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 adore this recipe as is, and also when I have a can of rotel to add when I’m feeling fancy!!
It’s a perfect recipe! I doubled it..I did add a little more milk to my liking. Was delicious! Thank you for the tips, it really helps. :)
Used mozerella cheese instead of cheddar. Still fantastic. Great recipe!
Love this recipe! I’ve never made nacho cheese before and this recipe was super easy to follow and came out great! Will definitely be creating this again in the future
If I only have unsalted butter, how much more salt should I add?
I would just go by taste. Add a little, taste a little, then keep going until it tastes right to you.
Love this recipe! I’ve never made nacho cheese before and this recipe was super easy to follow and came out great! Will definitely be creating this again in the future
My cheese was a bit grainy. How can I get rid of that?
Did you review the “Tips for Cheese Sauce Success” above the recipe? There are some great pointers there. :)
Definitely thicker then expected (I used Kefir Milk instead of whole milk) but added a tablespoon or two of salsa to it to thin it out and reheated. It was perfect! Quick easy and I had all ingredients in the house!
Do you buy a chunk of cheese and then grate it as opposed to buying already shredded cheese. I’ve heard there is a difference. Something about the manufacturers adding some ingredient to keep the shreds separated?
It definitely works better with cheese you grate yourself, although I have done it with both. The pre-shredded cheese comes coated in cellulose to keep it from clumping, but that also affects how well it emulsifies into the sauce and can affect the flavor.
Thank you, your recipe came out delicious my family was so happy, I make nachos with beef chili, and with this cheese sauce it was the perfect “nachos grande”.
Thanks! I added nutritional yeast for an extra cheesey kick!
Way too thick to be considered a nacho cheese sauce. I followed the recipe to a t, and it ended up like a blob of melted cheese.
That’s because you cooked the milk in too long, you have to cook it until it can coat a spoon and then turn it off or it gets too thick
Love this super quick recipe. My husband came home from work and wanted cheese and salsa in dip form to have with chips. He wanted to melt some grated cheese and mix in salsa. If you know food you know that would be gross. He started to look up recipes and the one he found was SOOOOO complicated. He was ready to give up. I told him “wait, Budget Bytes has one!” he protested that it would take too long and I said “it’s only a 5 minute sauce!” and he complied. We had a delicious snack together. Yum! Thanks Beth!
Fast worked perfect and was gone in minutes!
Turned out alright, if I had some diced peppers for the sauce I feel it woulda had a more nacho cheese flavor, was pretty good
Yum!!!
Perfect! Quick and easy. I only had half and half and fat free milk on hand.
Came out deliciously