The late great Anthony Bourdain has the perfect mac and cheese recipe which is perfectly rich, creamy and delicious – guaranteed to pick you up out of a bad mood or a tough day
Few things in life are as comforting as a steaming bowl of gooey, rich and cheesy pasta. Whether it’s a tough day at the office or the wet weather has you feeling mardy, a hefty bowl of creamy carbs can be exactly what the doctor ordered – metaphorically speaking.
Mac and cheese fits perfectly into this category, with its hearty and filling nature, it’s the food equivalent of having a hug, but while the dish’s name implies all it takes is some pasta tubes and hefty grating of cheddar to master a great mac and cheese, it takes a little more culinary skill.
Luckily, the late great Anthony Bourdain has come out to rescue home cooks in need of some guidance with the perfect recipe which could pick your mood up.
One person who tested the mood boosting meal was Sofia Antona, a food influencer on TikTok. She opened the video saying: “I was in such a grumpy mood today, so I took myself to Tesco to make Anthony Bourdain’s macaroni and cheese from his book Appetites: A Cookbook.
“It’s my go-to as it uses a really nice blend of cheddar, mozzarella, parmesan and gruyere, so it’s super cheesy and comforting.”
The chef known for cutting the frills out of cooking to create the best out of a few simple ingredients has seemingly pulled out of the bag once again with a delicious recipe that’s not going to take you hours or leave you with a huge mess.
To make a full-sized dish that will feed around four, he kicks things off by boiling around a 1lb of elbow macaroni and some heavily salted water until it just turns al dente. At this point, it’s important not to overcook the pasta as it will be heading back into the oven later, which will cause it to soften more.
Next, melt five tablespoons of unsalted butter in a pan until it starts to foam, then gently sprinkle in the same amount of plain white flour, continuing to stir steadily to create a roux.
The mixture should start to form a loose dough-like texture. Keep gently moving it around the pan on a medium-high heat until the mixture starts to darken.
Here you’re looking for the roux to become a rich golden brown so it can develop a much deeper, nuttier texture.
Once it’s looking nice and golden, bit by bit, add around a litre of milk, whisking continually and gently adding all the milk.
Once fully combined, move back to a wooden spoon and gently cook out until it’s just under a boil. The sauce should continue to thicken to around the consistency of heavy cream.
Once you have the sauce, known as a Béchamel, you can start to flavour it up. Bourdain adds two teaspoons of mustard powder and cayenne pepper as well as 1teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce.
Next, add around 110g of grated good-quality parmesan (saving a few handfuls for on top) and gruyère, 140g of cheddar and 85g of torn fresh mozzarella. By combining four different cheeses, the final result will be rich and highly decadent.
Once the cheese has completely melted, throw 110g of sliced ham and mix in the macaroni. This should give your dish an extra salty kick.
Add to a baking dish, finish with the leftover cheese and bake in a 190C oven for around 20 minutes until golden brown and gooey.
Leave to cool down so it doesn’t burn your mouth and tuck in, although you should be warned it may leave you wanting a nap soon after.
