Nutritional yeast is inactive and has no use in baking, but it still makes an excellent addition to your kitchen pantry due to its multitude of applications, and impressive nutrient profile. Most people have never heard of nutritional yeast and no idea of how to use it in meal prep.
The yeast has a somewhat cheesy and savory taste and texture, and it’s a popular replacement for cheese in vegan dishes. If you want to cook a vegan version of a meal that calls for parmesan cheese or melted cheese, nutritional yeast provides a similar flavor.
When using nutritional yeast in recipes, it’s best to add some olive oil to the dry flakes and mix it. If you’re cooking a dish with wet ingredients, premixing isn’t necessary. Nutritional yeast is a fantastic addition to many meals, and if you’re a vegan and haven’t tried it yet, we suggest you pick up a packet in the bulk section of your health food retailer.
Here are 15 healthful reasons to start using nutritional yeast today.
1. Boost Energy
Nutritional yeast is an excellent source of Vitamin B-12, which only occurs in meat products. Most vegans and vegetarians are deficient in this critical vitamin. B-12 is essential for new blood cell creation and maintenance, as well as regulating the nervous system, and assists the body in the production of DNA. Vitamin B-12 also prevents megaloblastic anemia from occurring due to a lack of oxygen in the blood.
Deficiencies of Vitamin B-12 create severe adverse health disorders, such as weakness and fatigue. Introducing this nutrient into your diet will clear symptoms of fatigue and boost energy levels. It’s also important to note that nutritional yeast is a rich source of phosphorus as well.
Too much phosphorus in your blood, and not enough Vitamin B-12, leads to a deficiency in calcium, so make sure you select a brand that includes calcium in the fortified ingredients list. Adults require 2.4 mcg of Vitamin B-12 per day, and one cup of nutritional yeast yields more than seven times the daily recommended amount.