our cousins in America, and among the other exciting novelty food treats on offer (Hershey kisses, tootsie rolls, lots of bubblegum!) we used to LOVE the fries covered with bright yellow cheese goo. Definitely not close to actual cheese, the type you can now get at Shake Shack in the UK.

When I first made this cheese, I was aiming to replicate some of that cheese goo nostalgia. But this version is actually healthy - it has apple cider vinegar, turmeric, cashews, and it doesn’t have any added oil if that’s something you care about. It’s just pure cheese goodness.

Which is just as well because it’s really easy to eat an enormous bowlful, all on your own.

the evolution of nacho dip

Before I began Kinda Co. this nacho dip and sweet potato wedges was my go-to comfort dinner. While the wedges were cooking in the oven, I would blitz the cashews, creating a warm cheesy dip for dunking. It was such a hit I started making jars for friends, and it was one of the first cheeses I ever sold at my inaugural market as a cheesemaker.

a brief history of Nacho Dip, top right is my first market in 2017, bottom right is our most recent packaging design 2023

Nacho Dip became one of the core products that Kinda Co. made. As the business grew I went from blending it in my tiny kitchen to selling it all across the UK.

It was an amazing moment to see it on a shop shelf for the first time when it started as a humble comfort meal that I’d whip up after a day of nannying.

Customers described Nacho Dip as “cheese crack” and there was even a running joke that you might as well throw the lid of the jar away after opening - it was so moreish you’d easily eat the whole jar!

Although it was such a favourite with everyone, the sales just weren’t quite there for our jar cheeses, compared to our other products and so I made the tricky decision to discontinue it last year.

However since then I’ve had so many requests for the recipe.. so I’m sharing it here for the first time.

chomping your 5 a day is easy when you have cheese to dip them into

This recipe isn’t the exact one that we made at Kinda Co. it’s actually much closer to my original recipe made at home back in 2017.

The result is a super smooth, silky, cashew cheese, perfect for dunking and drizzling. Of course I always love it with potatoes of any variety, but it’s also amazing as a dip for crisps, in a breakfast burrito, spooned over chilli, to top beans on toast. You name it, nacho dip will improve it!

I’ve included the recipe exactly how I like it, but you can of course make substitutions as I realise the ingredients list is quite long.

For instance, you could swap out the jalapeños or chilli flakes for one or the other, and you could also use just one acid instead of having both vinegar and lemon juice. So have a play around and don’t be put off making this if you don’t have exactly the right ingredients. It will still taste pretty great as long as you’re not missing something vital like the nutritional yeast.

I usually favour a drizzle but this cheese base-layer situ was a hit, as the potatoes on top stayed crispy

nacho dip

Enough for 3-4 people to generously dunk/drizzle

Ingredients

• 150g cashews, soaked until soft

• 75g red pepper (bell pepper)

• 150ml water

• 5-6 pickled jalapeños (more if you like it spicy!)

• 1 tbsp jalapeño brine

• 1/2 tsp dijon mustard

• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder

• 20g nutritional yeast

• 2 tsp smoked paprika

• 1 clove of garlic

• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar

• 3/4 tsp fine sea salt

• 2 tbsp lemon juice

• 1/2 tsp chilli flakes - I used chipotle

Method

Add all of the ingredients to a blender and blitz until completely smooth.

Have a taste and check to see if you’d like to adjust the seasoning or spice level by adding more salt or chilli.

for warm nacho dip

If you have a high speed blender you can keep blending the cheese until the heat generated by the blender warms the cheese. This is fine in a vitamix or similar but obviously don’t burn out your blender if it’s going to struggle.

Alternatively, and for a thicker cheese, you can transfer the mixture to a small saucepan and cook over a low heat until warm. You can always add a little more water if it thickens too quickly.

for cold nacho dip

Pour the cheese into a jar or other sealable container and pop in the fridge until chilled. It will thicken up nicely as it chills.

thicker texture after chilling

storage

Nacho dip will keep in the fridge for up to 7 days. It can also be frozen, and defrosted in the fridge. Give it a good stir after defrosting to get it back to being silky smooth.

Thanks for reading! Back next week with a sweet treat of a recipe.

If there’s a particular cheese, or a meal using cheese that you’d like a recipe for, please leave me a comment to let me know and I’ll see what I can do!