16 Recipes That Prove Nutritional Yeast Is More Than Popcorn Seasoning
There is no better thing to pack in a lunchbox—or bring on a hike, or take to a picnic—than this Ranch Fun Dip, a savory-crumbly mix that will make your cucumber spears and carrot sticks feel like they just won the lottery. It has pistachios and chile flakes, dried dill and garlic powder, but the most important ingredient of all is nutritional yeast.
What is nutritional yeast, you ask? A flaky, savory seasoning that turns everything it touches into gold. Of course, the best way to get to know it is to cook with it. Below we’ve got a staff-favorite pasta salad that just happens to be vegan, a dumpling-laden chickpea soup to slurp on a chilly night, and upgraded overnight oats you’ll look forward to as you fall asleep. And yeah, that amazing Ranch Fun Dip
Here are our 17 favorite recipes with nutritional yeast. This wonder ingredient is shelf-stable and lasts for literal years, so there’s no excuse to not have two jars in the pantry at all times.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Emilie Fosnocht, prop styling by Emma Ringness1/16Suspiciously Cheesy Salad Dressing
Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Emilie Fosnocht, prop styling by Emma Ringness2/16Pasta With 20 Cloves of Garlic
Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Emilie Fosnocht, prop styling by Emma Ringness3/16Cornmeal-Crusted Sweet Potato Wedges
Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Pearl Jones, prop styling by Nicole Louie4/16Broken Lasagna Pasta Salad
Photograph by Isa Zapata. Food styling by Susan Ottaviano. Prop Styling by Maeve Sheridan5/16Chickpea Noodle Soup
Photography by Emma Fishman, Food Styling by Adriana Paschen, Prop Styling by Elizabeth Jamie6/16Pasta With Mushrooms and Cashew Cream
Photo by Sarah Jampel7/16Chickpeas and Dumplings
This recipe gives off major chicken-soup vibes but is entirely vegetarian—and you don’t have to simmer vegetables or cheese rinds for hours to get there. The lightning-fast broth gets its flavor from caramelized miso and nutritional yeast (a trick we picked up from Bay Area cookbook author and food writer Andrea Nguyen). The gluten-free dumplings are soft on the outside and pleasantly chewy on the inside.
