Cheddar cheese sauce is a breeze to fix, and it can easily transform plain steamed broccoli or cauliflower into a more flavorful vegetable dish. Or use it as a sauce for a basic gratin or mac and cheese. It’s an essential everyday sauce, and can easily be adapted with different cheeses and seasonings. Add a dash of nutmeg or cayenne pepper, depending on how you’ll be using the sauce. The recipe makes about 3 cups of sauce.
PrintBasic Cheddar Cheese Sauce
Use this creamy basic cheddar cheese sauce to dress up plain pasta or vegetables, or use it as a dip.
- Prep Time: 8 minutes
- Cook Time: 7 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Sauces, Cheese
Ingredients
Scale
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard powder
- 2 cups milk (or half-and-half)
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (8 ounces)
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
- When the butter is hot and the foaming subsides, add the flour, and ground mustard and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Gradually add the milk and continue cooking until thickened and bubbling, stirring constantly.
- Add the cheese and continue cooking until melted, stirring frequently.
- Thin the sauce with extra milk, if necessary.
- Add salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.
