Easy Cheese Sauce

Easy Cheese Sauce in just 5 minutes from scratch! Spoon it over nachos, vegetables, baked potatoes, french fries and add pasta for mac and cheese!

I wouldn’t be so bold as to say a good cheese sauce can solve the world’s problems, but it certainly does make almost everything coming out of the kitchen better. Way better. 

Just 5 minutes and 4 simple ingredients you probably already have on hand and you’re on your way to game-changing homemade cheese sauce. 

Once you try warm gooey sauce, you’ll see just how simple it is and will never buy that stuff in a jar again. It whips up in just 5 minutes with 4 ingredients and makes the best topping for roasted or steamed vegetables among so many other foods!

TIP: Gather all the ingredients ahead of time because it whips up really quickly. If you’re making Air Fryer Roasted Broccoli, you can make this cheese sauce in the time it takes the broccoli to cook (8 minutes in case you’re wondering).

What kind of cheese should i use?

There are many options (sharp cheddar being my go-to), but here are a few others to get you started:

• Sharp Cheddar for vegetables, a dipping sauce for pretzel bites, or cheese fries
• Smoked Gouda for mac and cheese
• Pepper Jack for spooning over nachos along with 5 minute Blender Salsa
• Swiss Cheese for any dishes that use ham for a classic combination

what’s in this cheese sauce?

• butter
• flour
• milk (2% used, can use whole milk; skim not recommended)
• cheese!

HOW TO MAke cheese sauce:

Grate the cheese then set aside. 

Next make the roux – a butter-flour blend to thicken the sauce. 

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium to medium-low heat, then sprinkle the flour over the top and whisk until smooth. 

Pour in the milk and season with salt then continue whisking constantly until the milk and flour mixture are combined. Increase the heat, bring to a full boil then reduce the heat and simmer until the white sauce thickens.

Remove the pan from the heat then add the cheese, gently stirring until it’s melted and the sauce is smooth and silky. Taste and adjust salt as you like then eat right away.

kitchen tips:

Start with fresh hand-grated cheese for easier melting. Prepackaged contains ingredients so the cheese doesn’t clump in the bag but may affect the quality of the sauce. 

Turn off the heat before adding the cheese. Overheating the sauce may cause the sauce to become too thick or grainy. If your sauce is too thick, add a splash of milk and stir.

No Pepper Jack cheese for nachos? Use sharp cheddar and add ground cayenne pepper for a spicy kick.

Enjoy!

If you tried this Easy Cheese Sauce recipe or any other on the blog then I hope you’ll leave a comment and some stars!

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Easy Cheese Sauce

Easy 5 minute Cheese Sauce from scratch! Spoon it over vegetables, nachos, baked potatoes, french fries and add pasta for mac and cheese!

Print Pin Rate

Course: Appetizer, sauce

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cheese sauce, nacho cheese sauce, nacho sauce, cheddar cheese sauce

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup milk 2% used - skim not recommended
• 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese freshly grated
• 1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste

Instructions

• Grate the cheese then set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, melt the butter then sprinkle the flour over the top. Whisk until smooth.
• Pour in the milk and salt, whisking constantly until the milk and flour mixture are combined. Increase the heat, bring to a full boil then reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce thickens.
• Remove the pan from the heat then add the cheese, gently stirring until the cheese is melted and the sauce is silky. Taste and adjust for salt then eat right away.