This is a classic recipe for skillet mac and cheese. No funny ingredients, no flour, no green stuff, and no onions (perfect for kids). This recipe is full of traditional mac and cheese ingredients like Velveeta cheese, elbow macaroni, milk, butter, and salt. The bonus is that it is all made in one pan, no draining the pasta and dirtying multiple dishes.
Make it in the skillet, and serve it from the skillet, or eat it right from the skillet!
How to Make Skillet Mac & Cheese
You only need a couple simple ingredients for this one pan mac and cheese recipe:
- elbow macaroni
- 2% or whole milk
- salt
- Velveeta cheese (or loaf style cheese)
- seasoning salt (Lawry’s)
That’s it! You probably already have most of these ingredients in your kitchen.
Start with a large 9 or 10 inch skillet, it needs to have a lid that will fit on the top. Add 2 ¾ cups of water and the 1 tsp salt to the skillet, let it come to a hard simmer over medium-high heat. Once the liquid begins to bubble add in the macaroni noodles and allow the pan to come to a boil.
Turn the heat to low, give the pan a stir, and pop the lid on. Set a timer for 10 minutes.
NOTE- the pan may sputter out the sides a little, but it shouldn’t boil over. If you quickly lift the lid for a second it will simmer down a little.
While it cooks cube the cheese into ½-1 inch cubes.
Take the lid off and turn the heat up to medium. Add ½ cup of milk, 1 Tablespoon butter, ¼ tsp season salt, and the cheese. Stir constantly until the cheese is melted completely.
Take the skillet off the heat and let it sit to thicken and cool for about 4-5 minutes.
Taste your mac and cheese to see if you want more salt or seasoning salt. While I was testing this recipe sometimes I liked a little more seasoning salt and sometimes I thought it was great as is.
Reheating Your Mac & Cheese
Mac and Cheese is always at it’s very very best right after it has been cooked (the first time). But if you have a lot of leftovers just add a little milk to your skillet and maybe a cube or two of Velveeta, stir over low to medium/low heat for a few minutes until it is nice and creamy again and warmed through.
Macaroni & Cheese for Dinner
If you have kids then I am guessing Mac & Cheese is a highly requested dinner! When it is the main dish it can be hard to figure out what to serve on the side. Here are some ideas to make mac and cheese a meal:
- apple slices
- cucumber slices
- carrot sticks & ranch
- roasted or steamed broccoli
- green side salad
Skillet Mac & Cheese side dish
This recipe also makes an AMAZING side dish! If you are going to eat it as a side dish it should feed 5-6 people. It would be amazing served with:
- Instant Pot Country Style Ribs
- Grilled Chicken & Veggies
- Marinated Grilled Chicken
- BBQ Chicken in Parchment
- Bacon Jam & Blue Cheese Burgers
Recipe for Skillet Mac & Cheese
Skillet Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 2 ¾ cups water
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 2 ½ cups elbow macaroni
- ½ cup milk 2% or whole
- 8 oz Velveeta Cheese or similar loaf style American cheese
- 1 Tbsp butter
- ¼ tsp seasoning salt Lawry's
Instructions
- In a large 9 or 10 inch skillet (must have a lid that fits) simmer the water and salt over medium high heat. Once the water is at a hard simmer add the pasta and bring it to a boil.
- Once the water boils, turn the heat down to low and pop the lid on. Set a timer for 10 minutes.
- Remove the lid after 10 minutes and give the pan a stir. There will still be some water left in the pan, that is ok, it will thicken with the milk and cheese.Turn the heat up to medium and stir in the ½ cup milk, 8 oz Velveeta cheese, ¼ tsp season salt, and 1 tablespoon butter. Stir the mac and cheese constantly until the cheese is completely melted.
- Remove from the heat and let sit for 4-5 minutes for the cheese to thicken.
- Taste for additional salt or seasoning salt, per your preference.
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