Easy Cheddar Cheese Sauce

This cheddar cheese sauce recipe is so easy to make with only 3 ingredients! Prepare it when you need to make a sauce on the fly.

Need a cheese sauce in minutes? try that easy cheddar cheese sauce! Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a traditional cheese sauce… but it tastes just as good. If you’ve ever made a cheese sauce, you know that it usually contains flour and butter to make a roux to thicken it and add body. But this sauce? There are only 3 ingredients: milk, cheese and salt! Use it when you’re in a hurry: it’s really tasty and more than easy to prepare.

3 ingredients in this Cheddar Cheese Sauce recipe

Again, this Cheddar Cheese Sauce is a quick and easy trick. If you just cooked broccoli or made chili fries and need a quick sauce, this is your best choice! A standard cheese sauce uses flour and butter to make one Ginger, a traditional French way of making a creamy milk-based sauce. But for this sauce, we wanted something quick and messy. Turns out you can make cheddar cheese sauce with just three ingredients:

• Shredded cheddar cheese
• whole milk
• Salt

How to do it and the compromise

This cheese sauce is so quick and easy, it’s perfect for weeknights or cooking up multi-component meals. There is a small compromise in texture, but for us it’s worth it! Here’s what you need to know about the process:

• Heat the milk, then gradually add the cheese. Add small handfuls of cheese, stirring constantly, until a smooth sauce forms.
• The sauce is slightly less elastic than a roux sauce. You’ll notice the texture is slightly different than a cheese sauce with a roux. But we think it’s worth it with the ease of making this recipe!
• Would you like a classic gooey cheese sauce instead? Opt for cheese sauce (made with a roux) or nacho cheese sauce (made with condensed milk).

Whole milk is best

One more thing to know about this cheddar cheese sauce: whole milk is best. Because the recipe is so easy, we recommend using it whenever possible. Here’s why:

• Whole milk offers the richest, creamiest texture. It helps hold the sauce together with the milkfat.
• You can use 2% milk but it will have a grainier consistency. We tested it with both, and the 2% sauce was definitely not as desirable in terms of texture. If that’s all you have, you can try it, but we recommend using whole milk.

Ways to Use This Cheddar Cheese Sauce

This Cheddar Cheese Sauce works in so many different ways! A few caveats: don’t use it for macaroni and cheese, but it’s great for veggies, fries, and basting. Here are a few ideas:

This Cheddar Cheese Sauce Recipe is…

Vegetarian and gluten free.