A classic and easy Baked Mac and Cheese Recipe! This recipe is dangerously easy to make and is topped off with a buttery, crisp toasted panko topping! If you have a cast iron or oven-safe pan handy, you can even bake it in the same pan that you use to make the sauce!
Baked Mac and Cheese
Today I’m sharing one of my favorite comfort foods — baked mac and cheese!
I hope you don’t mind all the savory recipes I’ve been sharing recently. With Easter right around the corner I’ve been refreshing some of my favorite side dishes like my broccoli salad, deviled eggs, and now this baked mac and cheese. Don’t worry, after today my calendar is full of sugar 😉
Until then, let’s talk more about this classic comfort food. Homemade Mac & Cheese is a simple staple that everyone should have a go-to recipe for. This one is mine. It’s cheesy, creamy, and uncomplicated. Everything a good mac & cheese should be.
What Do I Need to Make Baked Mac & Cheese?
Mac and cheese is simple to make and doesn’t require any fancy ingredients. Here’s what you need:
- Macaroni Noodles — though let’s be real you can use 8 oz of pretty much any shape of pasta!
- CHEESE — All caps for obvious reasons. Your cheese selection can make or break your baked mac and cheese. Shredding your own is preferred, more on that a bit further down the post.
- Whole Milk
- Butter
- Flour — for making your roux. Don’t worry, it’s so easy! I hate to even mention that this baked mac and cheese starts with a roux because so many people are intimidated (I even have an easy mac and cheese that requires no flour and no roux because of this). All we’re doing is whisking together melted butter and flour, honestly.
- Spices — salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion power, and ground mustard. A little goes a long way for flavor.
How to Make Baked Mac and Cheese
Alright, that roux I mentioned? It’s simple, just look at steps 1-5 below. Start by melting your butter and then add flour. Use a whisk to stir in the flour until the mixture is smooth and no lumps remain.
When you add your milk the mixture may separate a bit. This is fine, everything will come back together once the milk warms up a bit. Add your spices and bring everything to a bubble and cook (stirring continuously so nothing burns) until the mixture is thickened.
It’s very important that your mixture thickens before you continue. The mixture should be creamy and should coat the back of a spoon (see step 5 below). If it’s not thickened, your baked mac and cheese will be too liquidy and runny. We want creamy decadence, not a runny mess.
Finally add your cheese and stir until melted (steps 6-7 below). Then in go your prepared macaroni noodles. Finally top everything off with some toasted panko and bake!
Speaking of That Toasted Panko Topping…
My baked macaroni and cheese is incredibly cheesy and creamy, but what really sets it over the top is the buttery panko topping. I love the crisp, crunchy texture of panko (and 100% prefer it to using breadcrumbs). Panko gives the smooth and creamy mac and cheese that extra something that makes it irresistible.
Before adding it to the top of your (not yet) baked mac and cheese, you’ll add it to a small pan along with some butter and olive oil and then stir it frequently until it becomes lightly golden/toasted.
It’s such an easy extra step and it adds everything to this baked mac and cheese!
What cheese should I use for my baked mac and cheese:
I use a mix of sharp cheddar and white cheddar as well as mozzarella for this recipe, but you can substitute your favorite cheese for the cheddar (I recommend leaving the mozzarella alone, it helps make things creamy and amazing, but you do you). Colby, Monterey Jack, and Gruyere are all great options!
Another word of caution, most cheeses that you buy pre-shredded are tossed with cellulose powder before they are packaged. This keeps the shreds from clinging to each other so that you don’t have a big glob of sticky cheese. Unfortunately, this cellulose powder can keep things from melting properly when you go to use that cheese in this recipe. If you opt to use pre-shredded, you run the risk of things not melting properly and your mac and cheese not turning out.
Honestly, more than once I’ve made this using pre-shredded cheese with great results, it’s just risky and results can’t be guaranteed. I’m currently having a moment with Tillamook brand cheese, which is the best pre-shredded cheese I’ve ever tasted and is not tossed with cellulose. It’s pricier but worth it (and no, they’re not paying me to say this!). Even Zach loves it and he’s usually the first to try and talk me back over to generic.
Do you cover baked mac and cheese in the oven?
For this recipe there is no need to!
I made a brief video (see it on my YouTube channel or below the recipe) so you can see exactly how I made this baked mac and cheese. Enjoy!
Other Recipes You Might Like:
Baked Mac and Cheese
Be sure to check out the how-to VIDEO at the bottom of the recipe!
Ingredients
- 8 oz dry macaroni noodles (230g)
- 4 Tablespoons butter (55g)
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour (31g)
- 3 cups whole milk (710ml)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon ground mustard
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese¹ (226g)
- 1 ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese (170g)
Panko Topping
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup seasoned panko crumbs (60g)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C)
- Begin cooking your pasta according to package instructions. Do not over-cook, in fact, for best results cook one minute less than indicated time. Once finished, drain, drizzle with a tiny bit of olive oil and toss to coat so the noodles don't stick together while sitting.
- Meanwhile, melt butter in a 10" cast iron pan² over medium heat. Once it has melted, add flour and whisk until smooth and no lumps remain..
- Add milk and spices (salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and ground mustard), stir well and bring to a boil. You may notice that the milk and butter will separate -- continue to heat, stirring frequently, until the milk is heated and they combine
- Once mixture comes to a boil, reduce heat, bring to a simmer, and stir frequently until mixture is thickened.
- Reduce heat to low and add cheddar and mozzarella cheese. Stir until cheeses are melted and mixture is smooth.
- Add cooked, drained pasta noodles and stir until well coated by the sauce.
- Set aside while you prepare your Panko topping.
Panko Topping
- Combine butter and olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Heat, stirring occasionally, until melted.
- Add panko and stir well until the butter and oil has been mostly absorbed. Continue to stir until panko is lightly toasted and turns a light-medium brown color
- Sprinkle toasted panko evenly over mac and cheese.
- Transfer to oven and bake uncovered on 350F (175C) for 15 minutes.
- Garnish with parsley, if desired, and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
This Baked Mac & Cheese Recipe was originally published 01/12/2018. Post has been updated to include additional tips and improve user experience 04/19/2019.
Lisa Howard
My 12 year old made this tonight (for tomorrow’s dinner). It’s so easy and my kitchen smells amazing. She used sharp cheddar, Gruyère and a little shredded parmesan for the cheese sauce. Love this recipe! It was easy for her to follow and I had a lil bite.
Sam
That’s so awesome, Lisa! I’m so glad you enjoy it so much! 🙂
Tane
Great recipe I though I messed it up I didn’t measure mozzarella just added a heap my mixture was gloopy started to freak out but once it heated it was fine and tastes delicious
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re happy it still turned out just fine for you, Tane! Enjoy 😊
Cathy
Simple and simply delicious! Best Mac and cheese recipe I’ve tried!
Terryann
Can this be made and frozen?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Terryann! We haven’t tried freezing, but we think it would work just fine. You can thaw it in the refrigerator overnight and then bake it. 🙂
Michelle
Making this for supper, I did change a few things because that’s just the way I cook, I added a touch of paprika and used minced garlic instead of powder, I also didn’t have Panko crumbs so I used crushed pizza goldfish crackers
Kelsey
Okay so I am making this for thanksgiving where Mac and cheese is like the MAIN side dish. There is gonna be 11 people. Should I double or triple the recipe and how would I adjust the cook time?
Sam
Hi Kelsey! I would at least double it, but I’m not sure on a bake time. Everything is already cooked so I would just make sure to not over-bake it. 🙂
Ashley
When am i supposed to add the flour?
Sam
Step 3 to the melted butter. 🙂
Amy
Can this be prepared the day before (except for the Panko) and be put in the oven before serving the next day? Thank you!
Sam
Hi Amy! That should work just fine. 🙂
Lindsay Nolen
I have fixed many of your recipes and you’re my go-to when I need something new. Last night I made this Mac and cheese. I’m normally not a M&C fan but this is next level! Absolutely delish!! Thank you!
Sam
Yay! I’m so happy to hear this recipe was such a hit for you, Lindsay! Thank you so much for trying my recipes, I really appreciate it! 🙂
Christine Kennedy
Hi Sam Great recipe..Ive tried it with different cheeses and my favorite is white old cheddar and montery jack/jalepeno.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Sounds delicious, Christine! We’re so happy you’re liking the mac and cheese. 🙂
Max
Thank you for sharing this recipe Sam! It turned out great. I made a 1-2 person portion using cheddar and parmesan cheese. Cooked some celery with my maceroni to freshen it up a bit and topped with toasted corn bread. Delicious!
Kayleigh
I made this recipe over the weekend. I doubled it and put it in a 9×13 dish. It came out amazing! My husband said it is outstanding and definitely restaurant quality! This will be a go to dish now!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you liked it Kayleigh! Enjoy 😊
Brett Williams
Made this today for a family birthday for 10 adults. HUGE hit with everyone. I made 16 ounces of pasta, so essentially doubled the ingredients. I used 4 cups of heavy creamer and that was the only real deviation from the recipe and the one ingredient that I didn’t double. I did use shredded cheese and it melted\blended without any issues. The shredded chees that I got was from Aldi. 8 oz. of the Gruyere\swiss and 8 oz. cheddar. Super easy recipe and the video made it even easier to follow along. I’ll definitely make this again!
Sam
So happy to hear this, Brett! Thank you so much for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Kelly
Everyone needs this recipe! First, I must commend you on your video. Too many others presume that we are Wolfgang Puck and you truly add every bit of advice and caution that beginners do not know. The cheese sauce is outstanding—we seriously cut up some French bread to dip in and it was yummy. This is a definite favorite.
Sam
Thank you so much, Kelly! I’m so glad you enjoyed the video as well. 🙂