Mac & Cheese is an undisputed comfort and food classic that can mean something different to everyone: For some, it’s the decadent holiday side their plate just isn’t complete without. For others, it’s the reliable box they grab when the 1 a.m. cravings start to hit. For me, the best mac & cheese is perfect for any occasion, from weeknights dinners to potlucks to special occasions. In my book, the perfect recipe has to nail three things: be extra creamy, plenty cheesy, and paired with a golden, crunchy topping. I tested this recipe over and over to make sure it aces all of these requirements (and more!) with flying colors, so you can put that box back on the shelf. Keep reading below the recipe (and watch in the video above!) for all my top tips on making this creamy, cheesy mac.

How To Make Baked Mac & Cheese:

INGREDIENTS

Salt: You may have noticed that all of our recipes call for kosher salt—because it has larger, lighter, and quicker-dissolving grains than table salt, it’s way easier to season and taste your food as you go. If you’re using iodized or sea salt, keep in mind that you might need to use less to salt your pasta water or season your cheese sauce.

• Pasta: Though a lot of people think mac & cheese must be made with elbow macaroni, I disagree. Instead, I personally like something with a little more corkscrew action going on, like cavatappi. Whatever you choose, make sure it has lots of surface area to really catch and hold onto the cheese sauce (penne need not apply).

• Mustard Powder: Though you could make a delicious mac & cheese with nothing but salt and pepper, I like to stir in some additional seasonings to give it a little more depth. Dry mustard really accents the cheese, and I’ve been known to thrown in a little cayenne for zip sometimes too. Let me know what your go-tos are in the comments below too.

• Cheese: Why choose just one when you can have three? Each cheese here fills a specific role—the base, the funk, and the Parm. For the base cheese, you can go with mild or sharp cheddar, or even a little Monterey or Colby Jack. For the funk, you want something to add intrigue. I like to use Gruyere, but Fontina or something similar would work too. Finally, you need a little something nutty and sharp, like Parmesan, Asiago, or Parmiggiano-Reggiano, to give your cheese sauce a little depth and zip. The most important thing to remember? Always shred your cheese fresh from the block (I like to use the medium shred side of a box grater)—this is the difference between good and great homemade mac & cheese. The pre-shredded bags just won’t melt as well, so if you’re looking for the ultimate creamy, cheesy mac, then freshly shredding your cheese is always the way to go.

• Bread Crumbs: You could use regular bread crumbs as a topper here, but because they are finer than panko, your end texture won’t be as crispy. Panko breadcrumbs are more like bunches of tiny shards, so they will crisp up and pick up color in the oven better.

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

First, you’ll boil your pasta. Start with a pot of salted water (and I mean super salty, it should taste like the ocean), then add your pasta and cook it until before al dente—I’m talking still-has-a-ring-of-hard-white-pasta-in-the-middle-when-you-bite-in uncooked. You want it to meld and absorb with your cheese sauce in the oven, not turn into mush. Undercooking now guarantees the perfect bite when you pull it out of the oven.

Then it’s cheese sauce time, and that means making a béchamel. You’ll start by melting your butter in your pan over medium heat, then sprinkling your flour over top and stirring everything together until it starts pulling away from the pan slightly. You’re looking for what’s called a “blonde roux”, which has a slightly yellow tint and should smell a bit like baked goods. You don’t want it super dark (so keep an eye on your heat!), but you definitely don’t want it as light as it started.

Next, add your milk in slowly, stirring constantly so you don’t get thick lumps. Want to shortcut this process a bit? Heat your milk ahead of time to room temperature or even slightly warm. You’re going to cook it until it’s thick and bubbly (about 2 minutes), so having your milk warm will help you get there faster. It’s going to get a LOT thicker when you add cheese, so if it’s still a little thin but you want to get on with it, that’s okay too.

Once you’re ready to add your cheese, it’s very important to take it off the heat before so that the sauce doesn’t start to separate. That said, if you’ve been at it for a minute and are still having trouble getting your cheese to melt, pop your pot back on the heat for just a few seconds to bring the temperature up and help the process along.

Once it comes together, you can stir in your macaroni until every noodle is coated.

At this point, you could eat this mac & cheese right now, and it would taste wonderful. But! If you want exceptional mac & cheese, you’ve gotta bake it. So pour it into a pan, then get ready for the best part—the topping. To make it, you’ll combine your breadcrumbs and the remaining half cup of Parmesan into a bowl, then add the olive oil and mix. Then, sprinkle it on top of your mac and cheese in the casserole dish.

Then all you have to do is pop it into your preheated 375° oven, then bake it until it’s golden brown on top. Go ahead, snag a bite before it’s fully cooled—you’ll really be able to taste all your extra effort.

Recipe Tips

Prep ahead. Before you get started with anything else, I recommend you grate all your cheese, making sure to split your Parm (you’re going to need 1 cup for the cheese sauce and a ½ cup for the topping). Getting all your cheese grated and ready to go ahead of time means there will be no delay when it comes time to add them all to your sauce. While you’re at it, get your milk and flour measured separately too to make them easy to add when it’s time.

How to make the creamiest mac & cheese. The way to get the creamiest, dreamiest baked mac and cheese is to make a béchamel. Stay with me! Let me demystify it for you: béchamel is the French word for a simple milk sauce that is thickened with a roux, which is just flour and butter cooked together until they get blonde and bubbly. For me, this is THE way to achieve the perfect creamy base to hold all that cheesy goodness. Trust me, it’s way less complicated and fancy than it sounds too.

Don’t forget the topping. Trust me when I say the baked breadcrumb topping will take your mac & cheese to new heights, adding a golden, crispy top that’ll contrast perfectly with the soft cheesy pasta below. Hot tip: this crunchy, almost-buttery crumbly topping is the kind of thing you can add to almost any casserole, so take my advice and bookmark it for the next time you need to really impress (hello, potlucks!).

Storage & Make Ahead:

If you’re looking to make this dish ahead of time, prepare your mac and cheese up until step 4, then cover in your baking dish and refrigerate (or freeze). When ready to serve, add your Parmesan and panko mixture, bake, and serve. If baking from frozen, allow to thaw in the refrigerator overnight before baking.