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Mac and cheese

United States · No.32 / 103

Mac and cheese

Mac and cheese

Firm shell pasta is coated in a smooth American-cheese and cheddar sauce, folded with Fontina, and baked. This rendition uses no roux.

35 min · Difficulty ●●○○○ · 1videos

Cook this pasta on video

Watch the creators’ original videos for the method and finish.

Brian Lagerstrom10 Minute Stovetop Mac and CheeseWatch on YouTube ↗

Meet the dish

An American staple of short pasta coated in melting cheeses and baked

American cheese supplies stable melting, sharp cheddar provides flavor, and Fontina brings stretch. With no flour roux, milk and cheese are whisked smooth before a short, hot bake preserves flow.

Pasta shapes to use

  • Medium shell pasta that holds sauce in its cavities

Key ingredients

  • American cheese
  • Sharp cheddar
  • Fontina
  • Whole milk
  • Butter
  • Grated onion

Follow the cooking scenes

  1. Mac and cheese: Parcook the pasta.

    Step 1: Parcook the pasta

    Heat the oven to 220°C. Boil shells in salted water for about five minutes, roughly half the package time, then rinse cold to stop carryover cooking and leave room for sauce absorption.

  2. Mac and cheese: Build a no-roux sauce.

    Step 2: Build a no-roux sauce

    Cook grated onion in butter for about five minutes until golden and dry. Bring milk just to a simmer, lower the heat, and melt in American cheese. Add pasta, spices, butter, and cheddar and whisk vigorously for about three minutes.

  3. Mac and cheese: Fold in Fontina and bake.

    Step 3: Fold in Fontina and bake

    Off heat, fold in Fontina without fully melting it and add black pepper. Transfer to a dish, concentrate remaining cheddar around the edges, and bake for 10–15 minutes until bubbling and browned in spots.

What to watch for

  • Pre-shredded cheese can contain anti-caking agents that make sauce grainy. Grate blocks just before cooking and melt gradually over low heat.
  • Fully cooked pasta turns soft in the oven. Parcook and cool it, then remove the bake when the edges bubble, before the center dries.

What sets it apart

American cheese provides the emulsion, cheddar the flavor, and Fontina the stretch in this no-roux baked version.