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This easy baked mac and cheese recipe is based on my Dad’s secret recipe. After 25 years, he finally revealed the secret ingredient! I made it even creamier, richer, and cheesier.
Growing up, the birthday child (or adult) got to choose whatever they wanted for their dinner, and the number one pick was Dad’s Macaroni and Cheese. He inherited the recipe from his mom, and I gave it some pro-chef pizzazz, so it’s been in our family for generations! Here you have it: an epic mac and cheese that is incredibly smooth, creamy, and easy to prepare! Plus, Dad’s secret ingredient makes it taste extra cheesy.
There’s almost nothing as comforting or simple as mac and cheese, I see it as a full meal on its own. If you want to deepen the comfort factor, it would be incredible with the best buttermilk biscuits! I also regularly serve it with some brussels sprouts with leeks or rosemary lemon roasted cauliflower for a more balanced experience.
Table of Contents
Why you will love this mac n cheese recipe:
- Dad’s secret ingredient, revealed! It took him 25 years to tell me what made this dish so addictive growing up. It’s dry mustard! I’ll take you through it, but basically it deepens the cheddar’s flavor.
- A roux makes it beyond creamy and cheesy. No grainy cheese sauce here! Step-by-step instructions for a super simple roux that guarantees the richest, cheesiest mac.
- The sauce is generous, so you can stretch this recipe. You can add an additional ½ cup of shells or macaroni to the base of the dish and it will still be cheesy and delightful. This can help stretch the recipe if you have an unexpected guest or just want to enjoy it for longer. You can also half the recipe and it’d be perfect for 4!
Professional Tips for baked macaroni and cheese:
- Start with the best sharp cheddar. If you don’t like the way the cheese tastes off the block, you won’t love the final dish. Choose a cheddar that you love.
- Be careful not to overbake. You can, in fact, over-bake mac and cheese. Too much moisture will evaporate and then you will not get that cheese pull or the gooey cheese filling. The flavor will still be delightful but the texture will be different.
- Be sure to cook the noodles to “al dente,” or firm to the bite, and no more. Since you’ll be stirring the hot noodles into a hot sauce, they’ll continue to cook a bit during baking, and nobody likes a soggy noodle.
Ingredients
- Elbow macaroni or shells: Whether you decide to use pasta shells or macaroni for this recipe, be sure that they are measured dry. This will provide the most accurate measurement.
- Butter: I use salted butter for this recipe. If using unsalted butter add ½ teaspoon salt to the roux.
- Flour: Plain flour or all-purpose flour will work best for this recipe. However, you can also use bread flour if needed. This will thicken faster than regular flour but will still work in a pinch.
- Unsmoked or Smoked Paprika
- Black Pepper
- Milk: I recommend using whole milk for the creamiest mac and cheese, but 2% milk will also work here. It will just be slightly less rich and creamy. or 3 cups milk, 1 cup heavy cream – holy decadence
- Dry Mustard: What is the secret ingredient to make mac and cheese better? Well, dry mustard was Dad’s! You can find this in the spice section of most grocery stores.
- Sharp Cheddar Cheese: 1 ½ lbs before shredding. When making homemade mac and cheese, I don’t recommend buying shredded cheese. The cheddar cheese will melt better and become a more cohesive cheese sauce if you grate the cheese yourself.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Variations
- Quick Stovetop Mac and Cheese: You can skip the baking for a stovetop mac n cheese. If making a stovetop variety, you do not need to reserve cheese for the topping. Just mix it all together and serve right away.
- Vary your cheeses: You can add a sprinkle of freshly grated parmesan cheese when you remove the mac n cheese from the oven for a salty, cheesy garnish. I am also in favor of mixing it up with a smoked mac and cheese recipe, or mixing in different cheeses like colby, mozzarella, monterey jack, fontina, gouda, comté, and gruyère.
- Make it meaty: One time when I was a line cook, the other (all male) cooks made me use hot dogs for family meal and I sliced and baked them in 2 hotel pans of mac and cheese. They thought I walked on water. The men and boys in your life will too, guaranteed! 😉 The same deal works with shredded chicken or pork! If you want to make a bacon mac, just add crumbled bacon when it comes out of the oven.
- Go a little healthier: I love this recipe with protein pasta and roasted vegetables. It’s a great way to add some substance and nutrients!
- Add breadcrumbs. Rumor has it that my Mom added the bread crumbs on top. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter and mix with ½ cup breadcrumbs. Spread evenly over the top before baking.
How to Serve
Mac & cheese can make a meatless main dish when served with filling vegetable side dishes like roasted acorn squash slices. The sharp cheddar in the mac is also amazing with BBQ flavors, think this bbq chicken recipe, slow cooker barbecue pulled chicken sandwiches, or smoky bbq veggie burgers. Or add a filling salad recipe and your meal is set!
How to Make Baked Mac and Cheese
Use these instructions to make the perfect creamy macaroni and cheese every time! Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below.
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 375°F. (no fan) Butter a 2.5-liter glass or Pyrex baking dish or casserole dish, or leave it unbuttered. I did and life went on. Casserole dishes also work.
Step 2: Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil in a large saucepan and add a generous amount of salt. You can taste the water if you want – it should taste salty like the ocean.
Step 3: Add the elbows to the large pot of salted water and stir to distribute and keep from sticking. Boil over medium heat until they are al dente or completely cooked. I like to cook them completely because 15 minutes isn’t a long additional bake time and I don’t want undercooked pasta in my mac and cheese. Drain pasta through a colander or strainer and set aside.
If you feel up to the task, you can simultaneously cook the pasta and make the cheese sauce. The only time you can’t stop and drain the pasta is when you are adding the milk to the roux. Just drain before or after!
Step 4: Melt butter in a 3-4 quart saucepan. Add flour, ½ teaspoon kosher salt (if using unsalted butter), and mustard powder, whisking until smooth. Bring to a boil and boil for 1 min on medium heat, while whisking constantly. Try not to let it brown. If it does, no big deal—just keep going!
Step 5: Slowly add milk a little at a time, whisking constantly until all the milk has been added. It will be loose and liquidy, do not stress.
Be sure to allow each addition of milk to fully absorb and thicken before adding the next. This helps keep the roux smooth and lump-free.
Step 6: Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook the roux, stirring frequently until thickened. It will be thick like cream and will coat the back of a spoon.
Step 7: Remove from heat and stir in the cheese.
I reserved about a handful of cheese to sprinkle over the top. It was about 1 cup. I have large hands!
Step 8: Add pepper and paprika, stirring well. Taste and add salt if desired. If you salted your pasta water, this shouldn’t be necessary.
A 3-4 quart saucepan is not large enough to add the noodles to. I had my shredded cheese sitting in a large mixing bowl. After adding the cheese to the thickened milk mixture (roux), I combined the noodles and cheese mixture in this same large bowl.
Step 9: Stir in the cooked pasta and pour into the baking dish. Sprinkle with reserved cheese. Bake the dish uncovered at 375°F until the center is bubbling and the top is golden brown. 15-20 minutes. Can broil the last 3 minutes to get a nice golden top.
Are you supposed to cover macaroni and cheese when you bake it? It’s not necessary in this case! You would want to cover it if you felt that the tops or edges were going to burn due to cooking faster than the inside. It doesn’t spend long enough in the oven to warrant it since we pre-cook the pasta.
Chef Lindsey’s Recipe Tip
Starch needs to boil for one minute to get rid of that raw flour taste. Be sure to allow the butter and flour to cook for at least one minute to get all the thickening properties without tasting raw flour in your final dish.
Frequently Asked Questions
Store leftover mac and cheese in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. I do not recommend you freeze mac and cheese. The texture will not be the same when it is reheated.
If you want to use a variety of cheeses instead, be sure to taste them before adding them all in. I love a mix of gruyere, extra sharp cheddar, and comté. Swiss cheese can also be a good addition if you like it.
You can use pre-shredded cheese for this recipe, but it will not be as rich and creamy as high-quality, freshly grated cheese. Pre-grated cheese contains coagulants that are designed to keep the pieces separate, making it harder to form a cohesive and creamy sauce.
Start with a roux. This is a French technique for thickening sauces where you cook butter and flour together until thick and a little bit browned and nutty. Then, add the milk slowly. Slowly whisking the milk into the roux will allow for maximum absorption and will make a nice rich, thickened base. Adding the milk too fast will create lumps and will be too loose. Serve it straight from the stovetop or bake it just until golden brown and bubbling.
If you tried this recipe and loved it please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below. I love hearing from you; your comments make my day!
Easy Baked Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried elbows 4 cups, cooked
- 6 tablespoons salted butter or unsalted
- 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika or unsmoked
- 1 tablespoon dry mustard Dad's secret ingredient
- 4 cups whole milk or 3 cups milk, 1 cup heavy cream – holy decadence
- 6 cups sharp cheddar cheese grated
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1 ½ lbs before shredding
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. (no fan) Butter a 2.5-liter glass or Pyrex baking dish or casserole dish, or leave it unbuttered. I did and life went on. Casserole dishes also work.
- Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil in a large saucepan and add a generous amount of salt. You can taste the water if you want – it should taste salty like the ocean.
- Add the elbows to the large pot of salted water and stir to distribute and keep from sticking. Boil over medium heat until they are al dente or completely cooked. I like to cook them completely because 15 minutes isn’t a long additional bake time and I don’t want undercooked pasta in my mac and cheese. Drain pasta through a colander or strainer and set aside.
- Melt butter in a 3-4 quart saucepan. Add flour, ½ teaspoon kosher salt (if using unsalted butter), and mustard powder, whisking until smooth. Bring to a boil and boil for 1 min on medium heat, while whisking constantly. Try not to let it brown. If it does, no big deal—just keep going!
- Slowly add milk a little at a time, whisking constantly until all the milk has been added. It will be loose and liquidy, do not stress.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook the roux, stirring frequently until thickened. It will be thick like cream and will coat the back of a spoon.
- Remove from heat and stir in the cheese.
- Add pepper and paprika, stirring well. Taste and add salt if desired. If you salted your pasta water, this shouldn’t be necessary.
- Stir in the cooked pasta and pour into the baking dish. Sprinkle with reserved cheese. Bake the dish uncovered at 375°F until the center is bubbling and the top is golden brown. 15-20 minutes. Can broil the last 3 minutes to get a nice golden top.
Notes
Nutrition
Before You Go
I hope you enjoyed this professional chef-tested recipe. Check out our other delicious, chef-developed side dish recipes!
Hi Janet! My Mom tells me that you have a lot more of your Mother’s recipes, and I would love to try some!
Your Father should love it!! You nailed it! (No buttered breadcrumbs though, just plain)
Oh my this looks so good! I am a huge Mac&Cheese addict and have had trouble finding a recipe to make at home that’s as good as restaurant stuff and this looks fantastic, I will definitely have to try it!
Thanks! Let me know what you think when you do try it!