Straightforward Stovetop Mac and Cheese

Mac and cheese is our favourite consolation meals. And whereas we love the nostalgia of that orange mac n cheese in a blue field, typically you need the actual deal. Our recipe is made with actual cheese, and it doesn’t that rather more work than making it from a field! We promise, it’s value it!

Make it a meal and serve with these scrumptious Crockpot Ribs and a few Coleslaw.

Why My Recipe

Takes just some extra minutes than the boxed stuff—and tastes 100 instances higher.
Made with actual cheese for an excellent creamy, flavorful sauce.
Stick to sharp cheddar or combine it up along with your favourite cheeses.

An overhead image of creamy Easy Stovetop Mac and Cheese in a cast iron pan.

This recipe is ideal for busy weeknights, choosy eaters, or anybody who simply desires a bowl of traditional mac and cheese made proper. Sharp cheddar provides you that traditional taste, however you may also mess around with different cheeses relying on what’s in your fridge. It’s quick, straightforward, and far more scrumptious than something that comes from a field.

Ingredient Notes

Ingredients for Easy Stovetop Mac and Cheese.

Elbow Macaroni: Traditional and dependable, however you’ll be able to swap in shells, cavatappi, penne, or another related small pasta form.
Salted Butter: If utilizing unsalted butter, simply add an additional pinch of salt to the sauce.
All-Goal Flour: This helps thicken the cheese sauce. Be sure you whisk it nicely with the butter to keep away from any lumps.
Onion Powder: Provides taste with out precise onions. Don’t skip it. It makes a distinction.
Floor Mustard: This enhances the cheese taste. You should use 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard as a substitute.
Salt: Begin with 1 teaspoon and modify to style after including the cheese.
White Pepper: Retains the sauce wanting easy with out black flecks, however you need to use black pepper whether it is what you may have.
Milk: Complete milk provides the creamiest consequence, however 2% or 1% nonetheless works nice.
Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese: Freshly shredded melts greatest. See our cheese swap observe for extra concepts.

Utilizing Pre-Shredded Cheese

We get it, typically grabbing a bag of pre-shredded cheese is simply simpler. And sure, it is going to work on this recipe! Simply know that pre-shredded cheeses are coated with anti-clumping brokers like potato starch, cellulose, or natamycin. These components can mess a bit with how easily the cheese melts, so your sauce may not prove fairly as silky.

For the creamiest, dreamiest mac and cheese, freshly shredded cheese is the best way to go. But when pre-shredded is what you’ve received, go forward and use it. Your mac and cheese will nonetheless be scrumptious.

Different Cheese Choices

Sharp cheddar is a traditional for a purpose, however you don’t should cease there. This recipe works with all kinds of cheese, so be at liberty to get artistic along with your cheese decisions. Simply stick to ones that soften nicely. Nobody desires a bizarre, clumpy sauce.

Gouda, gruyère, fontina, provolone, and mozzarella are all nice choices. Even brie or goat cheese can work if you wish to be fancy. Need to stick to cheddar however change it up? Attempt a pointy white cheddar for one thing just a bit completely different. Combine and match to seek out your favourite combo!

Once I need to get actually fancy, certainly one of my favourite combos is cheddar, goat cheese, brie, and smoked provolone, which I take advantage of in my gourmet mac and cheese.

A spoon in a bowl of creamy Easy Stovetop Mac and Cheese.

Chef’s Secret: Scorching Sauce

Right here’s a trick straight from professional cooks. Add a touch of scorching sauce to your cheese sauce. It doesn’t make it spicy, we promise! We’ve served it this option to actually lots of of youngsters and we’ve by no means had a grievance about it being spicy. It simply bumps up the cheese taste and makes every thing style just a little higher.

For this recipe, you’ll be able to add about 4 dashes of Tabasco or 2 tablespoons of Frank’s Purple Scorching while you pour within the milk. It’s a small step that makes a giant distinction, particularly in the event you’re utilizing milder cheeses. Give it a attempt to you may by no means skip it once more. My youngsters can all the time inform if I do!

Storage & Reheating Directions

Retailer leftovers within the fridge in an hermetic container for as much as 4 days. Be certain that it’s totally cooled earlier than sealing it up.

Reheat in a saucepan on the range over low warmth till heated by. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk to a serving to convey again some creaminess.

Reheat within the microwave in 30-second increments, stirring in between to assist it warmth evenly. You possibly can add 1 tablespoon of milk to a serving to assist convey again a number of the creaminess.

Extra mac and cheese goodness…

Watch the video under the place Rachel will stroll you thru each step of this recipe. Generally it helps to have a visible, and we’ve all the time received you lined with our cooking present. You will discover the whole assortment of recipes on YouTube, our Facebook Page, or proper right here on our web site with their corresponding recipes.

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