Mac and cheese with the Thermomix® is ready in 25 minutes when the cheese sauce sets at exactly 90°C. We combine three cheeses: Parmesan for salt and depth, mountain cheese for melt, and Cheddar for colour.
Mac and cheese is American comfort food. Short pasta tubes in a creamy cheese sauce, filling and warm. The name comes from macaroni, but we prefer short tubes or penne because the sauce clings better.
One Pot Mac and Cheese with the Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 10 ✓
- 50 g Parmesan
- 250 g Emmental
- 1 garlic clove
- 30 g butter
- 1 tsp flour
- 400 g vegetable stock
- 400 g milk
- 350 g short pasta tubes (macaroni or similar)
- 2 spring onion white part
- mixed peppercorns freshly ground
Instructions 0 / 10
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1
Add the Parmesan in pieces to the mixing bowl and grate for 10 sec / speed 10.
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2
Add the Emmental in pieces to the mixing bowl, grate for 8 sec / speed 8 and set aside.
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3
Peel the garlic, add to the mixing bowl, chop for 3 sec / speed 8 and scrape down with the spatula.
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4
Add the butter and melt for 1 min / Varoma / speed 1.
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5
Add the flour and heat for 2 min / Varoma / speed 1.
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6
Set the mixing bowl to 4 min / 100°C / speed 2 and gradually pour in the milk followed by the vegetable stock through the lid opening.
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7
Add the pasta to the mixing bowl and cook for 10 min / 90°C / reverse direction / speed 1.
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8
Meanwhile, wash the spring onions, trim and slice into rings.
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9
Add the grated cheese to the mixing bowl and mix for 5 sec / reverse direction / speed 4.
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10
Serve the pasta in bowls, season with pepper, garnish with spring onions and serve immediately.
Tip: The original recipe calls for macaroni, but we prefer short pasta tubes as they stay firmer to the bite.
Video
Nutrition per serving
The 90-degree threshold is the key
Cheese sauce curdles above 90°C. The casein in the cheese denatures and the sauce turns grainy instead of creamy. Below 80°C the flour does not bind properly and the sauce stays thin. The 10 minutes at 90°C on speed 3 from the recipe card are not a suggestion but the only temperature at which the flour binds and the cheese melts without curdling.
Butter and flour are heated first at Varoma. This is the roux, classically called roux in French. Stir for 10 seconds / speed 4 so no lumps form. Then add the milk slowly and bring to 90°C. The grated cheese goes in right at the end, once the temperature is correct.
Three cheeses, each with a purpose
Parmesan provides salt and umami. 40 g is enough; more becomes too intense. Mountain cheese melts smoothly and gives body. Cheddar brings the classic yellow colour and a mild flavour. Gouda works just as well as mountain cheese, and so does Emmental. Mozzarella becomes too stringy and does not belong here.
Parmesan is grated on its own first, 10 seconds / speed 10. It is harder than the other cheeses and needs full power. Then add the mountain cheese, Gouda and Cheddar in pieces, 6 seconds / speed 6. The softer cheeses need less time, otherwise you get a paste rather than grated cheese.
Cooking the pasta at the same time
The 400 g of pasta cooks in a separate pot according to the packet instructions. This is intentional because the cheese sauce in the Thermomix® must hold exactly 90°C. If we cooked the pasta directly in the mixing bowl, the temperature would reach 100°C and the sauce would curdle. The one-pot recipe below works differently, using vegetable stock instead of pure milk and a lower temperature.
Drain the pasta and mix with the cheese sauce straight away. Do not wait, otherwise the sauce sticks to the pot. Dijon mustard, pepper and nutmeg give the sauce depth without being overpowering. Half a teaspoon of salt is enough as the Parmesan is already salty.
One-pot variation for less washing up
The second recipe cooks everything in the Thermomix®. Instead of pure milk we use 400 g milk plus 400 g vegetable stock. This thins the sauce and allows 10 minutes at 90°C with reverse direction / speed 1 without the pasta sticking to the base. Emmental instead of mountain cheese because it is milder and does not overpower the stock base.
Garlic is sweated with butter, then flour is added for the roux. 2 min / Varoma / speed 1 toasts the flour lightly, giving a nutty flavour. Pour the milk and stock slowly through the lid opening while the mixing bowl runs on 4 min / 100°C / speed 2. Then add the pasta directly, 10 min / 90°C / reverse direction / speed 1.
Reverse direction is essential, otherwise the pasta breaks up. After 10 minutes add the cheese, mix for 5 seconds / reverse direction / speed 4. Serve immediately, with spring onions and pepper. If you wait, the sauce thickens further and becomes stodgy.
Freezing works well in portions
Mac and cheese keeps frozen for 3 months. Freeze in portions and thaw overnight in the fridge. Reheat in the Thermomix® with reverse direction / gentle stir setting, otherwise the pasta falls apart. Or in the oven at 180°C for 15 minutes covered, then 5 minutes uncovered for a crust.
Mac and cheese also works as a bake. Place the drained pasta in an ovenproof dish, pour the cheese sauce over the top and bake at 200°C top and bottom heat for 20 minutes until golden. Goes well with broccoli salad with the Thermomix® or potato soup.
What other recipes do differently
Most Thermomix® mac and cheese recipes use a single cheese, usually sharp Cheddar or Gouda. We mix Parmesan, mountain cheese and Cheddar so that savour, melt and saltiness come together. Many recipes cook the pasta separately on the hob, while we use reverse direction at 90°C in the mixing bowl and skip the extra colander. A bechamel base with a proper roux is essential for us; processed cheese shortcuts as seen in many quick Cookidoo versions taste flat. What we leave out is the panko topping from the oven and a bacon or broccoli variation. Both can be added in the baking dish when needed.
More Thermomix® recipes: pizza dough, oven chicken with squash, orange Tiramisu.
