This creamy crockpot mac and cheese starts with uncooked elbow pasta; no boiling these noodles. Simply throw the milk, cheese, and seasonings in the slow cooker for a meal everyone will love!
The slow cooker is super portable and the dish won’t dry out. This is a great casserole to take to a potluck or family get together.
Creamy Crockpot Mac and Cheese
There are lots of different ways to make mac and cheese, but two of them are more popular than others. The first type is southern or baked mac and cheese, which includes eggs and is almost like a casserole. The second type is cooked on the stovetop in a béchamel sauce. There are no eggs and it is super creamy.
In order to get that ultra creamy texture in a crock pot, you either have to use condensed cheese soup or Velveeta cheese, neither of which appealed to me.
The next best thing is to use evaporated milk and American cheese, the kind you get from the deli counter. Barring American cheese, using a melty cheese like Monterey Jack or White American will also produce creamy results.
If you are making for the holidays
If you’ve never made this before, please do a dry run before the holiday! Everyone’s slow cooker acts differently, so it’s important to try this out first. Please read through the FAQ below as well for best results.
Frequently Asked Questions
There have been quite a few questions on this recipe, please check here before asking in the comments as it may already have been answered. PLEASE READ the notes in the printed recipe.
Can I double this recipe and does it change the cooking time?
Yes, this recipe can be doubled provided you have a large enough slow cooker. The cooking time will not change.
I don’t eat yellow cheese, what is a good white substitute?
Monterey Jack works well, as does White American and White Cheddar. A marble cheese should work as well. Sharp cheddars will give this dish the best flavor, try Vermont white sharp cheddar!
Can I make this ahead and reheat it?
We don’t recommend reheating macaroni and cheese as it never tastes quite the same and there’s a possibility that the macaroni will become mushy. However, if this is a deal breaker, you can reheat it – simply add some milk to loosen the thickened sauce while reheating. We recommend making it and having it ready right before you leave. Turn off the slow cooker but leave the lid on. When you arrive stir it and loosen with milk if needed.
Why was my mac and cheese gritty?
Prepackaged shredded cheese contains an anti-caking agent that can cause your final product to taste gritty. Purchase your cheese from the deli and shred it yourself. We’ve also discovered that some less expensive cheeses are gritty even when you shred them yourself, but after the mac and cheese sits for a while the grittiness goes away.
Why was my mac and cheese mushy?
If it cooks too fast or too long it will get mushy. The biggest culprit is thin macaroni noodles. We use Barilla brand and have also used Creamette. These noodles are thicker and sometimes have ridges. Thinner noodles will cook much faster and turn mushy.
Another reason could be an older slow cooker that may cook hotter (even on low) than a newer crock pot. Leave the lid on for one hour on low. DON’T increase the temp to High! Stir after one hour then check after 15 more minutes. Check and stir every 15 minutes after that if needed. Mine was done is 1 hour and 45 minutes.
Mushy mac and cheese can also be the result of using gluten free macaroni noodles as they do not hold up as well. One of our readers made this successfully with gluten free pasta. she said hers was done in 90 minutes but began to get mushy at 2 hours, so it’s important to keep an eye on it!
Can I mix all of the ingredients, refrigerate overnight, and put in the crockpot a few hours prior to serving?
Yes, with the exception of the pasta. Wait until you take it out of the fridge and are turning the slow cooker on before you add the macaroni.
I’m confused by the cooking time, is it 2 hours or 3?
Actually, it’s up to 3 hours. You should cook the dish on low for 1 hour, then stir it and check for doneness. After that, check it periodically (every thirty minutes or so) until it is done. The actual cooking time is completely dependent on the slow cooker you have (similar to ovens, they all cook differently), hence the “up to 3 hours” instruction.
To keep our mac and cheese from being bland we added mustard, garlic, and cayenne to ours in addition to the basic salt and pepper. These can all be adjusted to your taste.
Crockpot Mac and Cheese
IMPORTANT – There are often Frequently Asked Questions within the blog post that you may find helpful. Simply scroll back up to read them!
Print It Rate ItIngredients
- 1 pound elbow pasta uncooked (regular, NOT gluten free, NOT quick cook pasta) We use Barilla brand
- 2 ½ cups whole milk
- 12 ounces evaporated milk
- 12 ounces Extra sharp cheddar 3 cups shredded (from the deli, shred yourself, don't buy bagged)
- 4 ounces American cheese (or Monterrey) 1 cup shredded (from the deli, not processed slices)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dry mustard
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- Dash of cayenne pepper to taste
- ¼ cup butter cubed
Things You’ll Need
- Food processor for shredding cheese
Before You Begin
- IMPORTANT – please do not use the bagged shredded cheese. It contains an anti-caking agent that can make your mac and cheese gritty. Get the cheese from the deli and shred it yourself.
- PASTA – please use a sturdy pasta, not the really thin noodles. Thin noodles will cook much faster and turn to mush. Since the pandemic manufacturers have changed their noodles, look for sturdy ones!
- Also, every slow cooker is different. Newer slow cookers should work fine for this recipe. Cook on low for one hour without disturbing. Remove lid and stir well. Replace lid and check every 15 minutes after that. DO NOT turn the heat up! You will make your macaroni mushy. My slow cooker is only a couple years old and my mac and cheese is done after about 1 hr and 45 minutes.
- For BEST RESULTS be sure to read the Frequently Asked Questions in the blog post before making your mac and cheese.
- Making for the holidays? If you’ve never made this before, please do a dry run before the holiday! Everyone’s slow cooker acts differently, so it’s important to try this out first. Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas!
Instructions
- Spray 6-quart slow cooker with non-stick spray.
- Rinse the uncooked pasta well in cold water and drain.1 pound elbow pasta
- Add uncooked pasta to crockpot along with milks, cheeses, salt, pepper, mustard, garlic and cayenne pepper. Stir to combine, making sure macaroni is submerged in liquid as much as possible.2 1/2 cups whole milk, 12 ounces evaporated milk, 12 ounces Extra sharp cheddar, 4 ounces American cheese (or Monterrey), 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, Dash of cayenne pepper
- Dot with cubed butter.1/4 cup butter
- Cover and cook on low heat for 1 hour. Remove lid and stir. Depending on your slow cooker, your dish could be done at this point or require UP TO 1-2 more hours.
- If not done, continue cooking and checking periodically (ever half hour or so).
- When done, pasta will be tender and liquid will be thick and creamy. Sauce will thicken even more after lid is removed and mac and cheese sits.
Expert Tips & FAQs
- Condensed milk is sweetened and the two cannot be used interchangeably. Use evaporated milk.
- Don’t use regular milk in place of evaporated milk. However, you can create your own evaporated milk. To make 1 cup of evaporated milk, simmer 2 1/4 cups of regular milk down until it becomes 1 cup. Replacing the evaporated milk with regular milk will result in sauce that is too runny because of the water content in regular milk.
- For the milk in the ingredient list, use whole milk as directed. Using a lower fat milk can add more water and make your mac and cheese more liquidy nand not cook properly.
Nutrition
This post was originally published on August 21, 2017
Amanda Davis
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Jen says
I don’t understand all the bad reviews… I’ve made this several times and it turns out great. We love it.
Olga Rich says
DELICIOUS! I followed directions exactly but had to substitute American cheese with Velveta which I had on hand. I cooked it on high instead of low. After one hour cook time I stirred and set on low and removed the lid. I diced left over ham from Christmas dinner and added to the cooked Mac n Cheese. Thank you for this recipe. It was so easy and tastes great!
DarWoo says
How can you start by saying you cooked it EXACT, then go on and on about all of the changes you made? Please never review things on the internet ever again.
nadine says
that has got to be the most disgusting mac and cheese known to mankind…I followed recipe to a T and it’s non edible
Fran says
i made it for a christmas party. used heavy whipping cream instead of the evaporated milk. didn’t shred any cheese just bought shredded cheese from a bag. was slightly concerned as it was still soupy until about 2 hours of cooking. must cook on high and not low. the pasta soaked up the milk great. turned out to be the hit of the party. will make this again!!
Roger C says
Probably says more about you than the other 3000 people.
Ashley says
I jyst made this this afternoon and ut is delicious!!! I grated my own cheese….a combo of sharp cheddar abd mozz, and I put the chopped up jalapeno in the milk for about 15 minutes to cut down on the spiciness……I had already taken out the seeds abd ribs from the jalapenos. I thought this was one recipe I’d definitely use again!
MamaJay says
This is the most amazing crockpot Mac-n-cheese. The noodles cooked without sticking to bottom/sides and absolutely no crunchy bites where the liquid didn’t work it’s magic. I took this to a holiday meal and people gobbled it up so quick I almost didn’t have enough!
I will say:
•try time to it so it’s not sitting too long before serving. That’s where the noddles will turn to mush.
•push noodles down into the liquid completely.
•there really is no need to stir – perfect if you’re cooking several dishes at once and can’t babysit it.
•watch after the first hour. Mine was done at an hour. I use an oblong crockpot found at JCP, not terribly old. Maybe five years.
•I used shredded cheese labeled for Mac and cheese. It didn’t cause the problems that regular shredded can because it was made for cooking. It’s four cheeses in one bag. Time saver!
•evaporated milk makes a difference, as does the whole milk. Flavor is best versus using 2%, in this recipe anyway.
•even picky eaters will enjoy this one!
Sylvia says
No stars at all. This recipe was awful. I’ve been cooking for 50+ years and know how to cook very well so it wasn’t me. It was almost not edible.
Allison says
I made this last night as a test-run for a potluck. It was great. I used about 6 slices of american cheese from the deli counter, and a mix of vermont white cheddar and sharp cheddar (not from the deli counter, but freshly shredded by me). The flavor was fantastic. It was on the white side of the mac and cheese spectrum. After one hour I stirred and it still looked like milk noodle soup with clumps of cheese. At 1:45 it was looking promising. At around 2:15 I called it and it was very good, although we agreed it could have cooked longer. The noodles were not at all crunchy, but were a little on the firm side. The sauce was melted and creamy and thick, not soupy, but would have benefited from being a tad bit hotter. My crock pot is over 20 years old. I could easily have kept it until 2:30 or even 3 hours stirring and checking it. By my portioning, it would make about 5-6 servings as a main dish, and 8-10 with side portioning of just a scoop. THANK YOU!
John A. Longo says
This was a great tasting Mac and Cheese. Super easy to make..
I used real onion and garlic.
Amanda Farmer says
My family loves this yummy version of mac and cheese! I had always made baked macaroni and cheese in the past, and everyone thought it was pretty good. Now though, this is sooo much creamier and more flavorful I don’t think my family will ever want baked macaroni and cheese again.
Stacey says
I followed directions and ended up with a glue consistency! This was a waste of ingredients and my time.
Stephanie says
So delicious – my daughter asked me to make it again, after we had it for Thanksgiving. I followed the directions and it came out perfectly. Thanks!
Ksthi says
I made this at Easter 2021. It was creamy and the noodles were great. Not gummy or grainy. I did add an extra 8 oz cheese to it because I had spare from another recipe that I’d grated.,it was a hit. I use the amount of milk it calls for and 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream. Very creamy!!
Meghan says
I cooked as instructed for the first hour, I needed to continue to cook on low for 1.5 more hours, stirring every 30 minutes and it was perfectly thick and creamy! It’s very good, the grainy texture was gone once it was fully thickened!
Laurel says
The flavor of this was very good. I need to work on the noodles – although my guests said the dish was very good, there was a gumminess I didn’t like. I used radiatori as the shape. It was almost like spaetzle.
Eric says
First and Foremost, anyone who says their Mac and cheese didn’t turn out awesome, doesn’t know how to cook. It took about 1:45 mins from start to finish on low.
jessica says
It’s almost as if there wasn’t enough liquid in it. Maybe I’ll try tweaking the recipe next time if I do retry it.
Mary says
I made it 2 days in a row. The first time, it was like you said, there wasn’t enough liquid. The second time I added about another 1/4 cup of milk and it made the world of difference! I also stirred it not only at an hour, but also at the second hour. My crock-Pot took about 2 and 1/2 hours.
Sarah says
This was a big hit at Thanksgiving! I will definitely add it to my special occasion and potluck recipes list, although it’s simple enough to cook any day of the week. I didn’t have cayenne so I used red pepper flakes. I also didn’t give myself as much time as I should have, so I ended up turning the crockpot up on high. It was perfect in 1h45m. Next time, I will definitely give myself more time, so I can cook it on low.
Sarah says
I made this for Thanksgiving this year and it was very questionable after the first hour. I ended up letting it cook for another 45 minutes or so then turned up the heat. Before I turned up the heat it was a ball of melted cheese and noodles in a puddle of milk and was very unappealing. Once I turned up the heat it all melted together very nicely and I was pleasantly surprised with how it turned out. Personally I wasn’t a fan of the texture, the noodles were cooked and the sauce was nice and thick but it was slightly grainy and gritty. I was probably the cheese I used but other than that the flavor of the mac and cheese was amazing. Overall I would probably make again but I use a different brand or kind of cheese. This recipe was a good example of trusting the process.