Why is my vegan creamed spinach watery?

A few potential issues: 1. Your frozen spinach had a lot of ice. In this case, there's not a whole lot you can do, so just continue to cook down the spinach until more liquid evaporates. 2. You haven't simmered the creamed spinach for long enough (or at a high enough heat). 3. You forgot to add in the flour. The flour and milk form a thick sauce that coats the spinach. Without the flour, the milk won't thicken up on its own.

Can I make this recipe without flour?

Technically, yes, but with very different results. Flour, when combined with milk, forms a thick white sauce similar to a roux. Without flour, the sauce will not thicken up, so the resulting creamed spinach will not be very...well...creamy! If for some reason you do want to/need to leave out the flour, try cutting down the amount of milk.

Can you freeze vegan creamed spinach?

Yes! Transfer the cooled spinach to a freezer safe container and store for up to 6 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator, then reheat.

What goes well with creamed spinach?

Creamed spinach is often served alongside classic dishes like steak, poultry or fish. For a few vegan alternatives, try our roasted cauliflower steaks or vegan meatloaf . It's also a great dish to add to your vegan holiday spread, alongside classics like scalloped potatoes , stuffed mushrooms , green beans with "bacon " and stuffing .

Vegan Creamed Spinach - Crowded Kitchen

Description

Put a vegan spin on a classic holiday side with our vegan creamed spinach. It's rich, creamy, and delicious, without any of the dairy!

Ingredients

Units Scale

4 tablespoons vegan butter
1 cup diced shallot or yellow onion
1 tablespoon finely minced garlic
2 pounds frozen spinach, partially thawed*
2 cups nondairy milk, divided (we used oat)
1/4 cup all purpose flour (can use gluten free if needed)
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1 cup shredded vegan mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup grated vegan parmesan, divided

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Instructions

Melt butter in a large skillet or dutch oven over medium low heat.
Add shallots and garlic and sauté for 5-6 minutes over medium heat, then add spinach and stir well. Continue cooking spinach for another 5 minutes.
While spinach is cooking, in a separate bowl, whisk together 1 cup of milk with 1/4 cup of flour until there are no lumps left.
Pour in remaining milk, milk/flour mixture from the previous step, lemon juice, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and cayenne to the spinach and stir to combine.
Increase temperature to medium high and bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to medium and stir occasionally for 5 minutes.
Add in the mozzarella and half of the parmesan and continue cooking, stirring well, until the cheese is melted.
Remove from heat and top with remaining parmesan before serving.

Notes

*We like to partially thaw the frozen spinach in a colander before cooking. This helps to remove a bit of excess moisture from chunks of ice that may cling to the spinach. It helps to prevent the final dish from ending up too watery.

Vegan cheese can take a bit longer to melt than regular cheese. If you'd like to speed up this process, you can chop up your nondairy mozzarella into smaller pieces. Otherwise, just be patient! It may take a little while, but we promise it'll melt just fine.

Nondairy milk: we prefer oat milk in this vegan creamed spinach for its creamy texture and neutral flavor. You can also use another plain, unsweetened/unflavored nondairy milk of choice, including almond, cashew or soy.

Shallots: you can also sub with an equal amount of yellow onion.

Flour: feel free to use gluten free all purpose flour if needed.

Storage: store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat on the stovetop or in microwave. You can also freeze for up to 6 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Category: Side Dishes
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: American

Nutrition

Serving Size:
Calories: 206
Sugar: 3.2 g
Sodium: 557.4 mg
Fat: 11.2 g
Carbohydrates: 15.5 g
Fiber: 5.2 g
Protein: 14.1 g