Beer Cheese Mac n Cheese
This extra creamy stovetop mac n cheese combines the classic, cheesy comfort food you love to eat with the tasty, hoppy beverage you love to drink. If you have ever tried beer cheese dip, you'll know this is a solid combo.
Equipment
- Whisk Recommended
- Normal Kitchen Utensils
Ingredients
- 1 Lb Elbow Macaroni Or Shells
- 12 Oz. Sharp Cheddar Cheese Grated, About 3 C
- 12 Oz. Monterrey Jack or Gruyère Cheese Grated, About 3 C
- 24 Oz. Beer Room Temperature (Trust Me)
- 2 C Heavy Cream Room Temperature
- 6 Tbsp Butter Unsalted
- 6 Tbsp All-Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp Onion Powder
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/2 tsp Paprika
- Salt and Pepper to Taste
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large pot over medium-high heat.6 Tbsp Butter
- Begin boiling water for your pasta in another large pot.
- Whisk the flour in with the butter, creating a roux. Continue stirring, careful not to let the roux burn, for about five minutes. The flour should be cooked through and beginning to darken in color. It will start to smell nutty in flavor.6 Tbsp All-Purpose Flour
- Add the onion powder, garlic powder, paprika and 1/2 tsp salt, and cook for another minute.1 tsp Onion Powder, 1 tsp Garlic Powder, 1/2 tsp Paprika
- Once your pasta water is boiling, drop the pasta in and boil per the package directions. Be sure to salt the water.1 Lb Elbow Macaroni
- Back to the roux pot, begin slowly pouring in the beer. Start with a 1/4 C at first, whisk that in, then add more. Note: The roux will thicken almost instantly into what looks like wet sand. That's normal and it will smooth out with more liquid. As you mix more beer in, you can start pouring more in at a time. Whisk constantly to keep lumps out of the sauce.24 Oz. Beer
- Slowly whisk the cream into the sauce using a batch method similar to the beer.2 C Heavy Cream
- Working with handfuls at a time, whisk in the grated cheese. Only add more cheese after the current handful is fully integrated into the sauce. Too much cheese at once leads to lumps. Reserve three handfuls of cheese for later.12 Oz. Sharp Cheddar Cheese, 12 Oz. Monterrey Jack or Gruyère Cheese
- Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste and turn off the heat.Salt and Pepper to Taste
- Drain the pasta and fold it into the sauce along with the remaining grated cheese. Be sure not to stir too much at this point. Let the last few handfuls of cheese stay slightly intact and melty.
- Serve right away, garnished with a sprinkle of paprika and black pepper if you desire. Hot sauce is also a stellar topping.
Notes
When picking a beer for this recipe, focus first on a beer you like, and second one one that has a stronger flavor. Light beers will be overpowered by the mac n cheese. Something like a lager will give a nice, subtle layer of flavor to the end of each bite. I can see an IPA doing well here as well. Stay away from sweet beers.
There is often a trade off on the cheeses you use for mac n cheese. The cheese with most of the flavor (cheddar here) often is not the meltiest cheese. That is why you include a meltier cheese, like gruyère or monterrey jack, to help smooth everything out and bind everything together.
Grating the cheeses helps them evenly integrate into the sauce. It is also important to WATCH THE SAUCE as it cooks. When trying to cook cheese or milk into a sauce, it is important not to let it scald or burn for risk of causing lumps.
Fun fact: this dish uses a light (white) roux, which is also the base thickener for gravy and béchamel sauce – one of the French mother sauces and the beginning of most mac n cheeses. If you were to cook the roux longer (about 40 minutes longer), you would get a dark roux – the base of gumbo.