Before we learn How to Cook with Nutritional Yeast, what is Nutritional Yeast?
That’s a great question! Before we dive into nutritional yeast, it’s important to note that yeast has played an important role in our diets for thousands of years. Yeast is actually a fungus that plays a vital role in making bread, beer and a range of other foods.
I enjoy getting into the origin stories of my favourite foods. It helps me understand how to use them to their best abilities. Nutritional yeast is from a species known as Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Don’t worry, you don’t need to remember that but note that another strain of this species is Brewer’s yeast. Sometimes people will interchange the terms of Nutritional and Brewers but they are not the same! This type of yeast is mainly for making beer.
Nutritional yeast comes either in the form of flakes or as a powder. It has a savoury or nutty flavour and can be used as a substitute for recipes with cheese. Add it to any dish!
Good news for those of you with food sensitivities! Nutritional yeast is dairy-free and gluten-free, low in fat and contains no sugar or soy.
Yeast has a multitude of health benefits such as energy and immune system support. It is a great source of vitamins, minerals and high-quality protein. It contains vitamin B-3, potassium, calcium and iron. However, if you suffer from gout, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), glaucoma, and hypertension avoid using nutritional yeast because it could make your symptoms worse.
One cup of yeast provides you with…
- 60 calories
- 8 grams (g) of protein
- 3 g of fiber
- 11.85 milligrams (mg) of thiamine, or vitamin B-1
- 9.70 mg of riboflavin, or vitamin B-2
- 5.90 mg of vitamin B-6
- 17.60 micrograms (mcg) of vitamin B-12
Adding nutritional yeast to your diet will promote the following benefits:
- Boosting energy
- Supporting the immune system
- Promotes skin, hair and nail health
- Improves glucose sensitivities
- Supports a healthy pregnancy
For a full description of each of these, visit Medical News Today.
Now that you’re familiar with its amazing properties! It’s time to get cooking with it! Here are some quick ways you can implement it into your everyday dishes.
- Instead of butter or salt, add nutritional yeast to your popcorn!
- Sprinkle it on top of your rice bowls or pasta instead of cheese.
- Turn your cheese sauce, vegan!
- Add it to your creamy soup for added benefits.
- Add it to your holiday stuffings.
Try using nutritional yeast in my recipes for How To Make A Vegan Caesar Salad, How To Make Vegan Spinach Ricotta and How To Make Plant-Based Perogies.
