Old-Fashioned Mac and Cheese
This old-fashioned mac and cheese is cheesy without being soupy and perfect for beginners since you don't need a roux! Not just that, but you can easily prep it ahead of time. Basically, this recipe is every host's dream - easy and delicious!
No matter what else is on your menu - whether it be Jamaican oxtail stew or Jamaican-style curry goat, this mac and cheese pairs easily with the rest of your dinner spread! Looking for more sides? Try this easy rice and peas with canned beans or these flaky buttermilk biscuits.
Recipe Overview: Old-Fashioned Mac and Cheese
✅ Recipe Name: Old-Fashioned Mac & Cheese
🕒 Ready In: 45 minutes with only 15 minutes of prep!
👪 Serves: 18
🍽 Calories: 453 calories (estimated)
🥣 Main Ingredients: elbow pasta, sharp cheddar, pepperjack, gouda, whole milk
👌 Difficulty: Easy! No roux - just grate, layer, and bake!
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Why You'll Love This Mac & Cheese
- It's simple to make & perfect for beginners! Seriously, the hardest part about this recipe is grating the cheese.
- It's a nostalgic favorite. This recipe is just like your grandma's mac and cheese. No fuss - just a cheesy and delicious side that'll have the whole family asking you to bring it to Thanksgiving or the next family gathering!
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Key Ingredients
Elbow macaroni. The classic pasta choice for a classic baked macaroni and cheese. The elbow curvature hugs the cheese, and some of the cheese sauce gets in the middle. You can also use cavatappi, penne, or rotini.
Cheese. Young Gouda, sharp cheddar, and pepper jack cheese melt extremely well, and their flavors balance each other. Smoked Gouda can be a bit overpowering, so be sure to reach for regular Gouda cheese. You can replace pepperjack with Monterey Jack for a neutral flavor with less spice.
Sour cream. Stabilizes the cheese as it melts, so the mac and cheese stays creamy.
Eggs. Act as another stabilizer for the cheese and make the macaroni and cheese firmer, just like your grandma's recipe.
Seasonings. Add depth to the flavor of the macaroni and cheese with earthy, smoky, and sweet notes.
How to Make Old-Fashioned Mac and Cheese
- Step 1: Grate all the cheese and mix them together. Set aside about a third.
- Step 2: Make the custard mixture. Mix the milk with the egg, sour cream, and seasonings.
- Step 3: Stir the cheese and the custard mixture together with the hot elbow pasta.
- Step 4: Layer the pasta mixture with the reserved cheese and bake the mac and cheese at 400°F for 30 minutes.
FAQs
When cheese is exposed to extremely high temperatures or heated for an extended period, the protein tightens, causing the fat to separate out and resulting in a greasy mac and cheese. To avoid this, don't cook the mac and cheese at a higher temperature or for longer than recommended.
No. A roux is simply one of many ways to help stabilize the cheese sauce in a baked mac and cheese. This recipe uses a combination of sour cream and eggs to avoid the cheese separating into fat. Other recipes, like this crab mac and cheese, use low heat for the cheese sauce and evaporated milk, which has a lower percentage of water.
Any baked mac & cheese is best enjoyed right after preparation since cheese tends to be less elastic once cooled and reheated, but there are some things you can do to preserve the integrity of the mac and cheese when you reheat it.
First, avoid the microwave if possible. The microwave will heat the cheese too fast and unevenly. Reheat covered in the oven at a low temperature (between 275 - 325°F). You can do this on the stovetop, setting your burner to the lowest setting.
Add a little milk to the pan and stir once it's soft enough to move around. This will help the cheese melt more evenly.
Ainseanlea's Top Tips & Substitutions
- Don't use pre-shredded cheese. They are typically coated with potato starch or other anti-caking agents, which prevent the cheese from melting evenly and can result in a clumpy and greasy mac and cheese once baked.
- Do not rinse the pasta after boiling! The starch that coats the pasta helps the cheese to stick to the elbows and stabilizes the melted cheese.
- For a crisp-bottomed macaroni and cheese bake it in a dark pan, like cast-iron. For a mac and cheese casserole without a crusty bottom, use a light-colored pan.
- For an even richer flavor, make this baked macaroni and cheese with evaporated milk instead of whole milk.
- Mac and cheese is best enjoyed warm since cheese can get rubbery when reheated. For the best texture when serving, assemble everything incuding layering ahead of time, and bake right before you plan to serve.
More Recipes For The Cheese Lover!
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Old-Fashioned Mac and Cheese (With Egg)
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat oven to 400℉
- Grate all the cheese then mix together by hand until evenly combined. Remove about a third of the mixture and set this aside to use in layering later.24 ounces gouda, 16 ounces sharp cheddar, 10 ounces pepper jack
- In a small mixing bowl whisk together the sour cream, eggs, milk and all the seasonings well, making sure that the eggs are evenly and completely incorporated.8 ounces whole milk, 4 ounces sour cream, 1 teaspoon chili powder, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon white pepper, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, 2 large eggs
- Boil the pasta according to manufacturer's instructions until al dente.22 ounces elbow macaroni (dry)
- Once cooked, drain the pasta (do NOT rinse) and, while hot, add to the large mixing bowl with most of the grated cheese from step 1. Mix to evenly incorporate.
- Pour in the milk/egg mixture and mix well until the cheese has started to melt and forms a cheese sauce. There will still be unmelted pieces of shredded cheese. This is fine.
- Add a third of the macaroni and cheese to a greased 9x13-inch casserole dish, spreading it in an even layer then add a third of the reserved shredded cheese from earlier.Do this 2 more times.
- Bake on the top rack of your oven at 400°F for 30-40 minutes until the top is golden brown and a crust has formed. Allow the macaroni and cheese to rest for 5-7 minutes before serving.
Nutrition
Notes
- Don't use pre-shredded cheese. They're typically coated with anti-caking agents, which prevent the cheese from melting evenly, resulting in a clumpy and greasy mac and cheese.
- Mac and cheese is best enjoyed warm. You can assemble everything ahead of time and bake right before you plan to serve!
This recipe was easy to follow and came out delicious. My whole family loved it!
Hello! I just wanted to be sure that 24 ounces of gouda is correct! Snd...kind of gouda?
Thanks!
Hi Maria! Yup, 24 ounces of gouda is correct. This is a very cheesy mac and cheese! 🙂 Young gouda is used for this recipe (just make sure the package doesn't say its aged - aged gouda doesn't melt as well and young gouda.) Also, I used regular not smoked but you're welcome to use smoked young gouda if you want that smoky flavor! 🙂
I’ll be making this for thanksgiving !
Glad to be a part of your day and I'm sure everyone will enjoy it! Happy Thanksgiving!