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When I first started eating plant-based, “nutritional yeast” starting popping up a lot – whether that was in A YouTube video or in a recipe. I thought, “how could an ingredient in bread or beer be so wonderful?”

Well, nutritional yeast is a little bit different than the yeast you’ll find in your common baked goods. It’s a deactivated yeast, which is sold commercially as a food product.

According to Healthline, the yeast in nutritional yeast is killed off during manufacturing and not alive in the final product. So if you’re looking to bake bread with nutritional yeast, you might want to skip out on that experiment – it won’t make your bread ferment or rise.

Nutritional yeast is popular among the vegan and plant-based communities because it has a significant amount of B-complex vitamins and is often times fortified with B12, which is usually a challenge to consume as a plant-based eater, unless you’re eating meat-based food products or fortified foods like certain cereals.

Nutritional yeast is a part of my pantry shopping list and I use it from time-to-time to add some flavor to some of my dishes. One of my favorite dish to add to? In a stew. It’s one of those food items that can be thrown in to just about anything.

How To Add Nutritional Yeast In Your Dishes?

Since we’re on the topic of how I like to add nutritional yeast, there are plenty of other ways to include nutritional yeast to your diet. You can top nutritional yeast to foods including: stews, soups, salads, pasta dishes, and popcorn.

Because it takes up more of savory taste, I’d use nutritional yeast on savory dishes. Think of it as a topping – similar to how folks use Parmesan cheese. Additionally, it can be used as the main star, like cheesy vegan sauces.

How Does It Taste Like?

It has a bit of a nutty and savory flavor to it. Some people say it takes on a slight “cheesy” taste too. Which is why you’ll often see nutritional yeast often added as an ingredient to homemade vegan cheese recipes. If you want to satisfy your umami cravings, nutritional yeast can definitely help you out with that.

Where Can I Buy Nutritional Yeast?

You can typically find nutritional yeast in the natural food section. If your store carries Bob’s Red Mill’s or Bragg products, chances are, you might find it. Additionally, big-box stores like Target, Walmart, Publix, Winn-Dixie, and Safeway might have it – just ask.

Furthermore, if your market has a bulk food area – search for it there. A bulk food area or aisle is a place where you can find a variety of foods in large containers. Examples of the types of foods you’ll find there include rice, lentils, trail mixes, cereals, beans, nuts, seeds, and flours.

You can call most grocery stores and ask what they currently have in stock. If all else fails, you can find it online at Amazon.

Nutritional yeast is an acquired taste, so with this in mind, I suggest buying a smaller size to see if you like it first.