Cashew Cream Gravy

Cashews blend into something remarkably close to double cream, which gives you richness without the dairy and thickening without the flour. On their own they are bland, so the savoury side comes from browned onions, garlic and a good spoon of white miso. It suits roasted vegetables and anything you would normally serve with a white sauce.

Ingredients

Makes about 550ml, five servings

• 100g (3 1/2oz) unsalted cashew nuts
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tbsp white miso paste brown rice miso keeps it gluten free
• 500ml (18fl oz) hot vegetable stock use a gluten free one
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• salt and white pepper

Kit

• Blender
• Saucepan
• Bowl for soaking

Method

1. Cover the cashews with just boiled water and leave them for 15 minutes to soften. If you have a cheap blender, give them an hour instead so they blend properly smooth.

2. Meanwhile heat the oil in a saucepan and cook the onion over a medium heat for 10 minutes until soft and golden. Do not rush past the golden stage, because this is the only browning in the recipe.

3. Add the garlic and cook for one minute more, then take the pan off the heat and let it cool for a couple of minutes.

4. Drain the cashews and tip them into a blender with the onion mixture, the miso and about half the hot stock. Blend on high for a full minute until completely smooth with no gritty bits when you rub it between your fingers.

5. Pour the puree back into the saucepan, whisk in the rest of the stock and put it over a low heat. Cashew cream catches easily, so keep the heat gentle and stir with a whisk.

6. Bring it to a bare simmer and cook for five minutes, stirring, until it thickens to a pouring cream consistency. It will thicken more as it stands.

7. Take it off the heat and stir in the lemon juice and nutmeg. Season with salt and white pepper, and let it down with hot water if it has gone past the thickness you want.

Tips worth knowing

• Blend for longer than feels necessary. A grainy cashew gravy is the most common way this goes wrong.
• Keep the heat low once the cashew cream is in the pan. It will stick and scorch on a fierce heat and there is no coming back from that taste.
• Use unsalted cashews. Salted ones plus miso plus stock will give you a gravy you cannot rescue.
• This is genuinely gluten free as written, but check both the stock and the miso, as barley miso contains gluten.

Keeping and reheating

Keeps three days in the fridge and thickens considerably. It freezes for two months but needs a hard whisk or a quick blitz on reheating to bring the texture back.

Questions people ask