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American · Southern US

Macaroni and cheese

Vegetarian

Elbow macaroni folded through a smooth cheddar sauce built on a butter-and-flour roux, with an optional crunchy baked crumb topping.

Macaroni and cheese is an American pasta dish from United States, ready in about 35 minutes and made with dried pasta and cheddar. It serves 4 and is rated easy to cook.

Start cooking
A serving of Macaroni and cheese
Photo: Texasfoodgawker / Wikimedia Commons · CC-BY-SA-4.0
Prep
10 min
Cook
25 min
Total
35 min
Serves
4
Level
Easy
Calories
725

Ingredients

4 servings

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Boil the macaroni (opens in a new tab) in plenty of water until just short of tender (1–2 minutes less than the packet says). Drain.

    Pasta boiling in a pot of water
    How it looks · Photo: Gianpiero Ferraro on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Meanwhile melt the butter (opens in a new tab) in a saucepan (opens in a new tab), stir in the flour and cook for 1–2 minutes without letting it brown.

  3. Step 3

    Gradually whisk (opens in a new tab) in the warm milk (opens in a new tab) and simmer, whisking, until the sauce thickens enough to coat a spoon.

    Eggs being whisked in a bowl
    How it looks · Photo: Kampus Production on Pexels

  4. Step 4

    Take the pan off the heat and stir in the cheddar (opens in a new tab), mustard, salt and pepper (opens in a new tab) until smooth. Fold in the drained pasta (opens in a new tab).

    • 2 min

    Adding the cheese off the heat stops the sauce turning grainy.

  5. Step 5

    Serve straight away, or tip into a baking dish (opens in a new tab), scatter with breadcrumbs (opens in a new tab) and paprika (opens in a new tab) and bake at 200 °C until bubbling and golden.

    A finished dish being plated
    How it looks · Photo: Willians Huerta on Pexels

About this dish

Origin
United States · Commonly attributedPasta baked with cheese has a long European history; this cheddar-sauce version is an American staple.Also popular in CanadaMore food from United States
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Pasta · Main courses · Side dishes
Cooking method
Boiled, Simmered, Oven-baked
Taste
creamy, rich, salty
Diet
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredients · High-protein
All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · High-protein
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Child-friendly · Everyday · Budget-friendly
Cook more with
Dried pasta · Cheddar · Butter · All-purpose flour · Milk · Prepared mustard
Techniques
Baking · Boiling · Simmering · Roux thickening

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom butter, milk, cheddar, breadcrumbs
  • May contain: Eggsfrom dried pasta
  • Contains: Wheatfrom dried pasta, all-purpose flour, breadcrumbs
  • Contains: Glutenfrom dried pasta, all-purpose flour, breadcrumbs
  • May contain: Soyfrom breadcrumbs
  • May contain: Sesamefrom breadcrumbs
  • Contains: Mustardfrom prepared mustard
  • May contain: Sulphitesfrom prepared mustard

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

725 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 312 g · recipe makes 4

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 17%
  • Carbohydrate 40%
  • Fat 44%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy725 kcal232 kcal
Protein29.9 g9.6 g
Carbohydrate71.4 g22.9 g
Net carbohydrate68.7 g22 g
Sugars10.1 g3.2 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre2.7 g0.9 g
Fat35.2 g11.3 g
Saturated fat20 g6.4 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol99 mg32 mg
Sodium1140 mg365 mg
Salt equivalent2.9 g0.9 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
433 mg
Calcium
639 mg
Iron
3 mg
Magnesium
75 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
350 µg
Vitamin C
0 mg
Vitamin D
2.4 µg
Vitamin B12
1.4 µg
Folate (DFE)
340 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: paprika, breadcrumbs.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Grate the cheese yourself — pre-grated cheese contains anti-caking starch that dulls the sauce.

Common mistakes

  • Boiling the sauce after the cheese goes in makes it split and stringy.

Serve with

  • Serve with a crisp green salad or steamed broccoli.

Storage

  • Refrigerate up to 3 days.

Reheating

  • Stir in a splash of milk and reheat gently on the stove or covered in the oven.

Variations

  • Southern baked macaroni (United States): A firmer, custard-set version bound with eggs and evaporated milk, baked until sliceable.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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