I know, it seems kind of weird that I’m posting this homemade Nacho Cheese Sauce recipe the day after the super bowl. But, the reason I made this nacho cheese sauce has nothing to do with the super bowl and everything to do with the fact that I have just had a crappy week. :) After a series of unfortunate events and two recipe flops, I had an, “Ugh, I give up. Just give me some chips and nacho cheese.” moment.
Don’t judge. Nacho cheese dip is powerful stuff.
NO Processed Cheese, Please
Rather than going totally off the deep end and buying a gelatinous block of Velveeta, I decided to try to make the nacho cheese sauce myself, with real, simple ingredients. To my surprise (and probably to my detriment), this homemade nacho cheese recipe made with real cheddar cheese is extremely fast and easy to make.
Spice it Up!
The nacho cheese recipe below is the very basic version of nacho cheese, which you can customize or embellish in many different ways. Try substituting half of the cheddar with pepper jack, or stirring in a 4oz. can of diced green chiles. Experiment with the seasonings by adding a pinch of garlic powder, cumin, or even cayenne pepper. Stir in a few sliced green onions, or a can of Rotel tomatoes (drained). You can really have fun with this one.
Tips for Cheese Sauce Success
Here are a few tips to help make sure your homemade nacho cheese recipe is a success:
- Make sure to cook the flour in the butter for one minute. This helps cook out the “floury” flavor.
- Use medium cheddar for smoother results. Sharp cheddar tends to “break” or become grainy easier than medium cheddar.
- Remove the pot from the heat before stirring in the cheese. Overheating the sauce once the cheese has been added can cause the sauce to seize up and become thick and/or grainy. If needed, use only low heat to help the cheese fully melt.
- Use block cheese and hand shred it when possible. Pre-shredded cheeses sometimes contain a lot of anti-caking powders, which can cause a powdery flavor in your cheese sauce.
New to cheese sauce? Try making our no-roux Easy Cheese Sauce that melts together smoothly in minutes and is absolutely fool-proof!
5 Minute Nacho Cheese Sauce
Servings 6 (1/4 cup each)Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp butter ($0.22)
- 2 Tbsp flour ($0.02)
- 1 cup whole milk ($0.30)
- 6 oz. medium cheddar, shredded (about 1.5 cups) ($2.25)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp chili powder ($0.02)
Instructions
- Add the butter and flour to a small sauce pot. Heat and whisk the butter and flour together until they become bubbly and foamy. Continue to cook and whisk the bubbly mixture for about 60 seconds.
- Whisk the milk into the flour and butter mixture. Turn the heat up slightly and allow the milk to come to a simmer while whisking. When it reaches a simmer, the mixture will thicken. Once it’s thick enough to coat a spoon, turn off the heat.
- Stir in the shredded cheddar, one handful at a time, until melted into the sauce. If needed, place the pot over a low flame to help the cheese melt. Do not overheat the cheese sauce.
- Once all the cheese is melted into the sauce, stir in the salt and chili powder. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed. If the sauce becomes too thick, simply whisk in an additional splash of milk.
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Nutrition
Video
How to Make Nacho Cheese – Step by Step Photos
Start by placing 2 Tbsp butter and 2 Tbsp flour in a small saucepot.
Heat the flour and butter over medium flame and whisk together until they become bubbly and foamy. Continue whisking for about 60 seconds. This mixture is called a “roux” and is what will thicken your sauce. Letting the roux cook for about 60 seconds slightly toasts the flour and gets rid of that raw floury flavor, but you want it to stay “blonde”, so if it begins to brown, remove it from the heat.
Whisk in one cup of whole milk. Turn the heat up slightly and let it come to a simmer (whisking frequently). Because the small volume, it should come to a simmer very quickly (about a minute).
When it reaches a simmer, the milk will thicken. When it’s thick enough to coat a spoon like in the photo, turn off the heat.
Whisk in 6oz. (or about 1.5 cups) shredded medium cheddar, one hand full at a time, until it is melted into the sauce. If needed, put the pot back over a low flame to help it melt, but the residual heat should do most of the work.
Finally, season the nacho cheese sauce with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp chili powder.
Taste the nacho cheese sauce and adjust the seasonings if needed. And that’s it! Now you have a real ingredient, really delicious, homemade nacho cheese dip.
This post either just ruined your life or made your day. Or maybe both.
I love this!! I end up using 1/2 teaspoon chili powder. I’m interested in flavoring it differently and trying different cheeses!!! …. My husband wanted nacho cheese for cinco de mayo, but it was unavailable for our grocery pickup order. A week later, he requested this again! (He rarely requests things!) Thanks for an awesome recipe!
How do u save left over?
You can store in an airtight container in your refrigerator.
I would rate this recipe lower if I could. The end product is bland, the cheese melts great on the stove but when you take it off it thickens up way too much to the point there’s just globs of it. It just tastes like cheese, nothing special about this recipe
Word of advice: do NOT try this with almond milk. I just had this for dinner and it was so bad. I’m upset because I know it would have been so good with whole milk 😫 my stomach hurts now 🤢 I’ll update you when I copy the recipe verbatim 😂
I could not get the flour and butter to become bubbly and foamy. It just would clump together like dough…
if it was clumpy, u added to much flour
Super easy and delicious. The cheese you use will make a difference in the flavor. Choose wisely. Also shred your own cheese for a smoother sauce. Pre shredded has a tendency to not melt well.
I made this. Very easy to make. Thats the good news.
In a pinch when you have no salsa or even cheez whiz, and really, really need a nacho fix, it will do. Otherwise, its just too much like having a cheesy glue-y mouth feel tasting dip.
The consistency of dip is good, but there is a glue-y mouth feel , and it is not because i undercooked the flour as i had it on for @1.5 to 2 min to make sure i cooked out the floury taste. Its possible that 2 tbs flour maybe too much.
I dont know how it should be fixed, but i wont be making this again.
I added the recommended butter, milk and flour. I used 1% milk. I added cheese until it was what I wanted then added a little more milk. I added chili powder but it didn’t seem to make a difference so I added cayenne pepper and jalapeños for more of a quick. Came out great! Thanks !
I made this using preshreaded cheese and my end product was a rubbery mass that tasted faintly like cheese.
It specifically says *not* to use that stuff. It’s unfair of you to rate it poorly when you didn’t follow the instructions!
I just ate nachos that I made that were delicious. I used this recipe for the nacho cheese sauce. It was easy to make. I was happy to see I had all the ingredients right here in my kitchen. I added not only chili powder but some I also added taco seasoning. The taco seasoning gave the sauce more flavor. Yum! I plan to make this again. My husband loved it. Thanks!
I’m confused with the cheese amount, it says 6 oz of cheese or 1.5 cups, but 1.5 cups = 9oz. How do you measure it?
Go by volume, 1 1/2 cups. :)
I made this. It turned out good. I booked milk mixture a little too much so I had to add some extra milk to keep it’s consistency.
So good! I halved the recipe but it’s still too much sauce for just me. Can this be refrigerated and reheated ok?
I have not made this yet but I wondered could you put this in a crockpot on low
If you make the roux first you can
Really easy and tastes great!!! I have made it 2 times and have not been disappointed either times!!!!