Southern Baked Macaroni and Cheese Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between Southern mac and cheese? ›

Southern-style mac and cheese is typically made with a milk-and-egg base rather than a roux. Here, the milk component is an infused milk-and-cream mixture reserved from cooking the noodles (which adds even more richness to the dish). The finished macaroni and cheese is firm enough to slice into solid squares.

Cooking macaroni in a small volume of water concentrates the starch from the pasta, helping the cheese form a creamy emulsion. Similar recipes call for cooking pasta in milk, which can scorch. Cooking in water and adding evaporated milk toward the end fixes this problem.

What Is the Best Cheese for Mac and Cheese? Sharp cheddar is the overwhelming popular choice, but for extra-creamy results, we think medium cheddar is even better. Other delicious options include Gruyère, smoked Gouda, and Monterey Jack.

Why put breadcrumbs on mac and cheese? Not only does a breadcrumb topping for mac and cheese provide great textural contrast to the creaminess within, but it also adds even more flavor to the dish.

It is better to use heavy cream for Mac and Cheese instead of milk, or better yet, use evaporated milk which has the thickness of heavy cream without all of the fat! Furthermore, it is more stable than heavy cream so your Macaroni and Cheese is less likely to curdle or separate.

Start your cheese sauce by making a roux. Add 1/2 stick of butter to your sauce pan and melt. Add sweet condensed milk (1-2 tbsps) and combine with butter. This step is optional, but the sweetness helps balance the natural acidity from all of the cheese and ties all of the flavors together.

Heavy whipping cream (or half and half) is the perfect substitute for milk in mac and cheese. This is actually a great option! The thicker consistency will produce a dreamy, creamy sauce that everyone will love. The flavor is bolder and richer, too, and you may enjoy it more than the original.

Pro Tip: Don't use pre-shredded cheese. Many store-bought shredded cheese brands coat their cheese with an anti-caking agent than can make sauces grainy and less creamy. While it requires a bit of an arm workout, grating your own yields the best texture.

What is the best cheese combination for homemade mac and cheese? ›

Cheddar and Monterey Jack are a match made in gooey heaven, especially when they're blanketed in tons of crisp topping. At last, a recipe that's as easy as the boxed stuff, but so much tastier. It relies on Monterey Jack, Parmesan and two smooth melters: American cheese and cream cheese.

If your mac and cheese tastes bland, it's either because it's under-seasoned, you didn't use flavorful cheese, or you didn't use enough cheese. Try adding a little more salt first, because that might fix it.

1/2 to 1 pound sautéed and drained ground beef, pork, turkey or chicken (you could also add in 1 tablespoon chili powder as you sauté the meat for a more chili-like vibe). 1 to 2 cups sautéed extra firm tofu, or puree some of the sauce with 1 cup soft tofu in a blender, then return it to the pot, then add your noodles.

Yeast extract improves the overall flavor and intensifies the Old cheese flavor. Yeast extract, containing natural flavored nucleotides, polypeptides, amino acids, organic acids, etc., is used in a wide range of foods as a natural flavor enhancer.

It's not southern mac and cheese if it doesn't have eggs in it- this is one of the primary differences between northern and southern. I also suggest mixing everything together before pouring into your casserole dish for better distribution.

The best known "types" of traditional Southern cheese are pimento cheese (which is a dip, not a cheese itself), and hoop cheese, which is now a relative rarity, but was ubiquitous before the 1960s in local stores.

The south is a magical wonderland where the okra is fried, the gravy is plentiful, and even mac and cheese is considered a veggie.

The inclusion of macaroni and cheese in “The Virginia House-Wife” helped to popularize the dish in the South and cement its place as a staple of Southern cuisine.