An easy recipe for gluten-free mac and cheese that is super creamy and cheesy. This is the best gluten-free mac and cheese recipe because of the homemade cheese sauce.
Prep Time5 minutesmins
Cook Time18 minutesmins
Total Time23 minutesmins
Course: Dinner, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Keyword: gluten-free mac and cheese, gluten-free macaroni and cheese
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, add about a teaspoon of salt to the water and a teaspoon of olive oil to help the pasta not stick together.
Cook the pasta to al dente according to the directions on the box (this is about 7 minutes). You don’t want the macaroni to be too soft, or it will fall apart when you stir it into the cheese sauce.
Drain the pasta and rinse it with cold water (to stop it from cooking further). Set the pasta aside for now.
In a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat, bring the unsalted butter, all-purpose gluten-free flour and onion powder to a light simmer. Once the mixture starts to bubble, continue to let bubble for a minute before adding in the milk. Be sure to whisk this continuously so it doesn’t start to burn.
Add the milk to the saucepan and continue to cook over medium heat (whisking constantly) until the mixture thickens up to a gravy consistency. This takes about 5 minutes.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and whisk in the hot sauce and salt.
Add the shredded cheese to the saucepan, one handful at a time, stirring well after each addition. Be sure to melt all the cheese you’ve added before adding the next handful of shredded cheese. Do not place the saucepan back onto the heat after you’ve started adding the cheese, or the cheese could start to get a grainy taste and texture.
Once all the cheese has been added and melted, gently stir in the cooked macaroni. Stir well until all the macaroni is coated in the cheese sauce.
Serve hot. Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to four days.
Notes
I recommend Barilla gluten-free elbows pasta. Gluten-free penne or fusilli would be a good substitution.
Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to four days.
Reheat in the microwave. Do not overheat or the pasta will turn rubbery.
For the creamiest results do not use packaged shredded cheese. Pre-shredded cheeses have a light coating to prevent them from sticking together in the package. This can prevent the cheese from melting correctly in the sauce.