sauce
Mac and Cheese Sauce
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Prep
5 min
Cook
10 min
Total
15 min
Serves
Makes about 3 cups, enough for 1 lb of pasta
One pot, one whisk, about ten minutes. This is the cheese sauce that stays smooth and glossy instead of breaking into grease, and it works on pasta, nachos, pretzels, and vegetables.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1½ cups (360 ml) whole milk, warm
- 10 oz (300 g) sharp cheddar, shredded
- kosher salt to taste
Instructions
- 1Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
- 2Stir in the flour and cook for 1 to 2 minutes without letting it brown.
- 3Whisk in the warm milk a little at a time. Simmer, whisking, until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon, about 3 minutes.
- 4Take the pot off the heat. Add the cheese a handful at a time, stirring until each handful melts before adding the next.
- 5Season with kosher salt. Keep the heat low from here on: a finished cheese sauce should never boil.
Cook's Note
Shred your own cheese; pre-shredded bags are dusted with anti-caking starch that turns the sauce gritty. If the sauce stiffens as it sits, a splash of warm milk brings it back.
Why This Recipe Works
Cheese on its own breaks when it gets hot: the fat leaks out and the rest turns stringy. The butter-and-flour base thickens the milk just enough to hold everything together, so the cheese melts into the sauce instead of splitting away from it.
Make It Yours
- Stir into 1 lb of cooked pasta for stovetop mac and cheese, or spoon over nachos and steamed broccoli
- A pinch of nutmeg or a teaspoon of yellow mustard sharpens the flavor
- Swap half the cheddar for Gruyère, or use beer instead of milk for pretzel cheese
- In a hurry: skip the roux, toss the shredded cheese with 1 tbsp cornstarch, and melt it into ¾ cup evaporated milk
- Diner-style queso: melt in a few slices of American cheese for extra smoothness
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