After years of having fun with Longhorn Steakhouse’s legendary mac and cheese, I used to be decided to recreate it at dwelling. The key, I found, lies of their distinctive mix of 4 distinctive cheeses and that completely crunchy bacon-panko topping. Now I’m sharing my examined recipe that brings steakhouse luxurious to your dinner desk.
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Longhorn Steakhouse Mac and Cheese
Who doesn’t love mac and cheese? From fancy, high-end recipes to the nostalgia-inducing boxed stovetop variations, it’s a well-liked dish in all types of eating places and kitchens.
However those that’ve been to Longhorn Steakhouse know the chain has among the greatest, most reliable, and most crave-able mac and cheese on the market, due to the ooey-gooey cheese sauce that adheres completely to the spiral cavatappi noodles.
So, the subsequent time you’re grilling up some steaks, do that recipe for the final word restaurant-style expertise.
What makes the Longhorn Steakhouse Mac and Cheese so distinctive?
This isn’t your atypical mac and cheese. Right here’s why this copycat model stands out:
- Makes use of 4 premium cheeses for advanced taste
- Creates silky-smooth sauce with out graininess
- Excellent al dente pasta holds sauce superbly
- Achieves excellent sauce-to-pasta ratio
- Options signature smoky undertones
- Creates restaurant-quality outcomes constantly
Why you need to do that recipe
You’ll wow your fellow diners (or your personal style buds) with the delicate flavors offered by this deceptively easy recipe. It additionally takes simply 20 minutes of energetic work and may simply be scaled up or down for large households or small teams.
Excellent For…
- Household dinners
- Potluck events
- Vacation sides
- Consolation meals cravings
- Steakhouse dinners at dwelling
- Particular events
Elements You’ll Want
There’s definitely no scarcity of cheese on this delectable recipe, making up almost half of the recipe’s substances:
- Dry pasta (ideally cavatappi)
- Gruyere cheese, shredded
- White cheddar cheese, shredded
- Parmesan cheese, shredded
- Fontina cheese, shredded
- Half and half
- Cooked bacon, crumbled
- Panko bread crumbs
- Flour
- Butter
- Smoked paprika
Ingredient Notes
To create the right consistency for the cheese sauce, it’s important to make use of the precise sorts of cheeses and quantities listed above.
Nevertheless, these with Celiac illness or who’re delicate to gluten can swap out the pasta, flour, and panko for gluten-free variations. As well as, vegetarians and other people avoiding pork for non secular or different causes can skip the addition of crumbled bacon and nonetheless take pleasure in a deliciously tacky dish.
The best way to make Longhorn Steakhouse Mac and Cheese
It solely takes a couple of steps to carry this uncomplicated however tasty dish collectively:
- Boil and drain pasta in a big pot of water as indicated on the bundle for al dente.
- Warmth butter and flour in a big saucepan, cooking till the combination turns into aromatic.
- Slowly add the half and half in three batches, cooking and stirring till thickened in between.
- Add the paprika and cheese, persevering with to stir because it melts into the combo.
- Mix the cooked pasta and cheese combination in a baking dish. High with bacon and panko.
- Bake in a 350-degree Fahrenheit oven till the breadcrumbs start to brown, round 20 minutes.
Recipe Variations
In some ways, cavatappi is a perfect kind of pasta for this mac and cheese, because the cheese sauce simply clings to the twisted tube form. After all, it’s additionally essentially the most genuine for a real Longhorn Steakhouse copycat recipe. Nevertheless, dwelling cooks ought to be happy to check out different kinds like ziti, shells, fusilli, and the basic elbow noodles.
What Goes Effectively with Longhorn Mac and Cheese
Longhorn followers have probably already loved this mac and cheese as a prefect facet dish for his or her steaks. However it’s equally good with all sorts of grilled or broiled meals, with the creaminess offering a pleasant distinction to the meaty, smoky beef, rooster, or pork.
Those that actually love this recipe can serve a bigger portion of the mac and cheese paired with a easy inexperienced salad or roasted or steamed greens, remodeling this facet into the centerpiece of a wholesome, easy-to-make meal.
The best way to Retailer Longhorn Mac & Cheese
The unlucky actuality is that (primarily for textural causes) Longhorn mac and cheese leftovers normally don’t retailer nicely. The pasta can find yourself absorbing an excessive amount of of the liquid, leaving it soggy or mushy whereas additionally too mild on sauce.
As a substitute, it’s higher to retailer any extra cheese sauce and cooked, unsauced pasta individually in hermetic containers within the fridge. They’re greatest used inside three to 5 days. When it’s time to take pleasure in, merely mix the 2 and comply with the remainder of the recipe for including breadcrumbs and baking.
If wanted, you too can freeze the ready mac and cheese. Permit it to chill to room temperature and retailer it in a freezer-safe container or bag. It ought to be eaten inside three months. Thaw it within the fridge earlier than reheating it within the microwave or, ideally, within the oven till absolutely warmed by means of.
Love Longhorn Steakhouse? Strive these copycat Longhorn Steakhouse recipes!
Extra Mac and Cheese Recipes
You’ll want to try extra of my straightforward recipes for facet dishes and the greatest restaurant copycat recipes.
Longhorn Steakhouse Mac and Cheese
You possibly can’t beat this macaroni and cheese it takes similar to the Longhorn Steakhouse’s model.
Servings:10
Energy:468kcal
Elements
- 1poundcavatappi pasta
- 2tablespoonsbutter
- 2tablespoonsflour
- 2cupshalf and half
- 2ouncesGruyere cheeseshredded
- 8ounceswhite Cheddarshredded
- 2tablespoonsParmesan cheeseshredded
- 4ouncesFontina cheeseshredded
- 1teaspoonsmoked paprika
- 4itemsbacon cooked crispy and crumbled
- 1/2cuppanko bread crumbs
Directions
Put together pasta in accordance with the bundle instructions. Warmth collectively in a big saucepan 2 tablespoons of butter and a pair of tablespoons of flour over medium warmth. Prepare dinner till the roux turns into aromatic.
Add 1/2 cup of half and half and stir till sauce thickens. Add 1/2 cup of half and half when the sauce thickens,after which add remaining 1 cup of half and half and stir till the sauce turns into thick. Add cheeses to sauce slowly stirring till the cheese is mixed. Sprinkle in smoked paprika.
Combine pasta and sauce,and pour right into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. High macaroni and cheese with crumbled bacon and panko breadcrumbs. Bake at 350 levels for 20 minutes or till panko breadcrumbs begins to brown.
Video
Notes
Professional Suggestions for Success
- Grate cheese recent – pre-shredded received’t soften correctly
- Carry half and half to room temperature
- Don’t overcook the pasta – it continues cooking within the oven
- Let cheese come to room temperature
- Use block cheese and grate it your self
- Don’t skip the smoked paprika – it’s key to the signature taste
Diet
Energy:468kcal| Carbohydrates:39g| Protein:19g| Fats:25g| Saturated Fats:14g| Ldl cholesterol:73mg| Sodium:389mg| Potassium:226mg| Fiber:1g| Sugar:1g| Vitamin A:730IU| Vitamin C:0.4mg| Calcium:361mg| Iron:1.1mg
