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Everyone loves a good slow cooker recipe, and this crock pot mac and cheese is so simple, cheesy, and delicious!
Moms & Kids Approve!
If your family is like ours and could eat Homemade Mac and Cheese every night of the week, then you have to try this super easy slow cooker version!
Moms love this crock pot mac and cheese because it’s low-effort, and kids love it because it’s delicious! It’s great for busy nights, busy holidays and
It’s definitely a main dish favorite that everyone will love!
WHY WE LOVE IT:
- So delicious! Made with lots of cheese, butter, and sour cream, it’s very flavorful and the whole family loves the taste
- Great for holidays. It’s especially nice to have side dishes that can be made in the slow cooker on busy days like potlucks, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.
- Quick prep. It preps in minutes and can be made the morning of for busy weeknights!
Ingredients
PREP TIME: 15 minutes
COOK TIME: 2 hours
- 2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni – Elbow macaroni noodles are a mac and cheese classic, but you can use other similarly sized noodles like shells, cavatappi, penne, farfalle, fusilli, or rotini.
- 4 tablespoons butter – salted or unsalted butter both work for this recipe
- 2½ cups grated cheddar cheese – use any cheese that melts well, or add a flavor twist with manchego, muenster, provolone, Monterey jack, fontina, gruyere, or American cheese. Even Velveeta cheese works.
- ½ cup sour cream – or plain Greek yogurt
- 1 (10.75-ounce) can condensed cheddar cheese soup – or cream of chicken soup
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup whole milk – whole milk makes the creamiest sauce but a lower fat milk can be used.
- black pepper, to taste – for added flavor, use garlic salt with parsley flakes
How to Make Crock Pot Mac and Cheese
- PASTA. Bring water to a boil and cook 2 cups of macaroni for only 6 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- SAUCE. In a medium pan, mix 4 tablespoons butter and 2½ cups shredded cheese until cheese melts. Add ½ cup sour cream, 1 can condensed cheddar cheese soup, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 cup whole milk, and season with black pepper. Stir until combined.
- SLOW COOK. Spray the crock pot with nonstick cooking spray. Add the cheese sauce to the slow cooker and the cooked macaroni. Mix until combined and cook on low for 2 hours stirring every once in a while.
Use at least a 6-quart crockpot for this recipe. To double this recipe, which we do all the time, we have been able to have everything fit in out 8-quart slow cooker.
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Crock Pot Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
Instructions
- Bring water to a boil and cook macaroni for 6 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- In a medium pan, mix butter and cheese until cheese melts. Add sour cream, soup, salt, milk, and pepper until combined.
- Add this mixture to the slow cooker along with the cooked macaroni. Mix until combined and cook on low for 2 hours stirring every once in awhile.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
> Remove the lid of the crock pot to allow for some liquid to evaporate
> Add in more cheese
> Cornstarch slurry. in a separate bowl, combine 1 tablespoon of COLD water with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch. Stir it into the Mac and Cheese and the dish will thicken as it continues to cook.
When there are about 30 minutes left in the cooking time, add in some of these suggestions:
– cooked bacon bits, diced cooked ham, grilled chicken, or cooked hamburger
– parmesan cheese
– broccoli or roasted red peppers
– garlic powder, dry mustard, onion powder, red pepper flakes, or paprika
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
Reheat. The key is to reheat slowly on low heat. Adding in a bit more milk can help smooth out the texture. You can reheat in the slow cooker, covered in the oven, stovetop, or microwave.
This pasta dish can be frozen for 2-3 months. When you’re ready to use, thaw it in the fridge and reheat slowly over low heat.
So im making this for a party and aM preparing a little early can i keep it on watn or will it dry everything out??
It might, but maybe you can add a little splash of milk 🙂 Enjoy!!
Thank you so much for this recipe!! This was my first time doing a crockpot Mac and cheese and now it won’t be my last! My very picky kiddo who only eats Kraft LOVED this! Super Simple to out together and even doubled it for a cookout today!
Woohoo!! Love hearing that! Glad you tried it! Thank you for letting me know 🙂
About how many seRvings does this recipe make? Thanks!
About 8, 1 cup servings. Just depends on how big your servings are.
Hi. Do you think i could sub the sour cream with something Else? My husBand is allerigic to it. Thanks.
Not sure if he is allergic to any of these, but here are some suggestions…Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, or buttermilk. You can find more online. Hope any of those help!
i have tried at least 5 other mac n cheese recipes and this is by far the very best–thanks so much!!!!!
You are so welcome! Love to hear that! Thank you so much!
So… I came ACross this recipe like Two MOnths AGo, but I didn’t get to try it until now. Let me TEll you Though… it was a hit!!! This is by far the best recipe I have EVer tried FOr homemade mac! The ingredients are simple, it’s fast and easy To put together, and it tastes amazing!!! THe cheese sauce is very thick and creamy, but NOt Too thick that makes your tounge stick to the Roof Of your mouth. I actually appreciated the FAct there was no flour added to this because other RECIPIes left the sauce tasting a little chalky. The sour cream in this mixed with the cream Of cheese soup really helped to thicken up the sauce in just the right way! I just HAd to hunt down this website so That I Could come back and leave a review! 10/10 recommend This!
You are too nice 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing that! I am so happy you liked it!
Taste great and super easy to make. Will DEFINITELY make again. Thank you
Glad you think so 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing that!
This is probably the best homemade mac n cheese I’ve come across. It’s so creamy and cheesy! I was curious if I really needed to slow cook it for 2 hours since the noodles and cheese sauce were already made but it’s worth it.
Awe, thank you so much for saying that!! I guess you couldn’t. I personally have not tried.
WHat could be used To replace the can Cheese soup? We dont eat canned soups!
I haven’t left it out before, but maybe velveeta? Or, maybe google what are some good substitutes for the cheese soup. Hope you find something 🙂
Have you ever made this in the oven instead of the crock pot?
Not this specific recipe, but I have others on my site that are baked. Just search macaroni and cheese in the bar at the top 🙂 Hope you find one to try!
Can you make this recipe in instant pot instead of crockpot? What would the times be?
I personally haven’t tried yet, so not quite sure what the times would be.