One-Pot Beer Cheese Mac and Cheese

This one-pot mac and cheese is going to change the way you think about this classic dish. 

Mac and cheese: Good.  Beer cheese dip: Good.  Now put those two things together and you’ve got yourself this super creamy, cheesy, and savory hug in a bowl.  It’s a tad more grown up than its nostalgic counterpart but still evokes that feeling of comfort.

First, I boil pasta in salted water, drain, and set aside.  In the same pot, I make a light, amber-colored roux caramelized with fresh garlic and shallots as the base of the creamy, cheesy sauce.  I add in some mustard and Worcestershire sauce to add a little tang, along with whole milk and a touch of cream.  Now it’s time to season and add in the beer.  I keep the seasonings simple – salt, pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg to help bring out flavors.

As far as the beer goes, I use something light and neutral in flavor – Usually a lager, pilsner, or a pale ale.  The alcohol cooks out of this and leaves behind that tanginess of a beer cheese dip that we all know and love. 

And the cheese.  The hero of this dish.  I use four different types of cheese in this mac and cheese.  Cream cheese to help bring out a neutral creaminess and Velveeta.  Velveeta gets a lot of flak, especially in so-called “gown-up” mac and cheese recipes.  Yes, I know it’s not fancy.  But it just makes SUCH a huge difference.  Velveeta gets the job done and helps bind everything together to keep it creamy and melty and prevents the sauce from breaking. 

After I make the cheese sauce, I fold in cooked pasta for a delightful and nostalgic bowl of cozy goodness.  Any short-cut pasta will do – Just make sure it’s hearty enough to hold up to the richness of the cheese sauce.  Shells or rotini work great! 

Make this on the next cold, snowy winter day.  You won’t regret it!

Eat well and enjoy!

The Details

• Pasta – I like to use a short pasta that will withstand the hearty, creaminess of this cheese sauce.  A shell-style pasta or rotini works well and holds the sauce nicely!  The pasta shown in the photos is lumaconi, also known as shellbows. 

• Let's Talk About Al Dente –Literally translated as “to the tooth,” al dente pasta is what many consider the ideal consistency of pasta when cooked.   It is somewhat firm (although not hard or chalky) and has a bit of a bite while still being tender.  Because the pasta will cook longer once added to the cheese sauce, you’ll want to make sure to cook it just slightly less than the full time on the package to avoid mushy pasta. 
  • Usually, a package of pasta will have al dente directions…  But if not, it’s a safe bet to boil the pasta 2 to 3 minutes less than what the package says to get that al dente bite.  You’ll want the pasta to have somewhat of a toothsome bite without being hard or chalky.  If it is still hard, boil for a minute longer.    

• Let’s Talk About Roux – Roux is essentially cooked flour and fat (in this case, butter).  For a basic roux, you melt/heat fat over low/medium heat, add flour, and whisk often while the mixture bubbles and cooks.  It is the base for many cream sauces and soups and helps create a thickener without the clumpy-ness of just adding flour to a liquid.  The amount of fat and flour can vary, depending on the type of sauce you’re making (i.e., thinner vs thicker sauces).  Likewise, the amount of time you cook a roux also depends on what you want the outcome of the sauce to be.  Longer, darker roux is best for rich stews like gumbo; whereas shorter, lighter roux is best for white sauces or cheese sauces. For this roux, I melt butter and add in the aromatics (garlic and shallot) to let them cook and become caramelized, before adding the flour.
  • *Tip:  When making a roux, you’ll want to whisk it often and watch it carefully to prevent burning.  It is super easy to make but can burn easily so don’t leave the stove until it’s done.    

• Mustard and Worcestershire Sauce – These add a nice subtle tang to this recipe.  If you don’t have grainy mustard, Dijon would work great too!  I would avoid using yellow mustard as the flavor might overpower the rest of the dish. 

• Milk and Cream – I mainly use whole milk in this dish with a touch of cream to add richness.  2% milk would also work fine but I would avoid skim milk if possible.

• Seasonings –    You can add salt and pepper to taste in this recipe – I don’t add a ton of extra salt because I salt the pasta water and there tends to be a good amount of salt in the cheese.  I love using coarse ground black pepper as it adds a nice bite to the final dish.  But finely ground works great too!  Nutmeg might sound like a weird ingredient for mac and cheese…  But it adds a great complexity without making the dish taste like nutmeg.  It pairs well with the cheesy sauce and adds another level of flavor.   

• Beer – Any kind of (unflavored) light to medium-bodied beer works for this recipe.  Something like a pilsner, pale ale, or lager would work great! 

• Cheese – There are four, yes four different types of cheese in this recipe.  And they all serve a purpose.  Smoked Gouda and Havarti both have wonderful flavors and are great melting cheeses.  If you can’t find smoked gouda, normal would also work! I knew I wanted a really creamy mac and cheese when I was writing this recipe – So I add in just a touch of cream cheese and Velveeta to help with that.  Don’t skip these!  They help bind everything together to create a creamy sauce that doesn’t break and become greasy. 
  • Feel free to experiment with different cheese combinations!  Just make sure you choose good melting cheeses so that your results aren’t greasy and stringy. 

• Why Freshly Shredded Cheese? – I prefer to shred the cheese myself because pre-shredded, packaged cheese usually contains anti-caking agents that can prevent the cheese from becoming all creamy and melty (ever notice how pre-shredded cheese feels kind of powdery?).  If you can, buy a block of cheese to shred at home – It’s also usually a less expensive to go this route too!