Stove Top Mac-N-Cheese by Alton Brown

"This is from Alton Brown's Good Eats show and it's an easy and good mac n cheese recipe to have on hand. You won't be buying the boxed stuff again after eating this. (edited 8/15/2008 - This was initially posted with 3/4 tsp of dry mustard but after making this a few times I agree with the reviewer that said this amount is too much so I've reduced it to 1/2 tsp.)"
 
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photo by limeandspoontt photo by limeandspoontt
photo by limeandspoontt
photo by limeandspoontt photo by limeandspoontt
photo by limeandspoontt photo by limeandspoontt
photo by Crystal G. photo by Crystal G.
photo by John L. photo by John L.
Ready In:
35mins
Ingredients:
9
Serves:
6-8
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ingredients

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directions

  • In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente and drain. Return to the pot and melt in the butter. Toss to coat.
  • Whisk together the eggs, milk, hot sauce, salt, pepper, and mustard. Stir into the pasta and add the cheese. Over low heat continue to stir for 3 minutes or until creamy.

Questions & Replies

  1. How to print a recipe from genius kitchen.
     
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Reviews

  1. I've made this three times. The first time, I followed the recipe, using all sharp cheddar. Sharp Cheddar is my favorite cheese, but it was a bit overpowering for the recipe. Now I make it with half sharp cheddar and half white American (cut up into small pieces) from the deli. It's perfect! Just enough bite from the cheddar, and smooth and creamy from the American. I'm done searching for the perfect mac and cheese recipe.
     
  2. I was very surprised at just how good this was-- I am *not* a fan of eggs in my mac & cheese, so much so that when I make Alton Brown's baked mac & cheese recipe I've been known to "forget" about the egg it calls for. I just don't like how it makes it set up all "custardy" because I prefer a much smoother sauce. This, however, was unbelievably good! Even with all the eggs in it, it came out creamy, cheesy (not at all bland) and perfect. At my husband's request, I put it in a baking dish, sprinkled over some buttered fresh breadcrumbs and ran it under the broiler. That made it "set up" somewhat which was okay but not my favorite (again, I'm more a fan of the Stouffer's-type creamy sauce). Next time-- and there WILL be a next time because this was super fast and easy, much faster than regular baked mac & cheese-- I will make part of it like that for him, and the rest I'll eat right out of the pot!!
     
  3. This was the BEST! I doubled the recipe and seved it as the main dish with a side of tomatoes and onions with Peter Luger Sauce. I think it was the perfect amount for my family (with some left over for lunch). It is very filling but one of those dishes you just don't want to stop eating because it is so good. AND EASY. Took no more than 20 minutes front to back. It is even easy enough for a simple lunch for the kids. The only change I made was with the milk. I forgot to get the evap milk so I used half the amount of cream (because it was all I had) and half the amount of whole milk. If it suffered, I didn't notice. The mustard is the key ingredient for me. I won't make a mac and cheese recipe without it. Thanks for posting this great recipe.
     
  4. This was a pretty good recipe. I've had better mac and cheese recipes, but this one is really quick and easy to make so it deserves 4 stars on that fact. I usually don't have milk or cream on hand so the evaporated milk was really great. This recipe reminds me of Stouffer's mac and cheese. It's really good and cheesy. I used the food network recipe which calls for 3/4 tsp of dry mustard. The only difference I would make to the recipe is to go ahead and boil a whole pound of pasta. I made half a pound of spiral pasta and it was literally swimming in cheese sauce. It seem like a huge waste, so I made half a pound more of pasta and mixed it in. This is a great starter recipe, I definitely see myself making this again with some add-ins.
     
  5. This mac & cheese was delicious! I made the mistake of giving my kids boxed mac and cheese when they were little so any time I made "real" mac & cheese they turned their noses up at it. Last night I decided we were going to attempt it again, when I realized I didn't have enough milk for Alton's baked mac & cheese recipe. I had all of the ingredients on hand, and this came together so quickly. Because it was ready before the rest of dinner, it sat for about 5min, and the sauce tightened up beautifully and coated the noodles even better than it did "fresh". The results - a super creamy, cheesy mac & cheese that even my two little critics gobbled up! Now to keep all of the ingredients on hand at all times so we never have to return to the box.
     
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Tweaks

  1. 1/2 teaspoon more of Texas Pete hot sauce, and used yellow mustard instead of dry mustard.
     
  2. Recently I've started using half sharp cheddar and half pepper jack cheese. I don't like spicy or even heat but the cheddar does a good job of mellowing out the pepperjack. I've also started adding chunks of thick-cut bacon and it is AMAZING!! Serve it with fried chicken and you have an amazing meal!
     

RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

I've been a vegetarain since 1995. I enjoy cooking healthy foods for my family. I also like trying new recipes. <img src="http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/gg271/MrsTeny/Permanent%20Collection/PACSpring09Iwasadopted.jpg">
 
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