This recipe for the Best Mac & Cheese Ever is super creamy – not dry like some homemade mac and cheese can get. It’s cheesy. Oh yes. Verrrry cheesy. It’s rich, ooey and gooey, with a brown and bubbling top and gloriously creamy interior.
And, yeah – in my humble opinion, it’s the best mac and cheese recipe EVER. Seriously.
There are loads of mac and cheese recipes out there, with fancy embellishments and uber creative spins. But his isn’t one of those – it’s a classic baked mac and cheese that’s simple enough to appeal to everyone. Readers report entire families devouring this stuff on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter!
Table of Contents
- The Story Behind the Recipe
- Macaroni and Cheese Ingredients
- Recipe Variations & Substitutions
- How to Make Baked Mac & Cheese
- Tips for the Best Mac and Cheese
- What to Serve with Mac and Cheese
- Make-Ahead Notes
- Can You Freeze Mac and Cheese?
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Mac & Cheese Recipes
The Story Behind the Recipe
I say it’s the best macaroni and cheese recipe ever not because I have tried every single mac and cheese recipe in the world (though I have tried many) (and wouldn’t it be an incredibly noble cause to try every single one?!)
Rather, it’s because whenever I take a glorious melty bite, I simply cannot imagine a better classic mac and cheese.
I can also say it’s the best macaroni and cheese recipe ever because this one is tweaked from someone else’s recipe – I adapted this macaroni and cheese recipe from someone named Bev, who shared her recipe on Food.com. Thank you eternally, Bev!
Macaroni and Cheese Ingredients
- Pasta: First, you pick your pasta. Elbow macaroni is a the classic choice, of course, but shells, penne, or rotini are delicious too.
- Cheese: I use classic medium cheddar for a cheddar mac and cheese that is divine!
- Milk: I use 2% dairy milk. Whole milk works fine. I’ve even used unsweetened oat milk in a pinch!
- Butter & flour: To make the roux (read on for more about that).
- Dry mustard, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper: Mac and cheese is all about the cheese, after all, so I chose this combination of seasonings to really enhance and highlight the cheddar. Dry mustard powder has a sharp flavor that pairs so well with the cheese, and smoked paprika lends an irresistibly smoky note.
Recipe Variations & Substitutions
This classic macaroni and cheese recipe is a great jumping-off point if you want to make it your own by mixing up the cheeses or trying a different pasta.
- Get adventurous with the cheese. The best cheese for mac and cheese is really an individual thing! Readers report using smoked cheese for tons of sultry goodness (one reader reported using smoked cheddar, smoked gouda, AND smoked gruyere. Yum.) Other readers have added mozzarella or jack for some stretchy goodness, creamy havarti, Swiss, Parmesan (loads of flavor!), or prefer to go with extra-sharp cheddar.
- Try a different medium tubular pasta. I’ve made this with penne, shells, and, of course, elbows. All amazing.
- Get crumby by topping with crispy Panko breadcrumbs or, as one reader reports, crushed Ritz crackers.
How to Make Baked Mac & Cheese
You make your cheese sauce by first making a roux – cooking flour, seasonings, and butter together. Then, drizzle in the milk. The flour thickens the milk into a glorious béchamel sauce – a classic French sauce made from butter, flour, and milk. And theeennnnn … remove from heat and add the cheese.
Again, some people like to top their baked mac and cheese with breadcrumbs, but for this recipe, I love how it forms a brown and bubbling top in the oven without bread crumbs. Feel free to add if you prefer! Make it your own!
First, you start with a roux. A roux is simply a mixture of fat (butter here) and flour, usually in equal measures, which is cooked together in order to remove the raw, floury flavor. For macaroni and cheese, you make a fairly light roux by cooking it for about three minutes. Then, milk is added to the roux to make the béchamel (or white) sauce.
First, start by melting the butter.
Then add the flour and seasonings and …
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon in a figure-8 motion, for three minutes. This one looks a bit darker than a classic roux might because of the smoked paprika.
Then, to make your white sauce (or béchamel), add the milk slowly, whisking the entire time, and cook until bubbly and thick.
Aaaand then add your cheese for your glorious macaroni and cheese situation.
There’s your base for the best baked mac and cheese recipe ever!
Tips for the Best Mac and Cheese
Don’t add more pasta. Resist the urge to add more pasta to stretch the recipe. You need a lot of sauce with that pasta because the pasta soaks so much and it otherwise cooks down. Over-dry mac and cheese is such a disappointment – don’t do it!
Resist the urge to add more cheese to the sauce. This can do weird things. Sprinkle more in between and on top if you must have more cheese.
Shred your own cheese. Pre-shredded cheeses have anti-caking agents and might not melt as well.
Remove the sauce from the heat before adding cheese. For the smoothest, most luxurious mac and cheese sauce, you don’t want the sauce to be cooking, still, when you stir in the cheese.
What to Serve with Mac and Cheese
Add bacon. Being a mixed carnivore-and-veggie household, sometimes I like to serve this baked mac and cheese with some crumbled bacon that the carnivores can drop over the top.
Serve with salad. A simple green salad, kale salad, or quinoa chickpea salad are perfect accompaniments to mac and cheese!
Make-Ahead Notes
I often assemble it up to the point of baking and refrigerate for up to 48 hours before it’s time to bake it. However! Your mac and cheese might not be quite as creamy as if it had gone straight into the oven. It will still be delicious, but that’s a downside.
Can You Freeze Mac and Cheese?
Yes, I have frozen it with success! I make it up to the point of baking, cover well, and freeze right in the pan. Then I bring it out and let it thaw at room temp for an hour or so, and then into the oven. Just like making it ahead and refrigerating it, the result isn’t quite as saucy. But still delish.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you use bags of shredded cheese or freshly grated?
I definitely prefer freshly grated, as pre-shredded cheese can result in a grainier sauce. That said, the convenience of pre-shredded cheese can’t be denied! And a mac and cheese with pre-shredded cheese is better than no mac and cheese at all. So do what works best for you!
What can I add to mac and cheese for flavor?
I love adding seasonings to the roux to amp up my mac and cheese. This one has smoked paprika for – yep – a smoky note. And I love how dry mustard powder helps emphasize the cheesy flavor. Some readers like to add a hefty pinch of onion powder, others love a bit of nutmeg. If you like heat, adding jalapeños is delicious (get my Jalapeño Mac & Cheese recipe here).
Do I have to use 2% milk?
No! Whole milk will do just fine; the result may be a bit thicker though.
Can I double this recipe?
Yes. I (and many others) have doubled this recipe with success – no changes needed other than a bigger pan!
More Mac & Cheese Recipes
- If you’re vegan, this Ridiculously Creamy Vegan Shells & Cheese or Super Creamy Vegan Stovetop Mac & “Cheese” will totally hit the spot.
- Veggie Lover’s Stovetop Mac & Cheese makes it a full-meal deal with broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots.
- Stovetop Butternut Mac & Cheese with pureed butternut squash and heavy whipping cream makes the most decadently creamy mac and cheese you may ever have.
- Jalapeno Mac & Cheese and Southwest Mac & Cheese lend a spicy spin!
If you try and love this recipe for mac and cheese, please leave a review! Even if you don’t absolutely love it, I welcome any and all feedback and I share all legit reviews. I test my recipes multiple times in my home kitchen, but I really appreciate knowing how they’re working for others; your reviews help me make tweaks until my recipes are just right! And they’re so valuable for other readers, too. Thank you! ❤️
The Best Baked Mac & Cheese Recipe Ever
Ingredients
- 8 ounces macaroni ( or other medium tubular pasta (like penne or conchiglie)* (1/2 pound or about 1 and 3/4 cups)
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika (plus more for sprinkling on top)
- 2 1/2 cups 2% milk
- 3 cups shredded medium cheddar cheese (approx. 12 ounces **)
Instructions
- Boil the pasta JUST until al dente, according to package directions. Drain and return to the pan you boiled it in. Set aside. (Mix in a little butter to keep the noodles from sticking if it’s going to be awhile before you make the sauce)
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- To a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the butter. When the butter has melted, add the flour, salt, dry mustard, pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika. With a wooden spoon or whisk, stir constantly for three minutes.
- Add the milk in a thin stream, stirring constantly with a whisk. Continue to stir constantly until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon, 5-8 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add 2 cups of the cheese, stirring until melted. You'll reserve the last cup of cheese for topping. Pour the cheese sauce over the pasta and toss gently until all of the pasta is coated.
- Add half the pasta to a 2-quart casserole dish (I like a tall 8-inch by 8-inch baking dish). Sprinkle on half the cheese. Add the rest of the pasta. Sprinkle on the rest of the cheese, then dust lightly with the smoked paprika.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the mac and cheese is bubbling and browning on top.
Made this for the first time this week. Substituted cumin for dry mustard (did not have any on hand)also added cubed chicken breast. Brought over to share at friends house and it was the most talked about dish among many fine dishes. Cumin added an earthy flavor that everyone liked. Used skim milk, added a little more flour to the roux and it thickened up fine. Doubled the recipe without any problems. Excellent dish.
Cumin – I love that idea! So glad everyone loved it. 🙂
I havent tried making this myself but on another site a few years ago I learned a couple of tips on how to make a good cheese sauce that really helped me. First is that if you get the cheese too hot it will become chunky (as it appears to be in the pictures here). The tip that worked for me to prevent getting the cheese too hot is to take the milk mixture off the heat before mixing in the cheese (which I see you directed in your recipe, probably it has to do with the baking at 375 afterward). The second tip was that you can prevent the stringyness of the melted cheese by adding some acid in just after the cheese is melted (or almost melted). For the acid I use some vinegar, wine, or lemon/lime juice (probably about 2 tablespoons of lime juice for the size of your recipe). I guess these are only useful tips if you like creamy smooth cheese sauce.
OMG just made this recipe i improvised and added 1/2 cup sour cream with milk …..had no whisk wished i did tho would have been so much easier but very tasty….but it worked…..
The consistency and texture of this recipe reminded me of Stouffer’s Mac N’ Cheese (which I mean as a compliment). Often times, baked Mac N’Cheese gets too dry as you mentioned and this wasn’t at all. I love the hint of smoked paprika too. I will definitely make this recipe again. Thanks!
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Pretty bland. An okay recipe.
I’ve always struggled with mac n cheese – it always came out dry, bland, gritty, just overall not appetizing. I gave this recipe a shot and it blew me away. In fact, I made it twice this week just to make sure the first time wasn’t a fluke!
I used cabot’s “seriously sharp” yellow cheddar (never knew the difference between their brands) and the flavor was amazing. I followed the recipe strictly, my only addition was to add a bit of my home made hot sauce after it baked in each serving and mix it in. Will definitely be making this again, thanks for the recipe!
This mac and cheese recipe looks amazing. Perfect addition to the table when you need a quick and popular dinner.
Best Mac and Cheese Recipe
I made this mac & cheese, and my friends and I agree that it needs it’s own twelve step program to stop eating it!! This is now my go to recipe for Mac&Cheese!
Ha – yeah, I’ll have to join that 12-step program along with you and your friends.
As a newly Retired IT Professional and “chef-in-training” I believe we have a keeper. I’ve been wanting to try a Mac / Cheese recipe since my new cooking for the family career began. My wife and daughter make a good Mac/Cheese, I just wanted to do something different as it’s just my nature to try things. After reading this recipe I felt this is the one and it was in fact “The One”! Just made this tonight, followed the recipe to the letter, all ingredients using optional Conchiglie Pasta which I have used in other recipes, followed directions including stirring to the minute, adding bacon as an option and also adhering to the “Note” about wanting to add additional pasta, so tempting but did as instructed! Results after serving my family and getting a rating from each, which are very picky eaters, a definite “5 Star” from all – Creamy and Cheesy, perfect taste and consistency – Will definitely make this again, Thank you Koren for the recipe and the explicit instructions, enjoyed making this for my family and enjoyed the eating even more so!!!!
Yeah! Victory! Love this comment; so glad you (and the family) like it. Conchiglie might be my very favorite pasta for macaroni and cheese – it’s just perfect. Congrats on the retirement!
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Fantastic recipe. I’m fourteen years old, and i can hardly peel a potato, let alone make myself dinner, but this recipe came out perfectly! Absolute hit with me and my brother, we basically inhaled it and even went in for seconds :’) If anyone’s looking for a nice crunchy layer on the top, sprinkling bread crumbs and a good helping of pepper works wonders, I’ve found.
Again, great recipe, doesn’t take too much skill, and comes out absolutely perfect! Thankyou!
My goodness, i think I’ve found THE mac and cheese recipe! This stuff is seriously so darn good, my entire family gobbled it up in a matter of hours! So so yum, and I topped the whole thing with panko-a fabulous addition! Thanks so much for the recipe-this will be my go-to from now on!
Love this Mac and cheese recipe. Thank you for the tip to resist the temptation to add extra cheese and pasta. A common mistake I’ve made in the past.Made for a dinner party and received so many compliants I tweeked the recipe slightly by heating fresh thyme, Rosemary and garlic in the milk then staining it to be used in the recipe. Adds an awesome flavor.
I made this tonight, and followed the recipe exactly because I didn’t want to waste the amazing cheddar I bought. I even timed the stirring to make sure I didn’t muck it up. Came out terrible. Tasteless and disgusting. Fed it to the dogs and mourned the loss of delicious cheese.
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I don’t know what I did wrong, but it was not creamy, it was grainy. I only found mild cheddar so that’s probably why it was tasteless?
I usually use a family tradition recipe when I bake Mac-n-cheese but I couldn’t find it yesterday for my fiance’s birthday dinner. I wanted it to be really good so I searched and found this recipe. It was different than your typical recipe for Mac-n-cheese (but I’m all about different). I was worried it would be hard, but it was super easy and came out amazing. I doubled up on the recipe, yet only used about 4-4 1/2 cups of milk. We also don’t have medium cheese in our grocery store so I used mild. I baked for about 30 minutes and it came out amazing! I did add bacon crumbles all over the top before putting in the oven as well. I will definitely be using this recipe again! Thanks!
Finally found a recipe that satisfies me. I am extremely picky about baked mac and cheese, and this is the perfect consistency. The only gripe I have is that it needs just a wee bit more salt to bring up the taste. Other than that, I loved it. I like a crunchy crust so I crushed up some Ritz crackers and sprinkled on top.
Yum, yum, yum!!! Made it for my mother in law who is battling cancer. Its her favourite and I know she’ll love it! Followed recipe as written. Thank you for sharing!
I love making homemade macaroni and cheese. I came across yours yesterday and figured I would try something new. I had family and friends over for a cookout and figured I would give it a whirl. Let me tell you it was the best I ever had. Everyone commented on how delicious it was and very creamy. This is definitely a keeper. Thank you for sharing. This is my number 1 recipe and definitely a keeper.
I’m so glad you (and your guests) liked it! 🙂
Awesome recipe, I made others that just made me sooo mad I vowed to never make baked again. But I’m not a quitter, so I compared this recipe with other so called” great” baked mac and cheese recipes and noticed this one had more liquid with less cheese. I also liked that you don’t use bread crumbs, I never really understood why they were needed, I don’t want my mac and cheese to crunch. Can’t wait to try this recipe with different kinds of cheeses. Thank you so much for posting this!!!!
Hi there,
I was wondering.. If I were to add chicken into this dish, would it affect the consistency and creaminess of the mac & cheese?
Any suggestions?
Hi there. I was wondering…If I were to add chicken into this dish, would it affect the consistency and creaminess of the mac & cheese? Any suggestions?
Holy, Kar! You can do no wrong, girl and you’re making me a kitchen superhero in this house (I do give you credit though!)
Made this exactly as directed and it came out perfectly! And I have a “dry mac and chee” history so it was lucky they gave me a second chance! Thanks, Kar!
It would be helpful if you wouldn’t attach three huge color photos to the printed recipe. The food looks good but I don’t need to waste all that ink for a recipe.
Hi Kristin, thanks so much for letting me know about this – I didn’t realize those photos were showing up on the print recipe page. Fixing that now!
This truly is the best mac and cheese recipe and I’ve tried tons of them over the years. Thanks!
Beth, I am so glad you liked it! I felt the same way when I first made this recipe. 🙂
I just want you to know that I have now stopped looking for the perfect homemade mac and cheese recipe for my family – I found it here! This is a huge hit in my house! My kids who DO NOT eat anything but the blue boxed stuff LOVE this 🙂 So glad I found you 🙂
Kristen, I love hearing this! I have a confession to make: my daughter will only eat the boxed Annie’s bunny mac, she won’t even go near this stuff (which, of course, we love)! So this gives me hope that she will come around. 😉
Hi — Does the dry mustard in this recipe make the dish at all spicy? I ask because I will be serving it to toddlers (in addition to adults!).
Thanks so much!
Totally awesome. I’ve been meaning to learn to make mac and cheese from scratch, and this recipe was easy to execute and delicious. I put a few crushed garlic cloves to the butter while it was melting; in my opinion everything can use more garlic. And I added about 1/2 cup of corn – it added a little sweetness and didn’t seem to mess up the sauce ratio. Thank you so much for this recipe! It’s going to be a regular in my kitchen for sure.
The best recipe I’ve come across. Straightforward, classic, delicious.
Oh, one more thing, any chance you have the nutritional value on this?
Hi Merideth! I’m so glad you like the recipe. I don’t have the nutritional value (not sure I want to know – lol!) but whenever I do want that info, I use this handy tool on about.com: http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php
Great Recipe, but total perfection comes only with the addition of a few tablespoons of stewed tomatoes after its been plated. Your taste buds won’t believe the magnificent creation you’ve just treated them too.
This is a good recipe! When I was pouring the sauce over the noodles, I was like THIS IS FAR TOO MUCH but when it came out of the oven still gooey, it made sense that the noodles needed to be so saturated. I put bread crumbs on top, but honestly wish I hadn’t, I think it would have been better without. But adding bacon, always a good idea. This was pretty easy, made a huge mess, and came out all bubbly and cheesy…my kinda recipe.
Ok so I found your blog yesterday while looking for a mac n cheese recipe (love the blog btw I will be around a lot trying your recipes) and after reading 3++ pages of reviews I believed to have found THE recipe. I was so excited to try this I went home yesterday and did this. I folowed the recipe with the following changes: I used whole milk and some cream instead of 2% and I used 2 parts yellow cheddar and one part white cheddar but everything else exactly as written. My results were very close to what I was hoping for but I could still taste the pastiness of the roux and my question is could it be because I grated my own cheese on a fine grate and although I had 3 cups it was very soft and “fluffly” so maybe I should have mushed it down some in the measuring cup? The cheese flavor was there but just could still taste the roux? Any thoughs? I didnt want to add more cheese since you had a warning to not do so but now thinking I should maybe try that? Any input is appreciated. Thank You
I had posted a long comment/questions and its aparently lost in cyberspace…Karen if it somehow made it to you and you could give me your thoughts that would be great
If I am making for a large group of people, is it okay to double everything with the pasta and sauce?
Yes, absolutely – I do that regularly. 🙂
Hi Karen. I came across your recipe after looking for new, and different techniques on making homemade mac and cheese and I found something very funny and interesting about yours. Im not a professional chef but ive worked in food a few years in my life so I like to cook and write my own recipes and I have to say, your recipe is almost to the t, exactly my recipe! Lol ive been making my mac and cheese like this for years since experimenting with numerous batches. The only difference with mine is I use a tablespoon of salt since I use unsalted butter and I normally add 1 to 2 tablespoons of cream cheese once the milk and butter/ flour mixture is combined to make the sauce thicker and silky plus it helps melt the hard cheeses better. I also use 1% milk just because I try to make lean mac and chees that doesnt taste it. I have to say yours is the closest I ever seen to mine and I like that you dont drowned your mac and cheese in butter and fat. You use the exact same amount of butter I do and you use lower fat milk and I say great job. Not as much guilt so you can indulge and enjoy! Thumbs up
P.s. and I was only looking at new techniques to come up with different flavored mac and cheeses for a party im cooking for like a lobster mac and cheese or bacon cheeseburger mac and cheese etc. Not because this recipe isnt awesome cuz it is and everyone thats tried it loves it. Just to be clear lol
Can this be done a day ahead? for like Turkey Day?
I’ve assembled it a day before, to the point before baking. The end result is a tad drier but it’s still delicious!
Would this recipe be enough servings for a thanksgiving meal with multiple sides? Or should I double it? Thank you!
Depends of course on how many people will be at the table, but personally I’d double it to be safe!
Hi.
This Mac and cheese actually turned out amazing in the end but I had a little hiccup. Are you sure you’re supposed to stir the flour and spices into the butter and THEN add milk? The first time I did this and the flour and butter just turned into a solid ball. Then when I poured the milk in, no matter how much I stirred, it wouldn’t mix in. I ended up throwing it out and starting the sauce over, this time melting the butter, then putting the milk, and then mixing the flour and spices in with the milk. It turned out perfectly, thickened just right, and melted deliciously with the cheese. Overall a great success. Was just wondering about the order of those two steps. Otherwise, great recipe. Thank you!
Hi Mila, yes, you are supposed to cook the flour and the butter together, this is called a roux and that three minutes is to help negate the taste the flour may impart. However, if you found a way that works for you, by all means, stick with it! If you decide to try it the way the recipe is written, perhaps start with a little less flour – the texture should be paste-ish, not a big ball! Thank you for asking 🙂
This recipe is “Kickin”!! I wonder how it would taste with Smoked Gouda rather than cheddar? Has anyone tried this yet? Would appreciate any feedback. Thanks Karen!!!
Hi there!
I will be making a triple batch for a large thanksgiving we are hosting on Saturday. Can this be prepped ahead, baked day of then transferred to a crock pot to keep warm? I am concerned it may get greasy.
Thanks!
This has been on rotation the last 2 years at my family’s Thanksgiving. It is now on DEMAND from parents, siblings, kids and extended family!
Thank you for this!!!
Awesome! I think mac and cheese is a must at Thanksgiving. So glad you and your family like it. 🙂