We like to use blue-veined cheeses, such as gorgonzola and Roquefort, or to combine a few of our favorite Italian cheeses, such as full-flavored Taleggio and rich fontina.įor the stovetop mac and cheese, we combine the cheese and cream in a skillet and stir constantly over a very gentle flame, just until the cheese melts. You’ll get more intense cheese flavor this way, so it’s especially good for smaller, side-dish portions of pasta that you can serve with a plain main dish, and for more pungent cheeses, whose flavor can overwhelm in full-sized portions. Stovetop macaroni and cheese is a different approach-quick and convenient. Use a flameproof casserole dish so you can melt the cheese and stir the pasta right in. The gentle heat from the white sauce is just enough to melt the cheese. Strain the sauce and then stir in the shredded cheese. Again, when you cook with almost any cheese, the heat should be gentle and the cooking time not too prolonged. The shreds will melt quickly when you stir them into the warm béchamel. Cook the béchamel for at least ten minutes, or even twenty-you want to be sure there’s no starchy, pasty taste. Whisk well for a smooth sauce, and stir constantly as it cooks. They enrich the white sauce with flavor when you add them early on. Mix onion, bay, thyme, and peppercorns into the roux. Stir the roux constantly with a wooden spoon to avoid lumps, use a whisk when it’s time to add the milk, and keep stirring. You’ll strain them out before you stir the cheese into the thickened béchamel. We like to add a bay leaf, sliced onions, and whole peppercorns when we’re putting together the roux. Here are the keys to making a velvety, savory cheese sauce: The starch in the roux stabilizes the cheese, keeping the sauce from separating as the macaroni and cheese bakes Shredded cheese is added to the béchamel (which is now called a Mornay sauce).
A béchamel is a simple white sauce that’s made by cooking equal parts melted butter and flour into a smooth paste (called a roux) and whisking in milk. When cheese is overheated, the protein solids and the fat separate, and it gets stringy and rubberyīaked macaroni and cheese needs a béchamel sauce to bind it.
Whether you’re making baked or stovetop macaroni and cheese, you’ll need to cook the cheese over very low heat and for the shortest possible time. Use a gentle heat for a smooth cheese sauce We also like a stovetop version, in which we experiment with stronger-flavored cheeses, melting them with some cream over very low heat before tossing in the pasta. The classic baked version is our favorite, based on a white sauce to bind the casserole, with Cheddar cheese stirred in. Like many comforts, it’s best when you keep it simple and straightforward. Macaroni and cheese is the ultimate comfort food. Mary’s apartment is filled with the cozy aroma of macaroni and cheese, and on a day like today, we can’t think of anything we’d rather eat. As we put the final touches on this story, our very last, just-to-make-sure recipe test is in the oven. It’s a raw, chilly day, and San Francisco is wrapped in fog.
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