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.
mine got all grainy, does that mean i put too much heat? the cheese wasn’t all melting at the end so i turned it on a bit.
Yes, usually when the sauce “breaks” (turns grainy) it is from too much heat. Some cheeses are more susceptible to breaking as well. Sharper cheddars will break easier than mild cheddar.
My daughters always want nacho cheese but they dont like it too spicy. I just made this recipe for them and they LOVE it. Great recipe for picky kids! I will make again. Very delicious☺
Thank you!
I made this tonight and we definitely enjoyed it. I added diced tomatoes and some of the leftover spicy chili I had in the fridge. It gave the dip some substance and kick. Perfect for nachos. Thanks!
Could this be made in the crockpot?
Probably not, unfortunately.
Terrible! even after two attempts…I did however use the wrong type of cheese tho soo maybe that’s why?… My advice: if you want nachos, just go to 7-11…
Id recommend adding in a little tomato puré, hot paprika, smoked paprika and cayenne chilli powder and extra salt
Hi. I’m from Australia. I’ve got mild blocked cheese. Would that work?? Or something like vintage sharp cheese.?? Thanks for a simple recipe that people like me live in another country can understand. Totally going to make this this week.
Cheers
Sometimes sharp cheeses break (separate) a bit easier than milder cheeses. I’d guess the mild blocked cheese would work, but we don’t have anything that goes by that name here in the U.S., so I’m not sure exactly what it is. :)
Will this work in a crockpot, to keep for a few hours? I have to make nachos for 35 this week…
Hmm, I’m honestly not sure how it will hold up to continued heat like that.
This was the easiest cheese dip I’ve ever made-thanks for posting!😍 I added a few tablespoons of rotel and added a little kick!
Absolutely disgusting and inedible. While I am not a professional chef I am a pretty good home cook. I followed the instructions very carefully, and the result was terrible… straight to the trash.
Same with me. Complete waste of time,and ingredients, but it was a great way to realise I shouldn’t be looking on a website such as “Budgetbytes” for any form of real food. I am embarrassed for whoever let this garbage leak on their website.
Your rude comments are not necessary. I have found plenty of wonderful recipes here, but also a few duds. That’s how cooking goes. Constructive criticism is helpful, ideas for how to tweak a recipe are great, but your rude comments are neither helpful or warranted.
I strongly agree with Taryn. I’ve cooked more than one hundred recipes for Budget Bytes, and haven’t experienced any issues at all. Your rude and disrespectful comment isn’t helping anyone, Rob, especially coming from a person who enjoys talking a lot of trash. Sounds to me you don’t know how to cook!!
If it’s bad you’ve obviously not made it correctly and seasoned it to taste
My thoughts exactly, Matthew. It’s unfortunate that none of us can fix stupid!!!
It tastes great. But mine came out a little gritty. Any idea why?
Did you turn off the heat before stirring in the cheese? If the sauce gets too much heat it can cause the cheese to curdle and get grainy. Were you using pre-shredded cheese? Those usually have anti-caking agents that might make it seem grainy?
This is soo good. I make it with sharp cheddar cheese and added a bit of smokes paprika. Yum!! Thank you!
My was a little foamy if that makes sense. Almost like it had been whipped. When I make my roux for soup I only use 1T flour and 1T butter. Do you think that would help? Does this recipe need that much flour? Or did I do something else wrong? I used 2% milk and an extra tablespoon of butter to make up for the missing cream in the 2% milk. Maybe that was the problem.
Hmm, I’m not sure. I’m having a hard time visualizing how yours turned out.
Love love love nacho cheese, but hate hate hate anything spicy. And every single jar or cup of nacho cheese sauce has that kick that i can’t stand. I am going to make this for the up- coming Superbowl, and be able to eat it without my mouth burning! Yay!
How long do you think it will last in the fridge? It’d be good to keep something like this around for easy mac n cheese, and veggies and such.
I had mine in the fridge for a few days before I ate all of it. It reheated really well in the microwave when I did short bursts (30 seconds or so on high) with stirring between.
The first time I made this my picky eater wouldn’t touch it when she finally tried it she ate all gone. She now she askes for every Sunday while she watches football