Macaroni cheese
Works in the UK and the US. This version uses UK words and measures (hob, grams, gas marks); the US version uses stove, cups and °F. · US version of this page
Real macaroni cheese with a homemade roux sauce – the all-in-one way to make a smooth white sauce without lumps.
- Serves 4
- About 45 min
- Hob
- Best for: KS3 (ages 11–14)
- Vegetarian if you check the labels
Ingredients
- 250 g dried macaroni – contains gluten
- 40 g butter – contains milk
- 40 g plain flour – contains gluten
- 500 ml milk – contains milk
- 150 g Cheddar cheese, grated – contains milk
- 1 pinch ground black pepper
- 1 tomato, sliced, for the top (optional)
Need a different amount? Use the recipe finder to change the servings.
Equipment
- large saucepan
- medium saucepan
- colander
- balloon whisk
- wooden spoon
- box grater
- measuring jug
- ovenproof dish
- oven gloves
Safety first
- Wash your hands with soap for at least 20 seconds, tie back long hair and put on a clean apron.
- Ask about allergies before anyone cooks or tastes. This recipe contains: gluten, milk.
- Turn pan handles inwards and keep the area around the hob clear.
- Use dry oven gloves for anything that has been in the oven or under the grill.
Allergens: Cereals containing gluten, Milk. Some brands may also contain eggs. Always read every label and ask about allergies before anyone cooks or tastes.
Method
- Grate the cheese on the large holes of the grater, keeping your fingers away from the blades.
- Teacher-led: Cook the macaroni in a large pan of boiling water for 2 minutes less than the packet says, stirring now and then. (8 min)
- Teacher-led: Drain the pasta in a colander in the sink, pouring away from your body.
- Teacher-led: Melt the butter in the medium pan over a low heat. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring – this is the roux. (1 min)
- Teacher-led: Take the pan off the heat and whisk in the milk a little at a time. Put it back on a medium heat and keep whisking until the sauce boils and thickens. (5 min)
- Take it off the heat, stir in most of the cheese and the pepper, then stir in the pasta.
- Teacher-led: Tip into the dish, top with the rest of the cheese and the tomato slices, and put under a hot grill until bubbling and golden. Watch it the whole time. (4 min)
What this recipe teaches
Grating safely, Boiling and simmering, Making a sauce (roux), Mixing, Using an oven safely. Steps marked “Adult” are always done by an adult; steps marked “Teacher-led” are done by an adult for primary-age children and closely supervised for older pupils.
Nutrition per serving
| Energy | 2253 kJ / 538 kcal |
|---|---|
| Fat | 24.6 g |
| of which saturates | 14.9 g |
| Carbohydrate | 61.4 g |
| of which sugars | 7.4 g |
| Fibre | 2.4 g |
| Protein | 22 g |
| Salt | 1 g |
Worked out from the raw ingredients (optional ones and pinches not counted) using CoFID 2021 (McCance and Widdowson’s Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset, Public Health England). Brands vary – check labels. Figures for semi-skimmed milk (the recipe finder shows the other choices).
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0: McCance and Widdowson’s The Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset 2021, Public Health England.
Eatwell Guide groups in this recipe: Potatoes, bread, rice, pasta and other starchy carbohydrates; Dairy and alternatives. Learn about the Eatwell Guide.
Foods high in fat, salt or sugar sit outside the Eatwell Guide – enjoy them less often and in small amounts.
Curriculum links
- KS3 D&T – Cooking and nutrition: “cook a repertoire of predominantly savoury dishes so that they are able to feed themselves and others a healthy and varied diet”
- KS3 D&T – Cooking and nutrition: “become competent in a range of cooking techniques [for example, selecting and preparing ingredients; using utensils and electrical equipment; applying heat in different ways; using awareness of taste, texture and smell to decide how to season dishes and combine ingredients; adapting and using their own recipes]”
Try the interactive lesson
Step by step: a quick safety check, questions marked by Classfern, timers for each cooking step, then an honest look at how it went – a teacher or parent judges the cooking, and learners rate their own work. Photos of the finished dish stay at home.
Use the code your teacher gave you – never your name. Progress is kept on this device.