Best Cheess Qnd Cheese Mac And Cheese

The ideal mac and cheese needs more than one kind of cheese.

Generally, young and processed cheeses (think: cheeses you can easily slice with a butter knife) melt smoothly but taste bland when theyre mixed with a few pounds of pasta.

Aged and funky blocks are tricky melters but add a lot of complex cheese flavor to the dish.

This dichotomy explains why mac and cheese recipes often call for not one, but several types of cheese.

Sharp Cheddar especially the inexpensive, mass-market block you can buy at the supermarket strikes just the right balance between meltability and flavor.

If you dont want to buy three different types of cheese and rack up the grocery bill, its completely fine to use Cheddar on its own.

Just stay away from the pre-shredded kind, which often contains additives like cornstarch that interfere with silky melting.

Gruyere is a classic addition because it melts much like Cheddar, but has a lovely nutty flavor.

Other classics include Gouda, Muenster, Parmesan, fontina, Havarti and Monterey Jack.

Brie works well too, just make sure you remove the rind before mixing it in.

Traditionally, mac and cheese recipes instruct you to mix cheese into a bchamel sauce (made from butter, flour and milk) because the starch in flour stabilizes melting cheese, preventing it from breaking or turning into a stringy mess.

While the bchamel route certainly requires a bit of work, the great news it that it ensures silky results every time and allows you to push the envelope on cheese.

Think: American cheese (from a block, not singles), cream cheese or Velveeta.

These varieties were engineered to melt well, no roux necessary.

While plain Cheddar might break, a couple ounces of processed in the mix guarantee a gorgeous glossy sauce.

It relies on Monterey Jack, Parmesan and two smooth melters: American cheese and cream cheese.

This low-carb dish comes together with a spectacular combo of yellow Cheddar, pepper Jack and blue cheese (plus plenty of hot sauce).

Best Cheess For Mac Qnd Cheese