Best crock pot recipes mac and cheese

Mine was done in about 1 hour and 45 min. For those looking for a velveeta substitute, Muenster worked great for me. Creamy, flavorful, and perfectly aldente! I tried this recipe this morning and absolutely love it. I made just a few alterations to it, instead of 1 can of evaporated milk I used 2 — this made it super creamy. Plus I had to use the cheese that I had on hand. Also I stirred it more than recommended and it turned out wonderfully.

I will definitely be using this recipe again. Commuting to work with a full hot crockpot can be messy and dangerous. So, this morning, I brought all the ingredients into the office break room and had it cooking in no time. I used a slow cooker liner, followed the directions, and set the pot to be ready at noon. For side garnishing, I brought extra cheese for sprinkles and hot paprika and mustard powder for those wanting a kick. A huge success! Even the liner got a good spoon scraping!! Looks great! Planning on making in the RV for the July 4th weekend.

I will shred all my cheeses in advance and place in a zip bag and plan to throw together while enjoying a beach weekend with Travel Baseball! Wish me luck, hope a pile of teenage boys love it!!! I only get a High 4hr setting. I am afraid the pasta might overcook and the cheese burn at the edges.

Let me know how it turns out. Turns out great. Since we live at feet, I add an extra cup of milk. Also, 1 full container of Bueno Autumn Roast green chili. I made this tonight for supper and it was amazing! I used Barilla gluten free elbow macaroni and it only cooked for 1hr and 15mins. Thrilled that I found this one! Yeah taste is there but what complete mush!! Not one noodle looked like a noodle. It all became one giant mushy lump. I followed recipe exactly to a t. Sounds like it cooked a little long.

It really depends on your slow cooker, I am learning. Sorry you had a bad experience! Made this today for an office potluck. Huge success! Everyone went back for seconds, if not thirds! Only ingredient that did not have was paprika, added garlic powder in lieu.

Tried this tonight because it looked so good! The texture of the pasta and the cheese sauce were fantastic, but I thought the taste was very bland. I only did the recipe as written at the bottom of the page because whenever I try something new I do it as written before I tinker with anything. But I see up in the description you encouraged the addition of other spices and seasonings like garlic salt or nutmeg… do you feel like the other spices are necessary to complete the dish?

And if so, in what quantities? All in all I give it a B- as written. It was very good, but I felt like I had a culinary blank canvas that needed something added to it to complete it. I served it with some toasted bread crumbs on top after each bowl was made for a little added flavor and texture. When I try it again I might do all sharp cheddar cheese, or substitute pepper jack for monterey jack, to give it a little oomph.

Or perhaps a roughly chopped onion to provide an aromatic component. What would you use instead. I know Velveeta is creamy. I came back to the recipe to see if I missed anything because my mac and cheese was really thick and the noodles were not getting cooked… I ONLY added the evaporated milk and not the 2. I think I saved it — it had been an hour so…. LOL following directions is important Duh. Cross your fingers. I followed directions exactly and this came out good. It was very thick, so I might try again with less cheese next time. Thanks for the easy recipe! Made this recipe today for a church potluck tomorrow.

I doubled it in my crock pot. The noodles were done after about 5 hours on warm. The sauce was SUPER almost too cheesy and still a little runny so I cooked another box of elbow noodles to stir in and the proportions were perfect. Added a little seasoned salt and a lot more pepper. It tastes awesome and is a good consistency right now.

Hoping it re-heats well tomorrow! This recipe is amazing.

Spicy Crock Pot Macaroni and Cheese

Added a few cloves of minced garlic and a minced shallot and a nice size squirt of sriracha and it was a massive hit- even with my picky family. Will use this again and again! I made it this and I am by no mean even a mediocre cook. I would like to try this but need to use gluten free macaroni. Has anyone ever commented on using them….. No Velveeta for us and I whisk some eggs with the milk and add an onion, shredded. Holy crap! I made this today for a work potluck and it was a HIT!

But my Thursday is pretty filled up. Do you think this is something I can make a day or two ahead, refrigerate and just put it on the warm setting the day of? Sorry about that! This was amazing! I followed the direction an it came out perfect! I will def.

I really wanted to like this recipe. I followed it exactly. One of my daughters favorite never made it in crockpot before! Looks so good! Do you grate a whole 8 oz block of cheddar? Or do you grate the cheese first then measure out 8 oz? Turned out as soggy mushy. The pasta was unrecognizable. Sounds like it cooked too long. Since all slow cookers are different I recommend that that you check it after an hour and a half or so and gauge the pasta. My family loves this dish but no one makes it — they always go buy it or have it catered but this time I told them — I would make it for Thanksgiving — my family was shocked….

I was nervous and said a small prayer before making it. I followed the instructions the same aside from the following:. I cooked it on low in the crock pot, stirred at about 55 minutes and then checked back in about 40 minutes later and it was almost done and looked exactly like in the picture. I then just turned it off and let the heat do its work and it looked great and tasted amazing! Thank you Shelly for posting this recipe — because of you I am now the official person to make Mac and Cheese for the family.

Keep up the amazing posts and recipes. Happy Holidays! Love hearing this! Made this for my company Christmas party, it was a huge hit. Everyone raved about it being the best they have ever had. Thanks so much for the awesome recipe, followed it pretty close and had great results, crock pot completely empty at work lunch function. I did a double batch and started it out on high for the first hour. It began to stick to the sides, so I dropped it to low. I had multiple people ask for the recipe. Just mixed a double batch for my family Christmas part. Used half and half instead of milk, Frankenmuth Chicken Seasoning instead of salt, added smoked paprika, onion and garlic powders.

Cant wait to try it! I have made this Mac and Cheese twice now. The first time, I tested it before making it at work for a Pot Luck. Only took 1. Everyone wanted the recipe. Highly recommend it. I have had readers double the recipe with great results! There are some comments on here about it! I added cooked bacon to it and my family loved it!!

I think I will add ranch dressing powder next time and see how it goes. My partner made this without reading the comments and ended up overcooking it after just 2 hours. What are we supposed to do with a pound of grainy macaroni? To be fair it does taste good. Loved it! It was a tag thick last time. And 2 hours seemed to do the trick. Pre shredded cheeses are sprayed with wax and or food grade silicones to keep them from sticking together even at room temperature.

Fresh grated cheese makes a huge difference in dishes like this. My wife and i just made this and it turned out really well and took 2. We tried making this tonight for a party…. I have made this several times. The first time I followed the recipe exactly, but the pasta Barilla elbows was not cooked and all the liquid had been absorbed, so I now double the milk and use 2 ounces Velveeta, 12 ounces white American Cheese, 4 ounces Cheddar, and 4 ounces of Mozzarella. It comes out very yummy!! If we want to add broccoli or cauliflower to it, do you think we should boil it 1st before adding it in or just add it into the crock pot?

This is not a good recipe.

Over cooked pasta and flavorless. I spent a good amount of time searching for a recipe and this was a total disappointment and waste of time. Made this tonight for a basketball team dinner. They were scraping the pot! I followed the suggestion of not using bagged shredded cheese and grated my own — I think this is very important in how the final product turns out. The only thing I would do differently is I would add more macaroni. All the boys loved it and it was the first thing gone at the team dinner! Her favourite!

Any idea how to modify for Instant Pot? I am another person that will tell everyone to ignore the bad reviews! She is not wrong in the fact that a lot of people are overcooking this dish. Not all crockpots are going to cook at the same speed or temperatures on low. It even has nothing to do with the quality or brand of your crockpot. I have two and they both cook things differently. Also, I agree with her and others when they say to use freshly grated cheese.

It makes a huge difference. It still turned out yummy and it was done in about 2 hrs.! I will definitely make this recipe again! Thanks for sharing! Might be too much cheese? Will try again some time but for now very disappointed. Hi have now made this twice and the result was a brick of cheese and mushy pasta… first time low for 2.

Tips for the Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese:

I have made this a few times and it always comes out perfect. I added bacon bits once. Another time I added diced jalapenos. Both were awesome. The original recipe is perfect as is, however. I actually cooked this in my slow cooker on high but just cut the total cook time down to btwn 1: I stirred after the first 45 minutes, then 30 and 15 minutes, respectively. Thanks for sharing!!! Wasted my ingredients on this recipe. I followed it exactly and it is a pile of dried out pasta mess. Very disappointed.

Would never recommend this recipe to anyone. I tried this recipe last night. Followed instructions perfectly. At 2 hours it looked perfect. So I switched the pot off. But the sauce had curdled by the time I went to serve. It tasted nice anyway. Any idea what went wrong? Would you know if i can do anything to revive it? I think if you eat it at exactly 2 hours it might be ok as it looked really good right at 2 hours…but it turned into a very pasty mushy mess for me as well, like many said.

We had company over for dinner and they were delayed two hours so the mac n cheese stayed in the crock pot and it was in a horrible state when they arrived. We ended up chucking it. Close Report this post? Are you sure you want to report this post for review? Yes, report it. Close Log in You must be logged in to interact with the activity feed. Log in now Cancel. Close Missing Input Please enter a rating or review before submitting. Close Missing Input Please enter a reply before submitting.

Close Missing! Please enter your before submitting. Close Reply. Close Oops! There was an error processing your submission. Please refresh and try again! Close Nutrition Info. Serving Size: Done or Cancel. US Metric. Pinterest Facebook Email. Saving Photo When You are talking about doubling the recipe are You saying to double All the ingredients? I made this on the fly this week as a last minute side dish. I followed the recipe to the tee except I used extra sharp, regular cheddar and mozzarella cheese.

Made this for me wife and I. Used 5x cheese. She said it was just like her grandmother made. I prepared this recipe for 11 people this weekend. I followed the recipe exactly. Thanks, Rosie!! I made this a couple weeks ago for the family and it came out so delicious. The cheddar cheese soup really made this recipe exceptional, thank you so much for this recipe. Thank you Rosie and keep cooking girl. Hi Becky! I have plenty more recipes coming, so stay tuned! Do you think wheel shaped pasta would change the cooking time?

Everyone loved this — kids and adults combined! So very easy and yummy! Great for parties! If I wanted to add some sort of chopped up meat, how would you recommend I add it so that it heats up safely? Would I brown them first, then throw them in the cooker with everything else? Would three hours on low be enough time? Hi Phil! You can add smoked sausage in with during the last 30 minutes of cooking.

As for ground beef, make sure that you brown it first, drain the fat, then add it in during the last 30 minutes of cooking. I am going to play it safe and get 2 cans. Thanks for sharing! Can I triple the recipe and use an 8 qt crock pot? If so, how should I adjust cook time? Can this recipe be doubled? I can do them at separate times if you think I need to do them one batch at a time. Will add some bacon to it! Is it okay to use a white cheese ….. Can this be doubled and still come out good?

Thanks for posting this! Can I substitute something else for the cheddar cheese soup? Only because I forgot to buy it at the store. I found this recipe a few days ago,and decided to make some in my 2. The soup can here in Canada is 10 ounces,so I used it all and used a bit less half and half. I used smoked paprika. It was so quick and easy to put together; it was delicious,my husband loved it too! Thanks for sharing this recipe!

Hi Ramona! So glad that you were able to work around the recipe, with ingredients that you had on hand! Please help me with this. Try making a homemade cheese sauce. I have several other mac and cheese recipes with homemade cheese sauces. Ok so how long do I cook it for? I made this yesterday for a work potluck. It was so easy, inexpensive, and tasty. It was absolutely best right when done creamiest but we still at on it all day long. Thanks so much! Thanks so much. Hi Rosie, I know this is going to be a delicious recipe!

Do you think I could assemble the whole mixture, store over night in fridge, pop it into crockpot in the morning and top with remaining cheese? Any advice is appreciated. Hi Rosie! Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe.

I made it for a work potluck and it was a hit! I have been making oven baked mac and cheese for years, but this Thanksgiving I will be saving oven space with this slow cooker mac and a fried turkey!! I will also use Tillamook sharp cheddar cheese and muenster cheese this time around. Plus a smidge more seasoning. I want to double this recipe and my crockpot is 6 quarts. Will that be big enough? Just in case anyone else should ask the question about a 6 quart being big enough for a double batch. It just fits!

I tried it this morning and it worked! Thank you for the recipe! Thanks so much!!! Thank U, Thank U, Thank you! I already started making it and used the measurements as listed. It smells great! Hi Rosie. Thank you for sharing this recipe. I would like to one and a half times the recipe. Do you think that would fit into a 5 qt crockpot? My family likes the extra sharp flavor at times. Should I stick with Sharp or try the extra sharp? I do not want to over power the recipe.

Plan on making this for Thanksgiving and needed a crockpot because I only have 1 oven and it will be used all day for other things. What do you think sharp or extra sharp cheddar cheese? Thanks for sharing your recipe. Looking forward to trying it. Hi Judy! I think you should use whatever you family likes. I personally like sharp cheddar. I have a question because I really want to try this for Thanksgiving it will transport so easily. Do the noodles get too soft is it really mushy? I accidentally got Colby jack cheese instead of colby. Will that be ok, or I have some medium cheddar?

Loved this recipe. I have a 6 qt oval crockpot. It also prevents the cheese from melting smoothly in recipes like this. Definitely subscribing and excited to try more of your recipes!! I could only find the smaller size. Making this today or tomorrow so you would be my hero if you were able to get back to me. Thank you Love! I made this today for our office potluck! Great potluck idea! All my co-workers enjoyed it! I was nervous about making crock pot mac and cheese but it came out so delicious! I used Pepper Jack cheese and Sharp Cheddar.

Everyone loved the zesty kick. Also great idea using the cheddar cheese soup! Thank you for this recipe girl! Suggestion on how to make it creamier now after the fact? Oh darn. However, I did warn ya. Not sure if adding cream cheese would help. It may make it worst, as far as taste.

Can I mix everything together without cooking it and tracel an hour to my destination then cook it? Would it be ok? I am looking forward to trying some recipes. I wanted to know, if you had a preference for the baked or slow cooked mac n cheese? Are there any noted differences between them?

Hungry for more?

Hi Dana, I love all my mac and cheese recipes. However, when I cook for large crowds I prefer to use the slow cooker mac and cheese. Less ingredients, less fuss. This is currently in my crockpot! Happy Thanksgiving! I am impressed!!! But this recipe is a winner for sure. It still has the traditional taste to it that the holiday crowd enjoy!!! I will keep this as a new ingredient and modern traditional way of making baked mac and cheese. I made this today and it came out great! Creamy Mac and cheese. My mom always makes the old fashioned mac n cheese and I showed her a lil something today with this recipe lol.

We love it thanks!! Happy Thanksgiving. Needless to say, I plan on making it again! Hey Rosie I cooked this in my crock pot the other day it was great. Can j boil the pasta and ad the cheese and sauce to the cooked pasta already??? I tried it and it was amazing!!! Your the best thanks Rosie it was a big hit I had to hide the rest for myself so no one would get into it.

I made this for Thanksgiving and it was a big hit! I finished this with a couple minutes under the broiler to give it that crispy brown, just out of the oven look. It was perfection. This one was perfect! The crockpot is really great for Thanksgiving since the oven gets so full! Thank you!!! Made this on Thanksgiving. Except I baked it instead. I was pressed for time. It came out great. Everyone loved it. My husband even said it was better than his moms. Very easy to make. Will definitely make again. I plan on making this tomorrow. How big of a crock pot are you fixing this in?

And does it fill it up? I believe I have like a 6qt maybe. Sorry if someone else has posted this there are so many comments. Thank u! I made this and it was delicious. I plan to make it again for Christmas dinner. I am thinking of making this Christmas morning. I was wondering if I cooked it at home right up to the 3 hours then unplugged it and drove home, how do you think it would do? Any suggestions? I really want to use the blocks instead of the packaged pre shredded cheese. Made this yesterday.

It was wonderful.

Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese

I have a 5 qt slow cooker. I made this mac and cheese for Thanksgiving and will be making it again for Christmas dinner. Everything about it was so delicious and so simple. I followed the recipe exact. Sure beats that baked monstrosity my sister in law used to bring lol. Thanks for a great blog!!

I made a double recipe for a pot luck at work — yes I literally made it at work. Threw everything in the crockpot in the morning, turned it on, and it was ready for lunch. It was fantastic, just about the only dish that got completely eaten. Not only do I recommend it but others have asked for another appearance of this. Great recipe — a keeper for sure. How large was your crockpot? I want to double the recipe and have a 6qt.

Do you think this will be large enough? So glad I came across your recipe! Wish me luck in the kitchen! I love to cook but find timing dishes quite tricky. I made this recipe last week for my Office Christmas Luncheon. The mac and cheese was a hit!!

I used Gouda, Havarti and Kraft Triple Cheddar shredded vermont white cheddar, sharp and mild cheddar with cream cheese. The only thing I did do different other than the cheese selection is add Cayenne pepper to spice it up a bit. Other than that, this recipe will be used again for Christmas Dinner for my family. I know this sounds like a crazy question… I am bringing this as well as scalloped potatoes to the family dinner on Christmas day, would this mixture work to make the scalloped potatoes layering potatoes, onions and cheese sauce, with longer cooking time of course?

Hi Rosie, Tried this last week, and it was delicious. Will make it again and try different cheeses. Thanks for the videos as well. Can you have this recipe ready to go the evening before and then cook it in the morning? Leave for work at 3AM and the pot luck is at 9ish. Thanks for the help. Hi Rosie, I was told not to make a new recipe for guests or outings. I made this first time for a work lunch today and went home with an empty crock pot.

Thanks, Joel. Found this recipe on Google. Grabbed my crockpot this morning and stopped on my way to work to get the ingredients. Cooked it right at my desk! Could not have been easier! And everyone is raving about the dish! Had several requests for the recipe. Thanks for saving my butt! Looking forward now to trying some of your other recipes. This is delicious! And I love not having to cook the noodles! This is an easy, but delicious mac-n-cheese recipe. The family loved it and it was even better the next day. Thank you sharing.

Hi Rosie, I just had a quick question. My crackpot setting are for 2,4,6,8, and 10 hours for high or low. Since the recipe asks for 3 hours on low, can I put it for 2 hours and leave the rest warm? If I could leave it for 4 hours on low I would but I have church tomorrow morning and I need it by noon to be ready….

I made this today and it came out perfect!! Im servicing it with your roast chicken. Love the recipe and have made a couple time with one change. If you like a little spice I changed the Colby cheese to Pepper Jack cheese. Everything else just the same and comes out perfect every time.

Never any leftovers in our house. Made this today for a work potluck. I used pre shredded cheese and I thought it was fine both taste- and texture-wise. I used smoked paprika which is one of my favorite spices. Only one tiny spoonful left aft the end of the day! Great recipe! Hi Rosie — I made this recipe yesterday, fresh grated cheese, and only added garlic powder, paprika and pepper, definitely no salt needed. This dish was the hit of our potluck!! Glad to add this one to my favs!! Have you ever added eggs to your dish? I have southern baked macaroni and cheese recipe , and I use eggs in it.

This recipe, does not require eggs: Made this for a work pitch in. I was a bit nervous to take it in and feed it to co-workers without ever having tried it before. Lots of compliments and no leftovers made it home. Which meant I just had to make another batch to enjoy all to myself! This the ooiest, gooiest, and yummiest Mac and Cheese ever!! So delicious, and completely fail proof if followed correctly. This is my go to site when wanting a great recipe! Made this for Sunday dinner and it was absolutelyyyyyy delicious!!!

Super easy. Sop excited for leftovers! So delicious!

Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese - Dinner, then Dessert

I made this to accompany our New Years dinner and I am making it again. This is so good and cheesy and creamy! Everyone kept raving about how good it was! I made a double recipe, and 3 hours was the perfect amount of time. One helpful hint: Keep extra half-and-half on hand if that happens. For the record, I used bagged shredded cheese, mixed all ingredients together, and just poured it all into the crockpot at once. This recipe is a keeper!!! Could I use smoked gouda instead of the cheddar or colby? If so, which one? Same amount?