Crisp on top, oozing with sauce and with perfectly cooked pasta, my Super Simple Macaroni Cheese is totally delicious, ready in just 20 minute and so simple to make – perfect for those busy days when you just want something easy!
Macaroni cheese is one of my all-time favourites – serious comfort food. We have it pretty much on a weekly basis, and I’ve spent a good many years perfecting it. I always used to get super frustrated because the cheese sauce would soak into the macaroni, meaning it was too dry and the pasta was overcooked. But after the best part of twenty years fiddling with it (it’s one of my oldest recipes) I think I finally have it nailed.
For me the key is getting the cheese sauce just right – not too thick, then making sure you under cook the macaroni so it doesn’t get overcooked when you put it in the oven and finally, putting it all in a really hot oven for just a short amount of time to crisp up the top without overcooking the macaroni or the sauce.
I like to serve this with a simple side salad dressed with my favourite Honey Mustard Dressing. My kids like to eat this with baked beans!
My favourite wine match for macaroni cheese is a crisp unoaked Chardonnay, but if you prefer red, a soft, fruity Merlot from Chile or France would work well here too.
More macaroni cheese recipes…
Love macaroni cheese as much as I do? Then you might like to try these other macaroni cheese recipes:
- Spanish Style Macaroni Cheese with Chorizo and Manchego
- Three Cheese Macaroni Cheese
- Leek and Bacon Macaroni Cheese
- Butternut Squash Macaroni Cheese
Super Simple Macaroni Cheese
Ingredients
- 300 g macaroni not the quick cook stuff, which really doesn’t work in this recipe
- 30 g butter
- 25 g flour
- 500 ml milk
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard (or to taste)
- 200 g mature cheddar (or to taste), grated
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 220C / 200C Fan / Gas Mark 7.
- Cook the macaroni until it’s a bit less done than normal – a couple of minutes less than you would usually do. The brand I use takes 10 minutes normally, so I give it 8 minutes for macaroni cheese.
- While the macaroni is cooking, make the cheese sauce. Melt the butter in a medium sized pan on a low heat. When the butter is foaming, add the flour and stir until it’s mixed in. Then keep cooking for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. It takes guts to do this. It looks like something is going to go wrong but it doesn’t!
- Very gradually add the milk, stirring constantly. Make sure each bit of milk is incorporated before adding the next bit. If you do this slowly on a very low heat, you should end up with a perfectly smooth cheese sauce with no lumps and no need to whisk. However, if it does go wrong for some reason, you can always use a whisk to beat out the lumps.
- When all the milk is incorporated, add the mustard, salt and pepper. (N.B. I use slightly salted butter, so I don’t add any extra salt here.) Then add half the cheese, stir to combine and turn off.
- When the pasta is done, drain it, retaining a little bit of the cooking water.
- Tip the pasta and a couple of tablespoonfuls of the cooking water into the cheese sauce and stir.
- Pour the macaroni cheese into a shallow ovenproof dish and sprinkle over the remaining cheese.
- Bake in the oven for 10 minutes. The top should be brown but the bottom should still be saucy and the macaroni should be perfectly cooked.
Notes
- I like to serve this with a simple side salad. My kids like to eat this with baked beans!
- Suitable for freezing.
- Nutrition information is approximate and meant as a guideline only.
Love Macaroni Cheese? Why not try some of my other versions?
Macaroni Cheese with Bacon and Leeks
Easy Butternut Squash Macaroni Cheese
Three Cheese Macaroni Cheese
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Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook says
Wow! I love super easy meals like this one. Thank you for sharing, Eb!
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Jhuls! Super easy is what I do best 😀 Eb x
Yvonne Jones says
What do you mean by non quick cook macaroni, is that something different from the normal macaroni I buy, does it state this on the pit.
Thanks
Yvonne
Eb Gargano says
Hi Yvonne – I just mean normal macaroni – the sort that cooks in 10 minutes (ish – maybe a bit more, depending on how you like it) normally. Sometimes you can buy quick cook macaroni which cooks in like 4 minutes or similar – that stuff would turn to mush in this recipe! Hope that helps. Eb 🙂
Yvonne Jones says
Many thanks
Yvonne
Eb Gargano says
You are welcome! Eb 🙂
Monika Dabrowski says
My kids would be happy to eat this every day! Looks so creamy and delicious! #CookBlogShare
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Monika – macaroni cheese is such fab comfort food, isn’t it? Good to know your kids would enjoy this 😀 Eb x
hilton Harvey says
This has been a favourite of mine for years as my Mum makes it but I have not had it in eons.
I used your recipe using 50g cheddar, 100g stilton and 100g of mozzarella and I added a bit of onion granules to the sauce.
Bloody fantastic Eb! Thanks.
Served with cajun chicken strips and garlic bread on wet and windy nights here in Plymouth England-
I have made it three times this week now and on my last serving even my fussy Son (Home for the weekend) commented on how tasty it was 🙂
Eb Gargano says
Thanks you so much for this lovely message! So pleased you like it 🙂 and I LOVE your adaptations!! I’m going to have to try your version now!! Eb 🙂
Robert says
First time in have made macaroni cheese in my life
It came out really well
Thankyou
Eb Gargano says
Hi Robert, thanks so much for this lovely comment! I am delighted it turned out so well for you Eb 🙂
Kira says
First time making macaroni cheese and it was bloody lovely. I topped it with Italian meatballs in tomato & basil sauce, crispy onions and cheese. It was so good. Thanks will make again.
Eb Gargano says
Thanks for this lovely comment, Kira. So pleased you liked it… and I love the sound of your adaptations! Eb x
Betty Margai says
Loved it!!! my daughter loves mac and cheese at nursery so thought i would try and make it…went down well…thanks so much.
Eb Gargano says
Thanks for this lovely comment, Betty. I am delighted you and your daughter enjoyed it so much! Eb 🙂
Marc Smith says
Absolutely lovely. Me and the kids enjoyed very much. I added some crispy bacon in and it melted in my mouth. I`ll definitely have this again
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so happy to hear that, Marc. Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know – means a lot!! Eb 🙂
Dr Stickabod says
My 6 and 9 year olds have declared this the best macaroni cheese ever, and mac n cheese is one of their tried and tested favourites! A lot of pre cooking followed by a short spell in the hot oven is key I think, what a great tip. Thanks so much for sharing!
Eb Gargano says
Thank you so much for this lovely comment – I am delighted to hear that you all enjoyed it so much! Being called ‘the best macaroni cheese’ by a 6 and 9 year old is high praise indeed (I know this because I have kids of similar ages and they are without doubt my harshest critics!!) Eb 🙂
Heike says
Really tasty. I have done mac cheese a few times, but this time was the best. The crunchy croutons and the consistency was great. The only thing I added was a bit if nutmeg as I think it goes well with cheese and a clove of garlic finely chopped in the butter.
My son, who is an aficionado of mac cheese said it was the best he has ever tasted!
Eb Gargano says
Yay – I am so happy to hear this! Thanks for letting me know 😀 I love the sound of your adaptations! Eb 🙂
E says
Hi, can this be made ahead or will it dry out? Thanks!
Eb Gargano says
It can be, but it won’t be as nice as if you make it fresh. I sometimes reheat leftovers for my lunch the next day and it’s OK – but the pasta is a little on the soft side and the sauce has all been absorbed… the flavour is still good though! Eb 🙂
Mary says
Lovely
Just made this turned out great
Thanks
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so happy to hear that 😀 Thanks for letting me know! Eb 🙂
Bruce Nainby says
First time maker of macroni cheese and it came out very tasty – the mustard certainly added to the flavour although I’m not normally a fan. The pasta had stuck together somewhat so maybe wil rinse with boiling water nexr time. Aso struggled with roux possibly I was just being impatient..
Eb Gargano says
Thanks, Bruce – I’m so happy you liked this – I agree about the mustard, it doesn’t really taste of mustard, but it really brings out the flavour of the cheese. Sorry to hear your pasta stuck together. I find the best remedy to this is to cook the pasta in a large pot with plenty of water and stir it occasionally. Then tip the pasta straight into the sauce as soon as you’ve drained it. It the pasta is cooked before the sauce, tip it back into the pasta cooking pot and stir through a very small amount of oil. This should stop the pasta sticking together while you finish off the sauce. A roux can be a little tricky the first time, but it’s much easier the more you practice! Eb 🙂
hannah says
how to I reheat it? am making it for a friend but they can’t have it freshly made. thanks
Eb Gargano says
I would reheat at 200C / 180C fan for 10-15 minutes, covered in foil. I would say that it’s not as good reheated as the pasta tends to absorb all the sauce, making it a little dry. That said, it will still taste good! If you want to avoid this issue, you could simply cook the cheese sauce and the pasta separately and keep apart in the fridge. (Mix the pasta with a little oil to stop it sticking together.) Mix pasta and sauce together at the last minute and bake as per the original recipe, adding an extra 5-10 minutes because the pasta and sauce will be fridge cold. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂
CANAN TEKIN says
OMG, finally I found super easy and yummy macaroni cheese for kids? yaaay. I added a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg if anyone likes nutmeg 🙂
taste soooo good.
Thank you soooo much ??
Eb Gargano says
Yay! I am so happy to hear that you liked this recipe so much 😀 Love the idea of adding nutmeg! Eb 🙂
Monika says
Hello!! :))
Can I use gluten free macaroni pasta for this recipe ??
thanks!
Eb Gargano says
Yes, that should work just fine! You will obviously also need to use cornflour or some other GF flour to thicken the sauce – but that will work fine too. Do let us know how it turns out! Eb 🙂
Jacqueline says
Excellent
Got my daughter to make it to (she is 16) showing her it’s easy to cook than phone in. She made this and now it’s a weekly thing, she makes dinner now once a week which is great all because she loved this thanks so much absolutely loved this
Eb Gargano says
Hi Jacqueline, Thank you so much for this lovely message 😀 I am delighted to hear that you are enjoying this recipe so much… and especially that it has got your daughter into the kitchen and enjoying cooking – that’s awesome! Eb 🙂
Louise Holmes says
Hi
After cooking the flour and butter on a low heat, do you add the milk gradually and also cook that on a low heat?
Other recipes I have used for a cheese sauce say you add milk gradually , then bring to the boil , reduce heat and simmer on a low heat for around two minutes ( so the sauce thickens) take off heat then add the cheese.
Or with this recipe do you not need a thicker sauce As it cooks in the oven ? Thanks
Eb Gargano says
Hi Louise, Yes – cook the flour and butter for 2 minutes, then add the milk gradually as per the recipe until all the milk is incorporated… if you do this slowly, the sauce will thicken as you go, so no need to bring to the boil and simmer. And yes, as you rightly point out, it will get thicker in the oven too. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂
Grisel says
Looks amazing, planning to try this out soon???
Eb Gargano says
Thanks you – do let us know how you get on 😀
Charli Ellis says
Hi when you say mustard which mustard are you referring to please. I’m English but presume it’s not English mustard as it would be too hot!
Eb Gargano says
Oooh – I do apologise. That should say Dijon mustard. I have now corrected that in the recipe card. Thanks for the spot! Eb 🙂
Deb says
Made this tonight for my parents. So easy! I was nervous about the roux but it came out perfectly! I couldn’t get hold of macaroni so used penne Rigate instead – it’s smaller than regular penne. I cut down the quantities as there were only 3 of us and mum doesn’t eat much at the moment (no room currently in their freezer!), and also added grated Parmesan to the cheddar (approx a third of the amount of cheddar used). It was amazing! X
Eb Gargano says
Yay! That makes me so happy to hear 😀 So pleased that it turned out so well for you! Eb 🙂
Lucy collett says
Lovely ? I’ve never made macaroni cheese before or a cheese sauce. My son really wanted to try macaroni cheese and I didn’t want to buy a ready made one as I thought it may put him off it. Easy to cook, thank you. I’m not the best cook but I turned out really good and he loved it as did I ?
Eb Gargano says
Yay – I am so happy to read this. Delighted that your first go at making macaroni cheese was such a success and that your son loved it so much! Eb 🙂
Rosemary du Plessis says
If I want to make it for 8-10 people is it okay to double up on all ingredients? This looks easy and delicious.
Eb Gargano says
Yes, absolutely – just double up on everything! Eb 🙂
Eva says
My sauce split and after reading online it seems I should’ve removed it fron the heat before adding the cheese. Which is not what your recipe calls for.
Eb Gargano says
Oh I am sorry to hear that and how strange, that has never happened to me… but it could be related to the type of cheese you are using. You could certainly try removing it from the heat first before adding the cheese to see if that improves things. Eb 🙂
toni Cleaver says
I really want to make this tonight, what flour did you use please?
Eb Gargano says
Hi Toni, I used plain (all purpose) white flour. Let me know how it goes! Eb 🙂
Ania says
I use hand held whisk and stir the sauce with it all the time and never get any lumps(when I make white sauce for lasagne for example) Will try this recipe tomorrow ?
Eb Gargano says
That’s good to hear! Eb 🙂
Emma Leite says
Wow Eb this is outstanding It’s like the easiest Mac & Cheese I’ve ever made!
Eb Gargano says
Aw yay – that’s so great to hear! Thank you for this lovely review 😀
kieron lydon says
Fab recipe and love the Dijon Mustard tweak.
I added some leftover shredded ham to the cheese sauce which I must say was amazing.
Eb Gargano says
Thank you for this lovely review and 5* rating! And I agree – leftover ham is a wonderful addition 😀
Blake says
Amazing. I can’t cook, but this, I can make. So simple and kids and wife love it. Kids go back for thirds.
Thank you!
Eb Gargano says
Aw yay – that’s so great to hear! Thank you for this lovely review and 5* rating! 😀
Molly says
Just done this for an easy midweek recipes for the kiddos. So easy! Thank you
Eb Gargano says
Aw yay – that’s so great to hear! Thank you for this lovely review and 5* rating! 😀
Jim L says
Made the recipe for 3. Was absolutely perfect. At so many points I thought I’d messed it up but it all came good in the end. Very tasty and super quick to make. Looking forward to trying some cheese variants. Thanks very much for sharing.
Eb Gargano says
Aw yay – that’s so great to hear! Thanks for this lovely review 😀
Many Shaw says
My husband is a big fan of macaroni cheese and for years I’ve tried dozens of recipes for it and although they’ve been Just OK this recipe in his words were ‘ the best he’s ever had’ !! Thank you, this is now a top favourite in our house
Eb Gargano says
Yay – I am so happy to hear that! Thank you for this lovely review… and especially the 5* rating 😀