Daiya Cheese Sticks Review (+ Is Daiya Cheese Healthy?)

If you miss cheese as a vegan, read this post! In it, I give a Daiya cheese sticks review, which: spoiler alert:

might be the most similar tasting to cheese (in my opinion)!

Keep reading to find out why, along with a discussion about whether or not Daiya cheese is healthy!

Disclaimer: This review includes information and the authors own personal opinions. It is not personal dietary advice. Talk to your doctor about any health concerns, supplement questions and dietary changes. See our disclaimers for more details.

What are Daiya Cheeze Sticks?

Daiya is a company that makes dairy free products. They are especially known for their plant based cheeses.

Daiya Cheeze’s in the USA are(1):

• Vegan
• Gluten Free
• Non-GMO Project Verified.

Aside from the cheeze slices and shreds, Daiya sells Cheeze sticks in two flavors:

• Mozzarella Style
• Cheddar Style

This review focuses on the mozzarella style cheeze stick. I don’t have great things to say about the taste of the cheddar style one unfortunately (I’d probably give that one a 3 out of 10 stars for taste!)

Daiya Cheese Sticks Review

Taste

Taste Score: 9/10

For a video of me trying the the mozzarella flavor, check out my YouTube short and then return this pos for more details!

The mozzarella style flavor is probably the most authentic store bought vegan cheese I’ve had (and I’m not just saying that)!

It had this creamy mouthfeel with notes of both umami and olive!

There was a very subtle aftertaste of coconut- which may or may not be a deal breaker for you if you love coconut flavors.

I usually eat vegan cheese melted or with something else, but this one doesn’t need to be melted (although, I’m sure that would taste great too)!

I enjoyed it on it’s own- just like I would have the dairy string cheeses I use to love (although, crackers go nicely with this too 😉

Price

These are quite pricey at about $6.79 USD per package at Whole Foods.

That’s about over a dollar more expensive than the non vegan 365 Brand mozzarella string cheese (about $5.49 USD per package).

Still, the taste was so amazing that I would buy these again if I had a craving (I’ll also keep an eye out for sales 😉 )

Ingredients and Nutrition

Here’s the ingredients and select nutrition facts as copied from the picture above (Daiya mozzarella style cheese sticks):

“Ingredients: filtered water, potato starch, coconut oil, expeller pressed safflower oil, salt, tricalcium phosphate, natural flavors, pea protein, xanthan gum, lactic acid, fruit, and/or vegetable juice color, konjac flour, enzyme.”

Per 1 Stick (22 grams):

• Calories: 70
• Saturated fat: 4 grams
• Sodium: 190 milligrams
• Fiber: 0 grams
• Added Sugars: 0 grams
• Protein: 0 grams
• Calcium: 157 milligrams

Nutrition wise, calories come mainly from fat, as this product has no protein and is pretty low in carbohydrates.

The fat is source is mostly saturated, which is something to be mindful especially as some studies suggest too much saturated fat may be associated with heart disease (2).

As you might expect, the sodium is also quite high -which is not uncommon in both vegan and non vegan cheeses (another nutrient we should be mindful of for cardiovascular health).

It should be further noted that this product does not have the same nutrients as cheese. While it dose contain some calcium, nutrients like iodine and vitamin B12 are not added.

Portion

The portion size was satisfying to me, and looked similar to the size of ‘real’ cheese sticks (at least from what I can remember!)

Each stick comes individually wrapped, making them easy to throw in a cold lunch pack too!

Is Daiya Cheese Healthy?

Daiya cheese is not a ‘health food’ but that doesn’t mean it’s devoid of nutrition!

Many of their cheese’s are fortified with calcium, which can sometimes be tricky to get enough of on a vegan diet without knowing your sources and planning for them.

Daiya cheeses often have high amounts of sodium and saturated fat – nutrients to be mindful of when talking about a generalized healthy diet.

However, it’s important to keep what we are comparing the food to.

For example, if we look at dairy string cheese and Daiya, they actually might have somewhat similar sodium and saturated fat content depending on the brand.

Additionally, dairy cheese usually contributes a bit of protein, while Daiya cheese doesn’t have any appreciable amount.

Ultimately, Daiya cheese is not very nutritionally dense but is one of many store bought vegan cheeses that gives dairy free people a readily available product that tastes similar to cheese!

Singling out one food doesn’t account for the typical eating pattern as a whole.

Even though they aren’t the most healthy products, I do enjoy them when I’m craving that flavor, or sometimes on foods that could use some flavor enhancement!

Final Verdict: Would I Buy These Again?

Yep! I would definitely buy the mozzarella cheese flavor again-because it reminded me of cheese so much.

It’s rad to have something that tastes so similar to cheese as an ethical vegan!

I would pass on the cheddar flavor though (again, this is just my opinion!)

Here’s a pros and cons list:

Pros

• The mozzarella style flavor tastes a lot like real cheese
• Creamy mouthfeel
• Contains a similar amount of calcium as cheese

Cons

• Pricey
• Contributes a fair chunk of sodium and saturated fat
• Does not contain all the nutrients that dairy does (aka- just don’t expect it to be actual dairy)! Check out this post to learn more about what to consider on a dairy free diet)

Did you enjoy these as much as I did? What are your favorite vegan cheese sticks if not? Let me know in the comments!
If you enjoyed this review, you’ll probably like these too!
–Vegan Babybel Review
–Nugo Vegan Protein bars Review
-Wunder Eggs Review
–Harvest Snaps Review
–Sweet Earth Foods Review
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