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Home » Food » Dinner

Sour Cream & Onion Mac and Cheese

June 27, 2019 by Chelsea Kram – XO&So: Vegetarian Comfort Food 2 Comments

Drum roll please... June's Mac of the Month is Sour Cream and Onion Mac and Cheese!

As IF I'm already halfway through the mac and cheeses of the month for 2019! How did this happen?! I know it's a ways away, but I already have an idea for the food I'm going to make a new version of each month in 2020 and I think you're going to love it!

I love each mac of the month I've made, and they all hold a special place in my heart. If you ask me, you can't go wrong with any of them. But this one? This one is extra special. In fact, since making it, I've told several people this is the best/my favorite mac and cheese of the month I've EVER made!!!!

And it's only fitting that my favorite one happens to fall on my birthday month.
Sour cream and onion is a great flavor on just about anything...chips, popcorn, potatoes, you name it.

So why not add all of that great flavor to a creamy mac and cheese dish....and THEN top it with crunchy sour cream and onion chips?! To get even more onion flavor in the mac and cheese, you'll use fresh chopped green onion AND onion powder.

This mac and cheese recipe uses all white cheeses to give it that extra creamy look (and great taste, of course). I use a basic roux to start the recipe, and you finish it off by adding some sour cream. When you add sour cream to a recipe it brings a level of tanginess that's hard to beat. Trust me, it really takes the taste and flavor up a notch!

I always like using a mixture of cheeses in any mac and cheese because it's just one more way to make a more delicious dish and each cheese brings something special to it. I mean, just look how creamy, cheesy, and perfect that sauce looks!!!!

sour cream and onion mac and cheese

Important Tips for Making Sour Cream and Onion Mac and Cheese

  1. Cook your noodles for one minute less than the package states. Once they're cooked, drained them and let them sit in the pot with about a tablespoon of butter. This gives them a chance to cool off and stops them from getting soggy when you bake them.
  2. Don't add your cheese or sour cream until after the heat is turned off. Adding the cheese while the heat is still on can make it stringy. The remaining heat in the roux will be enough to melt the cheese. You also don't want to add the sour cream while the heat is still one because otherwise it could curdle.
  3. Depending on the size of the dish you bake the sour cream and onion mac and cheese in, you can use more or fewer chips for the topping.
  4. If you don't want to buy three different cheeses just for this recipe, I understand. I mean, I think it's worth it, but you can still get an AWESOME result without. I'd still stick with monterey jack cheese as your base, but if you don't want to add BOTH white cheddar and mozzarella, you could pick between the two. Mozzarella gives a more creamy, cheese pull-y texture while white cheddar brings a sharper flavor.
  5. As always, I want to stress how important it is to shred your own cheese for mac and cheese instead of buying pre-shredded cheese. I wrote extensively about why that makes better mac and cheese here.

Let's get down to how to make sour cream and onion mac and cheese!

📖 Recipe

Mac of the Month: Sour Cream and Onion Mac and Cheese

It's hard to beat sour cream & onion chips. So why not add all of that great flavor to creamy mac & cheese, made with crunchy chips & tangy sour cream?
4 from 1 vote
Print Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 30 mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine American, Italian
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

For the Sauce

  • ¼ cup butter
  • ¼ cup flour
  • 2 cups  milk NOT skim, I use a mix of milk and cream
  • ½ cup cream cheese cubed
  • ½ cup sour cream
  • 1 cup Monterey jack cheese
  • ½ cup mozzarella shredded
  • ½ cup white cheddar shredded
  • ⅓ cup green onions diced
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt or more, to taste

For the Noodles

  • 3 cups uncooked macaroni noodles
  • 1 tablespoon butter

For the Topping

  • 1 cup sour cream and onion chips crushed
  • 1 tablespoon butter melted

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350F.
    Cook noodles in salted water for one minute less than package directions. Drain, add one tablespoon of butter, mix, and set aside.
  • Grate cheese, dice green onions, cut cream cheese into cubes, and set aside. Begin to melt 4 tablespoon (¼ cup) of butter in a saucepan on medium heat.
  • When the butter is melted, add the diced green onion, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt. Cook on medium-high until onions are fragrant and soft, about 2-3 minutes. Stir regularly. 
  • Next, whisk the flour into the melted butter mixture. Once the butter and flour are mixed and begin to form a paste, SLOWLY add the milk and cream. Stir constantly, and let the sauce thicken for at least five minutes. Don't skip this step!
  • Once the roux is gently bubbling and has thickened up a little bit, add the cubed cream cheese and cook on low heat for a few minutes until melted. Once the cream cheese has melted, turn off the heat.
    Now, add shredded cheese and stir gently, allowing the remaining heat in the roux to melt the cheese - this stops it from getting stringy. 
    Once the cheese has all melted, add the sour cream and stir to incorporate.
  • In a bowl, mix 1 cup of crushed sour cream and onion chips with 1 tbsp. of melted butter. Use more chips if you want a denser topping.
  • When the roux and macaroni are done, combine in a greased baking dish. Top with chip mixture, COVER, and bake at 350F for about 15 minutes.
  • You can add more green onions for garnish if you'd like. Then, serve, enjoy, and prepare to amaze your dinner guests!

Notes

  • This recipe reheats well, BUT, keep in mind the chips won't be as crunchy on top once it's been in the fridge then reheated. If you'd like, you can add more chips each time you serve it to make sure you get that crunch. 
  • Remember not to add your cheese or sour cream until after the heat is turned off. Adding the cheese while the heat is still on can make it stringy. The remaining heat in the roux will be enough to melt the cheese. You also don’t want to add the sour cream while the heat is still one because otherwise it could curdle. Yuck!
Keyword mac and cheese, mac of the month, sour cream and onion
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

I just know you're going to love this! Please let me know once you've given it a try and don't forget to rate this sour cream and onion mac and cheese down below!

xo - C

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Morgan

    July 31, 2019 at 4:38 pm

    4 stars
    My boyfriend and I loveddddd this recipe. We ate it as our main course but we think it’d be better as a side dish next time because of how strong the flavors are. I think it’d really pair well with some grilled chicken. So yummy!!

    Reply
    • chelseaxoandso

      August 02, 2019 at 7:38 pm

      Thanks so much for letting me know!!! I'm really happy to hear you enjoyed it. I agree — would work great as a side dish and with chicken too!

      Reply

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About Chelsea Kram & XO&So

Hi! I'm Chelsea and I'm the Canadian food blogger behind all of the XO&So vegetarian comfort food recipes. Click here to get to know more about me.

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