Macaroni and cheese: cooking options, recipes, ingredients

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Prepared by: AlenaPrika

06/30/2020 Cooking time: 20 min

Juicy and delicious macaroni and cheese in a frying pan can be made in 15-20 minutes if you have all the ingredients. To ensure that the pasta is not lumpy, choose horns or shells and be sure to fry them.

The most popular and simplest recipe

Our hit parade of recipes opens with the most famous option. Probably every experienced housewife knows how to prepare cones with cheese, just like spaghetti or feathers, and yet we will not ignore this simple dish.

Before we plunge headlong into the cooking process, let’s make sure we have all the products necessary to recreate this simple version of the recipe. Let's check the list of what is needed to implement it:

• Pasta - 400-500 grams.
• Semi-hard cheese - 170-250 grams. You can take even less or more.
• Butter or ghee - 50-100 grams.
• Vegetable oil without a pronounced aroma - 1 tablespoon.
• Salt - to taste.
• Optionally use other spices if desired.

Here, in fact, is the entire list. If all components are available, we continue.

The simplest recipe

This cheese cones recipe is truly the easiest. You can even cook it from leftover products, for example, from leftover pasta and a piece of cheese lying around. For it you need to take:

• 400 grams of pasta - standard pack;
• two liters of water;
• a couple of teaspoons of salt (less can be done if the cheese is salty);
• two tablespoons of odorless vegetable oil;
• one hundred grams of hard cheese.

Pour cold water into the pan, you can immediately add salt to it. When the water boils, add the horns and stir them vigorously with a spoon. This simple step helps prevent the pasta from sticking to the pan. When the water with the horns boils, reduce the heat and cook the pasta for about seven more minutes. The time is often written directly on the package of cones, as it depends on the type and variety of pasta.

The finished horns are thrown into a colander. To make the water drain faster, use a spoon to stir the pasta a couple of times. Place the horns back into the pan and season with oil. Stir the pasta again. Repeat this again after cooling.

Now grate the cheese on a fine grater. The horns are placed on a plate and sprinkled thickly with cheese. The dish is ready! You can also decorate it with fresh herbs.

Technological process

Before preparing macaroni and cheese, please note that the products must be of high quality. The entire technological process will take no more than half an hour. The resulting amount of food can feed a large family. Let's start by removing the butter from the refrigerator an hour before preparing the dish.

You need a large saucepan. The best choice is 5 liters. It is equally important to use non-stick cookware. Housewives usually have in their arsenal a special container for cooking pasta. Fill the bowl one third full with cold water. Boil water and add salt.

Now pour vegetable oil into boiling water. This is necessary to prevent the products from sticking together during the cooking process.

To prevent macaroni and cheese from turning into an unsightly sticky mass, remember the golden rule: spaghetti, cones and other pasta products are cooked on average for no more than 8-12 minutes. You need to keep them slightly elastic. It is better to undercook the pasta than to overcook it and overcook it. To avoid any unwanted surprises, it's always a good idea to read the instructions on the pasta bag.

While they are boiling, quickly grate the cheese on any grater convenient for you.

Drain the finished pasta into a colander and rinse thoroughly under running cool water. Many people neglect this stage, believing that since the pasta is of high quality and hard, it will not stick together into a lump. Yes, everything is true, but that’s the recipe in this case.

Macaroni and cheese is a simple and quick dish to prepare. In principle, it is almost ready. Having decided in advance on the container in which the cheese, butter and pasta will be found, divide the piece of butter into several parts. Let's throw a couple of pieces at the bottom of this very container. The same pan in which they were cooked is quite suitable for combining macaroni with cheese and butter. Now we put our paste here and a few more parts from the entire amount of oil indicated in the recipe. Mix. The butter melts and coats the pasta.

Serve the macaroni with cheese, generously sprinkled with cheese shavings. You can add your favorite spices.

Cooking

Boil the horns

Pour cold water into the pan and put it on high heat, and you can immediately salt it. While the water is boiling, the salt will dissolve perfectly in it. Cover with a lid to help the water boil faster. As soon as it boils, pour a pack of horns into the pan and vigorously mix all the contents with a spoon for two to three minutes.

During the cooking process, be sure to stir the horns several times with a spoon, otherwise they will stick to the bottom and walls of the pan.

As soon as the water with the horns boils, reduce the heat and continue cooking for seven to ten minutes. Cooking time depends on the variety, type of pasta and taste preferences . For example, some gourmets prefer slightly undercooked or, conversely, slightly overcooked pasta.

So, the horns are finally cooked.

Drain the water from the horns

Place them in a colander and drain the water completely. Stir several times without water, and then pour the pasta into the same pan in which they were cooked and pour in two tablespoons of odorless vegetable oil.

Mix thoroughly again several times so that the oil is evenly distributed throughout the contents of the pan. I definitely do this so that the horns don’t stick together and lie in the pan in one big lump. While the boiled horns are cooling, stir them a few more times .

Cooking horns with cheese

Next you need to make the second ingredient. Grate any hard cheese on a fine grater. Place the horns on a plate and sprinkle them with freshly grated cheese. I also recommend adding a bowl of sour cream sauce and homemade mustard to the table for those who like a spicier taste. Bon appetit!

Fragrant pasta with garlic and egg

Making macaroni with eggs and cheese in a frying pan is just as easy. The aroma and taste are completely different from the previous version. This method will especially appeal to lovers of aromatic dishes with garlic.

For two servings you will need the following set of products:

• Pasta of your favorite shape - 200 grams.
• Semi-hard or hard cheese - 100-150 grams.
• Chicken eggs - 2 pieces.
• Garlic - 4-6 cloves.
• Salt - to taste.
• Lean, unflavored butter - as needed.

Preliminary instructions

We will prepare pasta in a frying pan with egg and cheese in 30-40 minutes.

Cook the products as described in the recipe above. Or we read the instructions on the package of pasta and do everything as described. Don't forget to add a spoonful of vegetable oil directly into boiling salted water before immersing the pasta in boiling water.

While the pasta is cooking, let's hurry up and prepare the garlic. It must be peeled and then cut into thin slices. Let's grate the cheese.

Wash the finished paste as in the previous case.

Learn more about how to cook mac and cheese in a skillet.

Beat eggs in a separate cup with salt. It’s easier and more convenient to do this using a regular fork. Pour grated cheese into the egg mixture.

Heat the frying pan by pouring vegetable oil into the bottom of the dish. Three to five spoons will be enough. Now fry the garlic slices thoroughly. This will take a minute and a half. Pour the cheese mixture into a hot bowl and immediately add the washed pasta to the pan. Mix quickly. Reduce the temperature of the stove. Let's simmer for another minute. Now the frying pan macaroni and cheese is ready. The recipe will help out when guests are already on the doorstep, or at the end of the working day, when you are tired and want to quickly come up with something edible and at the same time tasty.

Parmesan Cheese Macaroni Recipe. Calorie, chemical composition and nutritional value.

Nutritional value and chemical composition of Parmesan Macaroni and Cheese.

The table shows the nutritional content (calories, proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals) per 100 grams of edible portion.

The energy value of Macaroni and Parmesan cheese is 219.2 kcal.

Primary Source: Created in the application by the user. Read more.

** This table shows the average levels of vitamins and minerals for an adult. If you want to know the norms taking into account your gender, age and other factors, then use the “My Healthy Diet” application.

With added ham and tomato sauce

The process of turning recipes into reality is a little more complicated. But this is only to experience the excellent taste of pasta with ham and cheese.

List of components:

• Spaghetti (or other products) - 400 grams.
• Hard cheese - 200-300 grams.
• Tomato paste - 5-7 tablespoons. Delicious macaroni with cheese and ham can only be achieved by using high quality tomato paste. You need to take the most natural product possible, with a thick consistency.
• Butter - 70 grams.
• Ham - 250-350 grams.
• Boiled water - 0.5 cups.
• Garlic - 3-5 cloves.
• Bay leaf to taste.
• Salt and other spices.

Pasta with tomatoes: a delicious dish for the whole family

This pasta dish looks very elegant. All this thanks to greens and red tomatoes. It is better to choose small specimens, but if there are none, you will have to cut simple tomatoes. To prepare the dish you need:

• 300 grams of boiled horns;
• 200 grams of small tomatoes;
• 150 grams of hard cheese;
• one hundred grams of butter;
• 50 grams of breadcrumbs;
• three to four cloves of garlic;
• a bunch of dill;
• salt and pepper to taste.

The dill is washed, dried on a paper towel and chopped quite finely. The garlic is peeled and also chopped. Grate the cheese on a coarse grater. Place twenty grams of butter in a frying pan and heat it. Add the garlic and fry it for a couple of minutes. Add small tomatoes and fry for another five minutes.

Place pasta on top of the fried tomatoes and garlic, mix everything, add another 50 grams of oil and cook for another five minutes.

Prepare a baking dish. Grease with the remaining oil and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Transfer fried pasta with vegetables. Sprinkle cheese and dill on top. Bake for about five minutes at a temperature of 200 degrees so that the cheese is baked. Served hot.

Macaroni and cheese is almost a classic combination. They are simple and quick to prepare. Despite its simplicity, this dish attracts both adults and children. You can decorate it with fresh herbs. Also, some recipes contain tomatoes. The most basic recipes contain a minimum of ingredients. You can also experiment with types of cheeses and add different vegetables. By the way, pasta dishes are great to make from lunch leftovers.

Preparing Ingredients

To prepare pasta with ham and cheese in tomato sauce, prepare all the ingredients:

1. It is better to grate the cheese on a coarse grater.
2. Cut the ham into strips or cubes - whichever is more convenient and tastier for the cook and his tasters.
3. Peel the garlic and then chop it. Here you can use a special press or a regular knife.
4. Mix boiled water at room temperature with half a glass of tomato paste.

Step by step recipe

1. To make delicious pasta with cheese and ham, you need to make a sauce.
2. Fry the ham in a frying pan. We use butter for this. When the ham becomes golden brown and slightly crispy, remove it into a separate bowl.
3. Next, pour water mixed with tomato paste into a hot frying pan. Add garlic, bay leaf, suitable spices. Simmer the resulting mixture over moderate heat for about seven minutes. If necessary, you can add more salt to the sauce.
4. In order not to waste time, at the same time we cook and wash the spaghetti (or any pasta).
5. Now add the fried ham to the tomato sauce and boil over low heat for another 6-7 minutes.
6. Pour cheese shavings into the finished washed pasta and mix.
7. Now let's put the spaghetti prepared in this way into the frying pan, where the ham is simmering in the sauce.

Macaroni with cheese and ham in a fragrant tomato sauce is served immediately. The dish tastes better while it is hot.

In a delicate creamy sauce

Let's not ignore cream sauce lovers. For such gourmets there is a very interesting and quite simple recipe. Let's please ourselves and our loved ones by preparing macaroni and cheese in creamy sauce. Before we plunge headlong into this exciting process, let’s take a product inventory.

What we need:

• Durum pasta - 300 grams.
• Cream - 1 glass.
• 150-200 grams of grated cheese.
• Salt, herbs and seasonings.

A simple pasta recipe in the oven

This option is also very simple. However, the suggestion here is to bake the mac and cheese. It is noteworthy that in this form even capricious children eat such a dish with pleasure.

To cook horns in the oven with cheese, you need to take simple ingredients. This:

• 400 grams of pasta;
• two hundred grams of any cheese;
• a piece of butter;
• a little salt.

How to make horns with cheese? To begin with, boil the pasta in salted water, leaving it a little hard. Then drain in a colander and lightly dry. The cheese is grated on a medium grater, half is combined with pasta.

Grease a baking dish with a piece of butter and lay out the pasta. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Place in an oven preheated to 180 degrees. Bake until the cheese becomes an appetizing crust.

The process of creating a dish

Before cooking macaroni and cheese in creamy sauce, you need to boil the products. Cook them for two minutes less than indicated on the product package. Remember to add vegetable oil and salt to boiling water. We also rinse the finished pasta. In general, everything is as usual.

By combining the process of cooking products and the process of creating sauce, we save a lot of time. Therefore, while the pasta is ready, heat a frying pan with a thick bottom over the fire. Pour cream into it. Salt and add various spices. Let's bring the cream to a boil and even go a little further - boil the cream sauce for no more than half a minute.

Place the boiled and washed pasta into the frying pan. Sprinkle them with cheese. Mix all the ingredients. Cover the dish with a lid for three to five minutes. A hearty and tender lunch is ready. You can call everyone to the table.

Making Macaroni and Cheese Casserole

First, preheat the oven to 180 degrees. While it is heating, prepare all the ingredients.

Grease the baking dish with oil. Boil the pasta in salted water until tender. This takes about ten minutes depending on the type of pasta.

Heat the milk in a small container, add mustard, salt and hot sauce. Put aside.

Place one and a half tablespoons of butter and most of the cheese into the pasta, pour milk with spices. Place everything in the prepared form and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. You can also sprinkle paprika here. Bake in the oven for thirty minutes. Cheese horns are served hot in portions.

With cheese and minced meat

A semi-finished meat product often becomes a lifesaver if you need to wait a couple of days until payday. So, if you have the necessary products in the refrigerator, then you should definitely please yourself and your family with an easy-to-prepare dish. What you need to implement the recipe:

• Pasta of any shape - 400 grams.
• Minced meat (any) - 350-400 grams.
• Hard cheese - 100 grams. You can take a little less, but not less than 50 grams.
• Salt - to taste.
• Spices for meat or minced meat - any, according to preference.
• Garlic - 1-3 cloves.
• Butter - 50 grams.
• Vegetable oil - 2-3 tablespoons.

Macaroni with cheese sauce and broccoli

Broccoli goes well with this dish. This dish is not only satisfying but also healthy.

Ingredients:

• Pasta - 300 g.
• Hard cheese - 100 g. (Cheddar)
• Wheat flour - 1.5 tbsp.
• Milk - 1 glass
• Sugar - 1 tsp.
• Salt - to taste
• Broccoli -150 g.
• Butter - 50 g.
• Black pepper - to taste

Preparation:

Melt butter in a frying pan and add flour and stir.

Add milk until the lumps dissolve and add sugar.

Grate the cheese and stir, add seasonings as desired.

Boil the pasta.

Arrange the broccoli on the florets and cook for 2 minutes. Place the cabbage in a colander and place in cold water.

Add pasta to the mixture. Mix. And add broccoli.

How it's done

Prepare the product according to the instructions on the pasta packaging. And be sure to wash it.

At the same time, prepare the addition to the pasta. Fry the minced meat in a frying pan. We use vegetable oil for this mission. Season the minced meat with salt and spices - according to personal preference. It needs to be cooked for at least 25-40 minutes (we look at the quality and grade of the semi-finished product). It is better to keep the lid closed at first. Periodically stirring the minced meat will prevent it from burning. 5-8 minutes before the expected end of frying, remove the lid from the pan and cook without covering it.

Throw a piece of butter into the washed boiled pasta. Let's put all 50 grams into the depths of the pan. Oil will prevent pasta from sticking together and make it more tasty.

Grate the cheese.

Place all the fried semi-finished meat into the pan with the prepared pasta. Mix the minced meat and pasta very thoroughly. Then pour in the cheese shavings and mix again. Let's cover the lid. Place a kitchen towel in several layers on top. Wait five minutes for the cheese to melt slightly.

Ready! We put it on portioned plates and hear from our admiring family how great their mother and wife are.

How to cook an interesting dish?

Cones with cheese and eggs are prepared quickly. Even a child can handle them. To begin, boil the pasta until tender. It's best to follow the instructions on the pasta package.

The onion is peeled and finely chopped. Place a piece of butter in the pan, when it melts, add the onion. Simmer until soft, stir and lightly fry.

Break the eggs into a bowl, beat with a fork or whisk, add spices. Grate the cheese on a fine grater. Combine half the cheese with the egg and stir thoroughly.

Add pasta to the fried onion, stirring, fry for a couple of minutes. Add eggs. Wait until they are ready and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. The cheese cones are ready when the last ingredient has melted. This dish tastes best when served hot.

With cheese and sausages

A dish cooked in the oven will be no less tasty. We prepare macaroni with sausages and cheese from a certain food set:

• Pasta - 400 grams. The mass of the dry product is given.
• Sausages or sausages - 3-6 pieces.
• Chicken eggs - 2 pieces.
• One onion of medium diameter.
• Sour cream - 150-200 grams.
• Cheese (not processed) - 150-230 grams.
• Vegetable oil - as much as needed for frying.
• Salt - to taste.
• Suitable spices and herbs are optional.

Description of actions

So how do you make mac and cheese? As usual, first of all you need to boil the dry product. Since we will be baking the pasta, it is important not to overcook it. The pasta should remain al dente. Exact instructions are always included. It is printed directly on the product packaging. An important point in preparation is to opt for more prominent types. This will give the sauce and cheese a good grip on the pasta.

Let's free the onion from the husk and other inedible parts. We'll chop it up any way you like.

Sausages also need to be chopped or cut into circles - the option depends on the taste and creativity of the cook.

Heat the frying pan by first adding vegetable oil to it. Fry the onions and sausages over medium heat. Everyone chooses the degree of frying themselves. Some people like very crispy pieces, while for others a light browning is enough.

Beat the eggs with a fork or whisk. Mix the egg mixture with sour cream. If necessary, you can add spices and salt.

We make large shavings from the cheese (use a grater).

Formation and thermal process

When all the components are prepared, you need to turn on the oven and take a baking tray of a suitable size.

Treat the inside of the mold with any oil (to the taste of the cook). It is important not to skimp on this process.

Form the dish in layers. First comes the pasta. The thickness of the layer is no more than 2-3 centimeters. Fried sausages with onions are laid out on them. Depending on the circumstances, we make several layers, alternating them. The final step is to pour the sauce over everything that is in the baking dish. Cover the surface very generously with cheese shavings.

Place the macaroni with cheese and sausages in the oven for 15-25 minutes.

If you don’t really like a golden-brown cheese crust, you can bake the dish first without cheese for 10 minutes. Then, after removing the pan from the oven, sprinkle with cheese shavings and return to the oven for another 10-15 minutes.

With cheese, vegetables and sausages

By increasing the range of products from the previous recipe, you can get an even more delicious option. It is a little more complicated: you will have to additionally process some vegetables. But as a reward we will receive an excellent nutritious dish.

List of components:

• Pasta - 400 grams.
• Ham, sausage or frankfurters - 150-330 grams.
• Eggs - 2 pieces.
• Cheese - 200 grams.
• Milk - 1 glass.
• Fresh tomatoes - 2 pieces.
• White onion - 1 piece.
• Butter - 40-60 grams.
• Optionally, you can add champignons - 150-300 grams.
• Salt and spices - to taste.

Macaroni with cheese sauce in a slow cooker

Pasta with sauce is always made either in a frying pan or in the oven. But in a slow cooker they become richer and much more satisfying.

Ingredients:

• Pasta – 400 g
• Butter - 60 g
• Salt - to taste
• Black pepper - to taste
• Condensed milk - 400 ml
• Milk – 150 ml
• Cream - 100 ml (20% fat)
• Cheese – 400g

Preparation:

We cooked pasta.

You can even do it 1-2 minutes less so that they don’t spread out in the slow cooker.

Drain the water. Do not rinse the pasta.

Cut the butter into small cubes.

Three cheeses on a coarse grater. Set aside some for sprinkling.

Pour the pasta into the slow cooker, add oil and stir. Add cheese, milk and cream.

Salt and pepper. We set it for an hour and a half. Then add cheese.

Instructions

As with all the recipes above, you need to cook the pasta according to the package directions.

If there are mushrooms in the dish, they need to be prepared. Let's wash the champignons. Cut into plastics or pieces. Peel the onion and chop it too. Remove the peels from the tomatoes. It is very easy to remove the skin by pouring boiling water over the tomatoes and then rinsing with cold water. You can chop the tomatoes for this dish however you like. We clean the sausages and chop them randomly. Mix them with chopped tomatoes.

Fry the champignons and onions until golden. For this you can use vegetable oil or butter. Grind the hard cheese using a grater. For the sauce, which we will pour into the dish a little later, beat eggs with milk, salt, spices and cheese. We process the form from the inside. Grease with cream or lean - it’s up to the creator of the dish to decide. In any case, it will turn out delicious.