It’s a good day to talk mac and cheese (aka any day.) Gluten Free Mac and Cheese, to be exact! Get. Ready!
Mac and cheese is one of those meals that’s not inherently gluten free but is a CINCH to adapt, especially because my version has no flour roux. Just 5 ingredients (including salt and pepper!) tossed in a pot then stirred create the creamiest gluten free mac and cheese that tastes like it has loads of cream and butter but is actually made with, get ready for it…SKIM MILK.
If you don’t have skim milk – no problem! Use whatever you’ve got in the fridge. This recipe is pretty fool proof!
How to Make This Recipe:
Start by rinsing 2 cups gluten free pasta under cold water. I used shells but you could use any short cut pasta. The weight should be 6oz.
Add the rinsed and drained pasta to a saucepan with 2 cups skim milk, 1 teaspoon salt, and a dash of cayenne pepper. Turn the heat to medium then stir constantly until the milk comes to a simmer (mine took about 12 minutes.) Turn the heat down to low then stir constantly until the pasta is tender (another 12 minutes – scroll through Instagram while you stir – you’ll be fine!) Be sure to stick to low heat because if the milk cooks off too quickly there won’t be enough left to cook the pasta.
See how thick the skim milk gets by stirring with the starches released from the pasta?
Once the pasta is tender add 1 cup freshly shredded cheese (skip the pre-grated bagged stuff!) then stir until the sauce is smooth, adding in a splash of skim milk if you need it.
This is the fun part of the recipe because you can play around with the cheeses you like and/or have in the fridge – you really can’t go wrong! If you want to stick with a more classic sauce though, choose medium-hard cheeses like cheddar, gouda, and fontina.
Let the mac and cheese thicken for a few minutes with the lid on the pan, then dish ‘er on up!
Similar Recipes:
- Ham and Gnocchi Mac and Cheese >
- Tomato-Basil Stovetop Mac and Cheese >
- Broccoli Chicken Mac and Cheese >
- Skillet Chili Mac & Cheese >
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Gluten Free Mac and Cheese
Description
Gluten Free Mac and Cheese is as creamy and decadent of a mac and cheese recipe as they come! Easy, one pot, and made from fridge and pantry staples.
Ingredients
- 2 cups dry gluten-free shells or other short-cut pasta (6oz)
- 2 cups skim milk
- 1 teaspoon salt
- dash cayenne pepper
- 1 cup freshly shredded cheese
Directions
- Rinse pasta under cold water in a colander then drain and add to a saucepan with milk, salt, and cayenne pepper. Turn heat to medium then stir constantly until milk comes to a simmer. Turn heat down to low then stir constantly until noodles are tender, adding an additional 1/4 cup milk if noodles have absorbed all the liquid but aren't tender yet. There should be a bit of milk left in the saucepan to create the cheese sauce.
- Add cheese to pan then stir until smooth, adding a splash of milk if necessary to help smoothen the consistency. Place a lid on top for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
Adapted from White on Rice Couple
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
Video
Make this once and you’ll be whipping it up from memory at least once a week – it’s definitely a keeper! And you can, of course, use regular pasta in place of gluten free pasta, too. Mac and Cheese for all!
[…] Creamiest Mac and Cheese – http://iowagirleats.com/2015/05/27/one-pot-gluten-free-mac-and-cheese/ […]
Oh MAN! This is terrific! I did half smoked Gouda and half sharp cheddar. Aldi’s GF elbows work wonderfully. I love the cooking method!
Yeah!! So glad you loved it – thanks for your feedback, Jessica!
Sorry but this is the worst mac & cheese recipe I have ever tried. Not only did it ruin our supper but it was a waste of good ingredients.
Thanks! Was looking for something that didn’t need to go in the oven. Used lentil elbows (an entire package), the two cups of milk, some garlic powder and three different types of cheese. Smoked Gouda, extra sharp cheddar (white) and an organic regular cheddar. Since cheddar tends to run ‘saltier’ the sharper it gets I waited until after to salt and it only required 1/8th tsp to get where it needed to be. Turned out amazing! For those that are lazy like me, I just sliced off a 1TBS sized hunk of each cheese type and threw it in the pot. Just stay on top of it and stir it constantly and it will turn out great.
Thank you! I had never considered cooking pasta in milk but this was very tasty. I miss Mac and cheese and this worked perfectly.
Oh I’m so glad to hear it, Amy! Thanks for your great review and star rating!
this was so good damn i was tryna use up some questionable noodle purchases (like these 100% green pea rotini noodles…) so i tossed a few different kinds of noodles in there — i also added some red lentil penne and brown rice spirals– and all 3 cooked really well… just like really crazy tender and cheesy 10/10 would recommend n u can be darn sure ill be makin it again
the first time i tried it tho i used ancient harvest corn/quinoa pasta and it was the worst thing that has ever happened to me would nOt recommend so maybe try some different noodle varieties when you make it just in case some are terrible and dont cook right… unfortunately had to waste a whole pot of delicious cheese bcause the noodles were so hard and inedible
I don’t usually take the time to comment on recipes (sorry!) but I just had to thank you for this one! I had been looking for a grain-free mac and cheese recipe, or some technique I could use to make the cheese sauce without a thickener. I’m so impressed with the technique of cooking the pasta in the milk–it worked beautifully! I used red lentil pasta, making a delicious grain-free mac and cheese. Thanks!!
Found this recipe whe looking for GF Mac n cheese and it came out great! I think the trick is to use the right pasta, definitely rinse w cold water, use lower fat milk (1% or skim) and to stop cooking before pasta is completely done. I used Barilla GF elbows (corn and rice pasta) which worked perfectly. If I had made it with Aldis GF pasta rice and quinoa it would have likely been a gooey mess. I appreciated that this recipe had only a few simple ingredients! Well done!
So glad you enjoyed it, Disna!
Love it. Used Aldi elbow macaroni, bag of shredded cheese and 2% milk. It took longer than expected, but totally worth it.
Made this for lunch today, in preparation for Thanksgiving. My son loved it! He’s newly diagnosed with Celiac disease (got it from me sadly) and absolutely loved this reciped!
I’m so glad to hear it, Rebecca! Made my day!
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This was the best Gluten Mac and cheese I have ever made. Thank you!
Absolutely the best Mac and Cheese I have ever made! So simple and so delicious. Thank you for posting it!
Oh I’m so glad to hear that, Tara!! Thanks for your feedback and recipe review!
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[…] You’re OK! Paleo: …most of these ingredients are not Paleo. Try this gluten-free version […]
Surprising easy!! Simply delicious.
Used chick pea shells. Worked perfectly.
Thankyou.
I’ve done a GF ‘in one pot’ type of pasta dish before, goulash, and it turns out great, so I was wondering why waste the time with boiling and draining GF pasta for mac and cheese just to have to add a thickener back in. I began searching and found this recipe. Short version: I added pepper, onion and garlic powder because that’s how we like ours, and it turned out fabulous! I was concerned with how creamy the sauce would be and how mushy the pasta would be rather than the flavors because, as I said, we season ours up beyond any basic recipe anyway. This got raves from the family for texture and sauciness. Even the leftovers (all of about a cup, lol) seem to have held their shape. One less step, one less chance to mush up GF pasta. Love it!! Thanks!!
Just wondering why skim milk? I never use skim milk because of the processing it undergoes. Will 2% milk affect the outcome?
Can I use whole milk instead of skim?
I love this one pot recipe. This gluten free mac n cheese looks so creamy and delicious! Can’t wait to try it.
I am so impressed with this recipe! It is delicious and so quick. I will NEVER make mac and cheese any other way again. Thank you! I used a quinoa and brown rice fusilli pasta and added a little dried mustard and nutmeg to the pinch of cayenne and salt. finished with white pepper. Scrumptious and SO easy!
i don’t have skim milk what else could i use?
Any unsweetened milk you’ve got on hand – 2%, whole, almond milk, etc.
I have never tried to cook homemade mac and cheese. I am never going back to boxes of GF Mac again!! Thank you!
I had a recipe from iowagirleats, for Mac and cheese that had a crispy panko breadcrumb topping that was my favorite, and I misplaced it. I can’t find it on your website anymore. Do you still have that?
It’s a rainy day here in the Pacific Northwest and I am caving comfort. This hits every spot! Easy directions and ingredients easy to find. Yum!