Why Mac And Cheese Tastes Better At A Restaurant

Let's face it, when we are feeling like we need an edible pick-me-up, few foods are as comforting as a steaming hot serving of mac and cheese. The stick-to-your-ribs noodles and melted cheese are like a hug for your insides. While you can certainly make the dish at home, and there is no shortage of store-bought, boxed varieties to choose from that are convenient and affordable, some of the creamiest and most over-the-top macaroni and cheese recipes are found at restaurants.

In my own professional experience as a chef, I have made countless variations on this dish aimed towards different audiences. I have employed a number of different techniques to perfect my mac and cheese and make it something simultaneously gourmet and satisfying.

From knowing what kind of noodles work best to the ideal melting cheeses to which add-ins will help to elevate this recipe to new culinary heights, chefs, like myself, have the education and experience to turn what can be a mundane bowl of mac and cheese into a transformational experience. If you want to learn some tips and tricks from restaurant chefs that can elevate your mac and cheese game, read on to discover why this dish often tastes better at a restaurant.

At its core, mac and cheese is a pasta dish, which means that this foundation must be solid for any recipe to turn out well. While you may think all pasta is the same, there are some crucial considerations that chefs factor in when it comes to selecting the base for their recipes. Among these, the shape and type of die used to cut the pasta are key characteristics. Both of these will determine the degree to which the noodles will hold the sauce, which is necessary for a mac and cheese to have a luxurious texture.

While most people are familiar with elbow macaroni and shell-shaped noodles for mac and cheese, they aren't necessarily the ideal pasta types for really trapping the creamy sauce. Corkscrew or spiral-shaped pasta, like cavatappi or fusilli, are actually better-suited, as they have more nooks-and-crannies where that sauce can nestle. Another unique pasta shape that can shake up your next batch of mac and cheese is campanelle, or bellflower-shaped noodles. These not only hold the sauce beautifully, they give mac and cheese a bougie, restaurant-style look.

As far as the type of die used to cut pasta noodles, chefs often opt for those that are made using bronze dies. These high-end dies produce a distinctive, ribbed texture on pasta noodles that makes them adhere to sauce more easily. This is a game changer when it comes to making mac and cheese.

The second key component of mac and cheese is the fromage. Chefs always select the right type of cheese, and a high-quality one at that, to guarantee that their mac and cheese is rich and gooey. The first criteria is that it should melt well. The best melting cheeses tend to be young, have a high moisture content, and be rennet-set versus acid-set.

Another factor in selecting cheese for mac and cheese that chefs take great pride in is mixing and matching different types for a more complex flavor. Though you can use one kind of cheese, this results in a dish that is relatively boring and bland. A combination of three or more varieties creates a nuanced, layered mac and cheese that bursts in your mouth with flavor.

When deciding which cheeses go together, it is helpful to begin with a base that is flavorful, but not overly pungent, to make up the bulk of the sauce. Great options for this include cheddar, Swiss, or Monterey jack. From this as a launching point, I like to incorporate smaller quantities of two or more intensely-flavored cheeses to help the dish pop. One such pungent cheese that adds loads of umami flavor to mac and cheese is blue cheese. Others include gruyere, asiago, smoked gouda, or pecorino Romano.

Perhaps one of the greatest culinary sins one can make when crafting mac and cheese is using pre-shredded cheese. While this is certainly easier to deal with, there are a number of reasons restaurants avoid it. The main reason is that pre-shredded cheese is coated with a number of preservatives and additives, like cellulose and potato starch. These extend the shelf-life of the cheese and help to keep the shreds separated, but they can also impact the ability of it to melt evenly, leaving it lumpy and grainy, rather than smooth and stretchy.

Additionally, pre-shredded cheese can cost more than blocks and you are not able to select the highest quality varieties, which can seriously impact the flavor of finished mac and cheese. There is also the fact that pre-shredded cheeses only come in a small number of iterations, which limits the diversity of types you can use, further restricting the degree of complexity in flavor of a batch of mac and cheese.

Restaurants don't shred copious quantities of cheese using a box grater; they rely on industrial-sized food processors with shredder attachments. While a home chef won't want or need something quite as powerful or large as a commercial food processor, there are better ones available that can turn the task of shredding cheese into a breeze. The Ninja Professional Plus Food Processor is a great example of one that has a high capacity and multiple functions, but won't break the bank.

When it comes to making mac and cheese the way a restaurant chef does, you must master the art of making a French-style béchamel sauce. Béchamel is one of the classic French "Mother Sauces." It combines a delicate roux of flour and butter and pulls these together into a creamy, white sauce with milk. Unlike a southern gravy, a béchamel isn't thick or starchy. It is smooth and elegant, with just enough viscosity to coat your tongue and give mac and cheese a luxurious mouthfeel.

When making béchamel sauce for mac and cheese, chefs always use a high quality European butter. This butter generally has a high fat content and less water, which gives the béchamel a darker color and a richer flavor. Though whole milk is the go-to for a traditional béchamel sauce, buttermilk can also be used for something a bit more tangy that will really brighten up the flavor of the finished mac and cheese.

Once the béchamel has been carefully whisked together, the freshly grated cheese blend of choice is added and gently melted until the entire thing is smooth and creamy. While the béchamel sauce can be made in advance, I seldom do this, as it can easily form an unsavory skin on top that will make it clumpy, and it is difficult to reheat without destroying the texture of the melted cheese or over-thickening it.

If you have ever eaten mac and cheese at a restaurant, you will always notice that the texture of the noodle is perfectly tender and creamy, yet doesn't completely dissolve into a pile of mush. This is because chefs are taught to cook their pasta to an al dente texture before assembling mac and cheese. Cooking pasta al dente literally means "to the tooth" in Italian. It describes noodles that are still a bit chewy, but are no longer hard or crunchy.

Al dente pasta is crucial for mac and cheese because it is typically baked in the cheese sauce, which means the noodles will have a lot of time to continue absorbing any remaining liquid and become tender. If the pasta is fully cooked when it goes into the oven, it will become hyper-saturated and begin to fall apart, which makes for a less pleasant mouthfeel.

To cook pasta al dente, you will want to remove it from the water with about two to three minutes to spare based on the instructions on the box. It is important to start testing the pasta every 30 seconds so that you don't miss the al dente window. And, contrary to what some recipes may say, chefs never rinse their pasta noodles for mac and cheese. This eliminates valuable excess starches from the surface of the noodles that will help give them a chewy texture and encourage the sauce to adhere to them.

On one end of the spectrum of mac and cheese faux pas is the dish becoming overly soupy; the other extreme is a mac and cheese that is so dry that it is hard to swallow. This is where chefs employ a secret ingredient that is inexpensive, yet indispensable, to making mac and cheese: They always save some of the cooking water for use after draining the pasta.

This cooking water is loaded with starches, which can help to transform mac and cheese from something dull and lifeless to a creamy, luxurious, rich, glossy, and moist masterpiece worthy of a five-star dining experience. Pasta water will not only encourage the cheese sauce to adhere to the noodles, it will help to emulsify it further, giving it a more uniform texture that is not overly gloopy.

The key is to use some discretion. You cannot indiscriminately dump the pasta water into the mac and cheese; this needs to be done with some finesse, a little at a time. I typically add a quarter of a cup at a time to a batch of mac and cheese, stirring the sauce, noodles, and pasta water together until it has the consistency I am searching for.

One thing that I notice more than anything about homecooked mac and cheese versus those made in a restaurant is the lack of seasonings. Chefs not only don't shy away from seasonings, they lean into using them to help amplify flavor. Dried herbs and spices are a great way to develop complexity in mac and cheese without adding any bulk. They help to infuse the cheese sauce and pasta with flavor, absorbing into the noodles as the whole thing is assembled.

At the very least, chefs will add freshly grated nutmeg to the béchamel sauce to help elevate their mac and cheese. This sweet and spicy ingredient is actually a common addition to béchamel sauce for many recipes. It helps to balance out the richness the sauce while brightening it up. Though you can use pre-ground nutmeg, this has virtually no flavor when compared with the freshly grated variety. You'll need a small Microplane spice grater to get the perfect grind.

Other dried herbs and spices chefs will commonly add to mac and cheese include cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, or red pepper flakes for a little heat, dried mustard for some tang, and Italian seasoning or Herbes de Provence for some earthy, grassy notes. If you want to get really exotic, try a pinch of curry powder or garam masala. The turmeric in these will lend a lovely orange hue, while the distinct combination of spices confer a burst of sweet and savory flavor.

Another thing restaurant chefs don't skimp on when it comes to making bougie mac and cheese is the add-ins. There's no better way to make mac and cheese gourmet than to incorporate other elements that help to enhance the color, texture, aroma, and flavor of this classic dish. While various vegetables and meats are an obvious choice, there are some less apparent elements that are more subtle, yet every bit as transformative.

Fresh herbs are great, but mixing pesto into mac and cheese is even better. This combination of nuts, cheese, herbs, olive oil, garlic, and lemon juice balances herbaceous, salty, zesty, and creamy notes together for the perfect mouthful. A tablespoon or two stirred into the noodles and sauce is all you need to elevate any recipe.

Umami-rich components are another great way to add nuance and complexity to mac and cheese. Chopped sun dried tomatoes, mushroom powder, anchovies, and miso paste are all great secret ingredients to stir into the blend that may not necessarily be as obvious, but will completely revolutionize any mac and cheese dish with intense, savory flavor.

While most store-bought mac and cheeses are designed to be prepared on the stove top, there is a reason why many restaurants opt to bake their recipes. Not only does baking mac and cheese help to make it less watery and richer, it also produces a delectable, crisp crust that creates a more complex mouthfeel with every bite. Additionally, baked mac and cheese lends itself to ease of service. Restaurants can prepare a large batch and have it ready to go so that they can quickly scoop a helping onto a plate and it will look appetizing, rather than sloppy.

While home cooks may use a casserole or glass Pyrex to bake mac and cheese, restaurants often use what is known as a hotel pan for this process. By baking mac and cheese in a shallow hotel pan, like these 2½ inch-deep ones from Voisin, this dish can develop an extra crunchy bite. The greater surface area exposed to the heat enables more of the mac and cheese to develop a crust, which means each mouthful gets that delicious, complex body.

Another way restaurants bake mac and cheese for maximum crunch and ease of service is by transferring it into single serving, small-sized ramekins or au gratin dishes, like these porcelain ones from Heartland Home. These can be prepared in advance and baked off as-needed to expedite things and eliminate waste. They also look a little more elegant on a plate.

To enhance the crunchiness of baked mac and cheese, chefs will use all kinds of toppings to add texture before baking their recipes. While bread crumbs, specifically panko ones, may be the obvious choice for this purpose, there are plenty of other options that can not only be more flavorful, but have more complex textures, including elements of crispiness and chewiness, that can create a party in your mouth.

The options for toppings are virtually endless. Some common savory ingredients include crushed crackers, potato chips, tortilla chips, or even leftover seasoned croutons. These can easily be pulverized by tossing them into a food processor and pulsing them for a few seconds. Chopped nuts are also a great alternative. When using nuts, make sure to toast them before adding them to the mac and cheese to help draw out their flavor and firm up their texture.

That said, chefs don't limit themselves to savory components alone. Sweet elements can really amplify the flavor of mac and cheese too. Crumbled cookies, including gingersnaps or vanilla wafers, and cereals of various kinds, from Corn Flakes to Rice Krispies, lend balance to the salty cheese and any umami-rich add-ins you might use, developing a nuanced taste that will titillate every one of your taste buds.

Dining at a restaurant is about more than just the quality of the food; it is often about what I like to call "culinary theater." Part of the experience involves the creative ways in which chefs decide to combine and plate foods so that they can simultaneously surprise and entertain their diners. When it comes to mac and cheese, many of us have experienced restaurant renditions that are clever and inspired.

In some cases, mac and cheese becomes a component of other dishes, such as the filling for a grilled cheese sandwich or the topping for a pizza. In others, it is transformed into new and inventive forms. Some of my personal favorites include waffles, pancakes, fritters, and arancini-style fried balls that can be dipped in a variety of sauces.

The key to getting creative with mac and cheese is to keep layers in mind. It can be easy to turn any mac and cheese dish into a belly bomb that lacks any nuance. Adding a variety of fresh ingredients, proteins, condiments, and plenty of sauces will help to balance out any heaviness so that the experience remains refined, not an exercise in excess.