Review: I AM NUT OK Artisan Vegan Cheese

Just over 2 years ago I became vegan after many years as a vegetarian. What had held me back was the fear of the level of difficulty finding vegan foods that I would like.

One thing that has alluded me so far is finding a vegan cheese which I really enjoy. Many vegan cheese options concentrate on the texture rather than the flavour so when I heard about I AM NUT OK’s range of vegan cheese which boasted strong flavours I decided to take the plunge and give them a go.

I AM NUT OK aim to create products that make people’s mouths water using inventive visual and flavour combinations. They use a mix of traditional and new techniques to create plant-based cheeses which are produced by hand in small batches.

Their range of vegan cheeses go through a process of fermentation and ageing before being given extra notes of flavour with herbs and spices along with other plant-based flavour enhancers.

I browsed their website and picked out 5 items to test:

Oh, Grate!

Although they aren’t allowed to say it, Oh, Grate! is a plant-based alternative to parmesan sans the dairy. Made from walnuts this parmesan -style cheese sprinkle has great texture and cheesy flavour thanks to the nutritional yeast ingredient. This is perfect to top off a pasta dish or sprinkle over a soup or salads.

Cashewlater – garlicky herby cream cheese

After the other cheeses, I found the Cashewlater cream cheese a little disappointing as it lacked the flavour punch of the NeroMinded and Minerthreat cheeses. However, when considering that this is designed to be more of accompaniment in a bagel or similar I can see how it would work well as a supporting ingredient with subtle garlic and fresh chive flavour and an attractive pink colour which comes from beetroot.

NeroMinded – Black Truffle

My favourite of the cheeses I tried, the NeroMinded black truffle cheese offers the punchy, heady, earthy, pungent yet delicious flavour of black truffle accented with garlic combined with a smooth cheese texture. Not only is this cheese delicious it looks stunning with the black colour with turmeric dusting bound to stand out on any cheeseboard.

Minerthreat – Smoky Charcoal

Compared to the NeroMinded cheese, the Minerthreat has a milder but equally tasty flavour. This is their signature cheese described as a bold, smoky cashew cheese. It is ripened in a coat of activated coconut charcoal ash. This is an ‘easy eating’ cheese which I think would go with anything. It has a woody, hickory taste and a creamy naturally sweet cashew finish.

Fig Salami

Yes, you’re right, this is not cheese! This is a classic cheeseboard accompaniment, salami, made from spiced organic Turkish figs inspired by traditional Italian holiday treats. This is a very dense sausage of fig combined with a very strong punch of Christmas style spices. I have to admit that for me there is too much spice in this salami and it was a bit hot for my palate but I can see how it might be enjoyed by people more used to strong spicing.

Overall I enjoyed trying out the products from IM NUT OK. I will definitely consider purchasing Oh Grate!, NeroMinded and Minerthreat cheeses again. They all offer fantastic textures and flavours. I award IM NUT OK’s range of vegan cheeses 5 out of 5 stars.