Masala Mac and Cheese with step by step pictures. Gooey, creamy, and delicious Masala Mac and Cheese with an Indian twist. This Indian Mac and Cheese is made with no cream, no half and half.
I've been dreaming about making a Masala Mac and Cheese for so long now, and I had to deliver yet another mac and cheese recipe before Thanksgiving. This Masala Mac and Cheese can also go by Indian Mac and Cheese, Desi Mac and Cheese, or Tikka Masala Mac and Cheese.
What is Masala?
Masala is a mixture of ginger, garlic, onions, and tomatoes sauteed with Indian spices. So in this mac and cheese, we first make the masala and then make a roux (with butter and flour) to help thicken the sauce. We then add the milk slowly followed by lots of cheese. Now we have our masala sauce ready.
Once the sauce is ready, add the macaroni or shells pasta to the creamy sauce. Finish it off with toppings and finally by broiling it in the oven. So creamy and delicious.
Even my picky eater husband who can't handle any spice went back for seconds and thirds. The next day he woke up at 7 am on a Saturday and had the leftovers for breakfast. It's seriously that good.
Make this as a side dish this Thanksgiving, or you can also make my Crunchy Tortilla Salsa Mac and Cheese or Black Bean Enchilada Pasta.
masala mac and cheese is:
Creamy
Delicious
Indian Fusion
Vegetarian
Made with NO CREAM, NO HALF AND HALF
Gluten-Free option (use gf pasta and gf bread crumbs)
Whole Wheat option (use ww pasta and ww bread crumbs)
Perfect Thanksgiving Side
how to make masala mac and cheese recipe step by step?
Prep
1. Fill a large pot with water and heat up. This is for the pasta.
2. Chop the ginger, garlic, green chilies, and onion.
3. Chop the red and green bell peppers.
Make the Sauce
1. Heat up a dutch castiron on medium heat, once hot, add oil followed by the ginger, garlic, and green chilies. Saute for about 30 seconds.
2. Add onions and saute for 3 minutes.
3. Now add the red and green bell peppers. Season with salt. Stir well. Saute for about 4-5 minutes.
4. In the meantime, using a mortar and pestle or a coffee grinder grind your spices - cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, cardamom and fennel seeds.
5. This is what you should have.
6. Add the grinded spices, along with turmeric, coriander powder, and red chili powder. Cook for about 1 minute.
7. Add the tomato paste.
8. Saute for about 3 minutes.
9. Now add 2 tablespoon of butter.
10. Once the butter melts, add the flour.
11. Cook the flour and butter for about 2 minutes to form a roux. This will help thicken the sauce.
12. Now, SLOWLY pour the milk little by little. Do not add all the cold milk at once else your sauce will curdle.
13. Note how the sauce is getting thick. Reduce heat to very low.
14. In the meantime, season the boiling hot water with salt and cook the shells until al dente.
15. Here is your sauce. Make sure your heat is very low. Let the sauce heat up on very low heat for about 5 minutes.
16. While the sauce heats up (not boil), grate the cheese. I used Gruyere and White Cheddar.
17. Add the cheese little by little to the sauce. Do not add the cold cheese at once to the hot sauce. Make sure your heat is very low.
18. Cook the sauce for a few minutes until nice and hot. Sauce is ready.
19. Drain the pasta.
Assemble the Mac & Cheese
1. Add the pasta to the cheese sauce.
2. Transfer the pasta to a baking dish or a 12" castiron skillet. Alternatively, you may enjoy mac and cheese without baking this dish.
3. Top with 1 cup of cheese - equal parts of Gruyere and White Cheddar.
4. Also top with plain bread crumbs and sliced serrano chilies for garnish.
5. Broil for 10 minutes. Start watching it closely after 5 minutes.
6. Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves. Serve hot!
Enjoy!
Masala Mac and Cheese (no cream, no half and half, gluten-free option)
Ingredients
Pasta
- pot of boiling hot water, season well with salt
- 1 pound medium shells pasta whole wheat or gluten-free will work
Make the Sauce
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- 1 serrano chili, finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 inch piece ginger, finely chopped
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- ½ medium red bell pepper, finely chopped
- ½ medium green bell pepper, finely chopped
- ½ inch piece cinnamon stick
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
- 2 cardamom pods
- 4 peppercorns
- 1 clove
- 2 teaspoon coriander powder
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 tsp red chili powder cayenne pepper
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 2 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoon white flour
- 2 ½ cups whole milk
- 1 cup Gruyere cheese, grated for sauce
- 1 cup mild cheddar cheese, grated for sauce
Topping & Garnish
- ½ cup Gruyere cheese, grated
- ½ cup mild cheddar cheese, grated
- 1-2 tablespoon plain bread crumbs, or panko
- sliced serrano chilies
- small handful fresh cilantro, finely chopped
Instructions
Prep
- Fill a large pot with water and heat up. This is for the pasta.
- Chop the ginger, garlic, green chilies, and onion.
- Chop the red and green bell peppers.
Make the Sauce
- Heat up a dutch castiron on medium heat, once hot, add oil followed by the ginger, garlic and green chilies. Saute for about 30 seconds.
- Add onions and saute for 3 minutes.
- Now add the red and green bell peppers. Season with salt. Stir well. Saute for about 4-5 minutes.
- In the meantime, using a mortar and pestle or a coffee grinder grind your spices - cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, cardamom and fennel seeds.
- This is what you should have.
- Add the grinded spices, along with turmeric, coriander powder, and red chili powder. Cook for about 1 minute.
- Add the tomato paste.
- Saute for about 3 minutes.
- Now add 2 tablespoon of butter.
- Once the butter melts, add the flour.
- Cook the flour and butter for about 2 minutes to form a roux. This will help thicken the sauce.
- Now, SLOWLY pour the milk little by little. Do not add all the cold milk at once else your sauce will curdle.
- Note how the sauce is getting thick. Reduce heat to very low.
- In the meantime, season the boiling hot water with salt and cook the shells until al dente.
- Here is your sauce. Make sure your heat is on very low. Let the sauce heat up on very low heat for about 5 minutes.
- While the sauce heats up (not boil) grate the cheese. I used Gruyere and White Cheddar.
- Add the cheese little by little to the sauce. Do not add the cold cheese at once to the hot sauce. Make sure your heat is very low.
- Cook the sauce for a few minutes until nice and hot. Sauce is ready.
- Drain the pasta.
Assemble the Mac & Cheese
- Add the pasta to the cheese sauce.
- Transfer the pasta to a baking dish or a castiron skillet. Alternatively, you may enjoy mac and cheese without baking this dish.
- Top with 1 cup of cheese - equal parts of Gruyere and White Cheddar.
- Also top with plain bread crumbs and sliced serrano chilies for garnish.
- Broil for 10 minutes. Start watching it closely after 5 minutes.
- Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves. Serve hot!
Notes
- for gluten-free, choose a gluten-free shell pasta and GF bread crumbs.
- for whole wheat option, choose a whole wheat shell pasta and WW bread crumbs.
Amrit says
Wow this was a huge hit when I made it for a potluck I hosted. Everyone just loved it. Will now have to make it again for Thanksgiving too!
Ashima says
Best Mac and cheese ever!! I actually made mine vegan and my husband and mother in law couldn’t tell the difference!
Aparna says
Great recipe! Simple instructions and delicious result
Nirali Pathak says
I love Nisha's recipes! I made Chicken Tikka Masala using the same recipe for the gravy. Except substituted pasta with chicken. It was delish! Thanks girl!
honeywhatscooking says
Thanks so much Nirali. Such a great idea. xoxo
sruthi says
First time cooking Mac and cheese, turned out amazing. recipe is easy to follow along 🙂
Aasheekaa says
Another winner from you Nisha - this recipe was the star of our vegetarian Thanksgiving dinner. We all enjoyed it and the dash of masala was perfect for our Indian family. Thank you!
honeywhatscooking says
Thanks so much Aasheeka. So glad you enjoyed this dish. Really appreciate your sweet comment. xoxo
Ghata Vyas says
Made this for lunch yesterday. So delish!!! Hubby and I devoured it! I put tad too many jalapeños so def had a kick ;).
Preeti says
Best recipe ever!! My husband and in-laws absolutely loved this dish. I added some chicken to it and it really hit the spot. Thanks so much for this amazing recipe
Mayuri says
This recipe is so easy to make. Made this for Thanksgiving and it was a huge hit! Everyone liked how light and creamy it was. MIL asked if it could become a staple! Haha!
honeywhatscooking says
Awww.. that's so awesome! So glad your MIL approved - that's always a tough one. xoxo
Gurpreet Aujla says
Perfect sidedisb for Thanksgiving everybody loved it and so easy to make😋 Thank you so much for always sharing yummy recipes☺️
Navya says
This recipe is a bomb. We just loved it . My husband is not a great fan of Mac n cheese but he had 3 rounds of this. I am going to make it again . Thank you for the recipe! And all the best for your delivery😊
HK says
This one was a winner!! I substituted some of the ingredients with vegan alternatives and the dish still tasted AMAZING!!
Thank you for the recepie and your blog in general! ❤️
Aparajita says
SO SO YUMMY! The best twist on traditional mac and cheese that in my opinion, is pretty bland. But this is so flavorful and delicious!! A family favorite. Thank you for this recipe Nisha!
Aparajita says
SO SO YUMMY! Way better than traditional mac and cheese which, in my opinion is pretty bland. This is so flavorful and creamy and my family and I love it. Thank you for this wonderful recipe Nisha!