Best Recipe for Old School Mac n' Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 pounds whole-wheat macaroni
- 3/4 cup butter
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 6 cups milk, divided
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon mustard powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- salt and ground black pepper to taste
- 1 (8 ounce) package shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
- 3 (8 ounce) packages shredded American cheese
- 1 (8 ounce) bag potato chips (such as Lay's®), crushed
- 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
- 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- butter-flavored cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, 8 minutes; drain.
- Melt butter in a large pot over medium-low heat. Slowly add flour to butter, whisking constantly; cook until brown and the mixture no longer smells of flour, about 5 minutes. Pour 1 cup milk into the flour mixture, whisking continually until fully incorporated, about 45 seconds; repeat twice. Add remaining 3 cups milk to the mixture, whisking to incorporate. Stir Worcestershire sauce, mustard powder, onion powder, and cayenne pepper into the mixture; season with salt and black pepper.
- Reduce heat to low. Cook sauce, whisking frequently, until it begins to thicken, about 10 minutes. Add about half the package of shredded Cheddar cheese; stir continually until the cheese melts completely. Repeat with remaining half package of Cheddar cheese and the American cheese, about 4 ounces at a time. Once cheese is entirely incorporated, remove sauce from heat.
- Stir drained macaroni into the cheese sauce to coat. Divide macaroni between two 9x13-inch baking dishes.
- Mix crushed potato chips, 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese, and Parmesan cheese in a bowl. Top the macaroni with the potato chip mixture evenly. Spray the potato chip mixture with cooking spray.
- Bake in preheated oven until the crust is golden brown and the sauce is bubbling, 35 to 45 minutes.
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