This easy homemade Creamy Mac and Cheese is a classic staple. With a rich and luscious cheese sauce that is absolutely divine! Great for your dinner rotation, potlucks, or the holidays!
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**Recipe originally published: November 19, 2022, Post updated: November 17, 2023
Macaroni and cheese, a comfort food of many, and one that brings up some nostalgic feelings. It’s a kid-friendly dish that’s also loved by many adults (myself included!).
I’ve tried and tested plenty of mac and cheese recipes over the years. From jazzing up the store-bought ones, to modifying the recipes I have on hand. And finally, here’s my best homemade creamy mac and cheese that you have to try.
There’s no limit as to when you can serve this delicious plate of goodness. Be it for weeknight dinners, potluck parties, or the holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas!
Creamy Mac and Cheese
Enjoy macaroni pasta cooked with a rich and creamy cheese sauce that’s seasoned to perfection. I even like to add on some chili oil for that slight kick of heat which goes amazingly well with the sauce.
I find that topping the dish off with a final layer of cheese before baking it for a cheese crust really adds a bit more oomph to it. And really, having extra cheese is never bad in my books! But even if you skip this step, it’s downright scrumptious.
Ingredients
(For full ingredient measurements, please proceed to the recipe card below.)
- Uncooked macaroni: Or swap with your choice of short cut pasta.
Cheese Sauce
- Butter
- Garlic
- All purpose flour
- Cold milk
- Seasonings: Salt, sugar, pepper, paprika, onion powder, Italian seasoning.
- Mustard
- Cream cheese
- Sharp cheddar: Freshly grated.
- Gruyere: Freshly grated.
Other ingredients
- Parmesan (optional): For cheese crust.
- Dried parsley: For garnishing.
- Chili flakes: For garnishing.
- Chili oil (optional): I used my Homemade Chili Oil, but if you’re looking for a store-bought option, I recommend the one by Lao Gan Ma.
Instructions
- Grate the cheese needed and set aside. Prepare all the other ingredients and preheat oven to 350 F.
- Cook macaroni/pasta according to package instructions. Reserve about 1/3 cup of pasta water for later.
- Over medium heat, melt butter and sauté minced garlic for 1 minute. Turn heat down to medium low then add flour. Stir with a whisk until well combined and let it cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Increase temperature to medium high heat then gradually pour in milk. Keep stirring until all the milk has been poured. Bring to a simmer.
- Once simmering, turn heat down to medium low and add seasoning and the cheese (cream cheese, half of the sharp cheddar and gruyere). Stir until everything is well combined.
- Add 1/3 cup pasta water and chili oil (optional). Stir well before adding cooked pasta/macaroni. Stir well before transferring it to an oven safe baking dish. You can stop here and serve or make it extra cheesy with the next step.
- Add the remaining cheese on top (including grated parmesan if you want) and bake for 10-15 minutes or until you’re happy with the cheese crust. Garnish with parsley and chili flakes (optional). Serve while hot, enjoy!
Notes for Creamy Mac and Cheese
- Freshly grated cheese: Very important to grate your own cheese for a better tasting mac and cheese and for it to melt better. The pre-shredded cheeses have a coating that prevents it from melting and clumping together, which leads to a grainy sauce.
- Cheese combination: Feel free to use whatever cheese combination you want. You can also choose to just use sharp cheddar. Other cheese combination that I like is cream cheese, sharp cheddar and smoked gouda.
- Baking time: The longer you bake it in the oven, the drier the mac and cheese will be so please keep that in mind.
- Reheat option: To revive cold mac and cheese, add a bit of milk/heavy cream/half and half and heat it up either in the oven or over a stovetop. Once it’s hot, mix everything together to add some moisture to the dried up cold mac and cheese.
More Recipes with Cheese
- Korean Fire Chicken with Cheese (Cheese Buldak)
- Korean Corn Cheese (15 minutes)
- Wild Mushroom Cheese Pizza with Truffle Oil
- Chili Oil & Jam Grilled Cheese Sandwich (Sweet & Salty)
- Cheesy Miso Butter Baked Potato
- Japanese Potato Cheese Croquette (Korokke)
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How to make creamy mac and cheese
Creamy Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 3 cups uncooked macaroni/choice of short cut pasta
Cheese Sauce
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 2 tbsp all purpose flour
- 2 cups cold milk
- 1 tsp salt
- 1.5 tsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tbsp paprika
- 1/2 tbsp onion powder
- 1/2 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tbsp mustard
- 2 tbsp cream cheese
- 4 cups freshly grated sharp cheddar
- 2 cups freshly grated Gruyere
Other ingredients
- parmesan for cheese crust, optional
- dried parsley for garnishing
- chili flakes for garnishing
- chili oil optional
Instructions
- Grate the cheese needed and set aside. Prepare all the other ingredients and preheat oven to 350 F.
- Cook macaroni/pasta according to package instructions. Reserve about 1/3 cup of pasta water for later.
- Over medium heat, melt butter and sauté minced garlic for 1 minute. Turn heat down to medium low then add flour. Stir with a whisk until well combined and let it cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Increase temperature to medium high heat then gradually pour in milk. Keep stirring until all the milk has been poured. Bring to a simmer.
- Once simmering, turn heat down to medium low and add seasoning and the cheese (cream cheese, half of the sharp cheddar and gruyere). Stir until everything is well combined.
- Add 1/3 cup pasta water and chili oil (optional). Stir well before adding cooked pasta/macaroni. Stir well before transferring it to an oven safe baking dish. You can stop here and serve or make it extra cheesy with the next step.
- Add the remaining cheese on top (including grated parmesan if you want) and bake for 10-15 minutes or until you're happy with the cheese crust. Garnish with parsley and chili flakes (optional). Serve while hot, enjoy!
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