{"id":41980,"date":"2025-12-30T19:41:26","date_gmt":"2025-12-30T19:41:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/usa\/i-tried-making-mac-and-cheese-in-3-different-appliances-and-the-tastiest-dish-honestly-surprised-me\/"},"modified":"2025-12-30T19:41:26","modified_gmt":"2025-12-30T19:41:26","slug":"i-tried-making-mac-and-cheese-in-3-different-appliances-and-the-tastiest-dish-honestly-surprised-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/usa\/i-tried-making-mac-and-cheese-in-3-different-appliances-and-the-tastiest-dish-honestly-surprised-me\/","title":{"rendered":"I tried making mac and cheese in 3 different appliances, and the tastiest dish honestly surprised me"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/693b360f64858d02d216ace5?format=jpeg\" alt=\"ingredients for mac and cheese on table\"\/><figcaption>Throughout the mac and cheese taste test, I kept the ingredients consistent to accurately measure results.<\/p>\n<p>Jennifer Messineo<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>I tested the same mac and cheese recipe on the stovetop, in the oven, and in the microwave.<\/li>\n<li>The stove, my go-to appliance, made the creamiest sauce, but the oven version had the best flavor.<\/li>\n<li>The microwave mac and cheese was significantly better than I expected, but still underwhelming.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I&#039;ve been using the same mac-and-cheese recipe for almost two decades. <\/p>\n<p>Initially, I prepared it in a huge baking tray for parties, but I&#039;ve since adapted it into a one-pot, stovetop recipe. To this day, my teenage son makes it for himself at least once a week.<\/p>\n<p>Curious about how the flavor, texture, and cook time compared, I tested the same recipe using three different appliances: the microwave, oven, and stove.<\/p>\n<p>For each method, I used an 8-ounce bag of shredded sharp cheddar cheese, 1 \u00bd cups of milk, one box of medium pasta shells, and 2 tablespoons of butter.<\/p>\n<p>The stovetop method has traditionally been my go-to.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/693b360f64858d02d216ace4?format=jpeg\" alt=\"mac and cheese recipe cheese sauce on stove in pot\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Jennifer Messineo<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The stovetop method uses the fewest kitchen tools of the three since the cheese sauce and pasta go in the same pot, leaving me with less to clean up.<\/p>\n<p>To make my mac and cheese on the stove, I started with a roux, which is a cooking staple that combines fat and flour. It helps thicken the cheese sauce, giving it a creamy consistency. <\/p>\n<p>As soon as the fat and flour formed a paste, I whisked in the milk.<\/p>\n<p>The key is to let the milk simmer until it starts to thicken, then whisk in the cheese over low heat. After that, I removed the sauce from the heat as soon as the cheese melted to prevent it from getting too thick.<\/p>\n<p>The stovetop mac and cheese came out the creamiest.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/693b361504eda4732f2d65fa?format=jpeg\" alt=\"mac and cheese recipe in stove top with cheese and noodle mixed together and wooden spoon on right hand side\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Jennifer Messineo<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The stovetop produced the creamiest mac and cheese. Taking the time to make the sauce first ensured that the cheese was completely melted and not stringy.<\/p>\n<p>I liked the sauce&#039;s thickness and the pasta&#039;s tender-but-firm consistency. Even better, the leftover stovetop mac and cheese maintained the same texture and taste when reheated.<\/p>\n<p>Baked mac and cheese wasn&#039;t as difficult to make as I remembered.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/693b360f04eda4732f2d65f7?format=jpeg\" alt=\"mac and cheese tray in oven with cheese and noodles inside and butter on top\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Jennifer Messineo<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>When I&#039;ve baked mac and cheese in the past, I used at least double the amount of cheese, plus some extra milk. <\/p>\n<p>But for the sake of consistency throughout the test, I stuck to the same measurements I used in the microwave and on the stovetop.<\/p>\n<p>I intentionally undercooked the pasta before putting it in the oven to keep it from overcooking during the baking period. Before placing it on the rack, I dotted butter on top. <\/p>\n<p>Then, I baked it for a total of 35 minutes (20 minutes covered and 15 minutes uncovered).<\/p>\n<p>The oven method took the longest and changed the texture the most.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/693b361c832e0ef1ead61837?format=jpeg\" alt=\"cooked mac and cheese in baking dish after coming out of oven\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Jennifer Messineo<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Baking the mac and cheese gave it a rich cheese flavor and a crispy top layer. The cheese melted well, although somewhat unevenly, leaving some pieces more coated than others.<\/p>\n<p>I really enjoyed the flavor and consistency of the oven-baked mac and cheese the most, but it took 35 minutes to cook and didn&#039;t reheat as well as the version I made on the stovetop.<\/p>\n<p>I was skeptical about trying my mac and cheese recipe in the microwave.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/693b360f04eda4732f2d65f9?format=jpeg\" alt=\"mac and cheese in glass bowl in microwave\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Jennifer Messineo<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>When I&#039;ve previously cooked pasta in the microwave, it took at least 10 minutes to finish, with pauses built in to mix the shells and cheese every couple of minutes. <\/p>\n<p>So for this test, I decided to first boil the shells on the stove until they were slightly underdone. To make a roux alternative, I combined microwaved butter with flour, then whisked in milk I&#039;d heated in the microwave.<\/p>\n<p>I mixed the ingredients in a glass bowl and microwaved the mac and cheese covered for five minutes. The cheese still hadn&#039;t melted, so I stirred it and microwaved it for another two minutes.<\/p>\n<p>It worked better than I expected, but the results were still underwhelming.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/693b3615832e0ef1ead61835?format=jpeg\" alt=\"microwave mac and cheese after being cooked\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Jennifer Messineo<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Even though I added the extra step of boiling the pasta before microwaving it, this method felt like the lowest lift.<\/p>\n<p>The microwave got the job done, but the cheese didn&#039;t melt evenly. Instead of turning into a smooth sauce, there were specks of cheese coating the pasta. This gave the mac and cheese a thick and dry consistency.<\/p>\n<p>Without the stovetop cream sauce, the pasta absorbed the milk as it cooked in the microwave. It lost the cheddar cheese&#039;s sharpness (which, in my opinion, is the best part of the dish), and I thought it tasted like milk.<\/p>\n<p>The method that wins for taste loses when it comes to convenience.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/693b360f04eda4732f2d65f8?format=jpeg\" alt=\"three way comparison of mac and cheese (microwave, oven, stove)\"\/><figcaption>\n<p>Jennifer Messineo<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The oven-baked mac and cheese had the best flavor and texture when served fresh. <\/p>\n<p>The downside is that it took longer to cook, and cleaning the baking dish was a serious undertaking. Even so, I&#039;d stick with this method if I were making mac and cheese for a party since it&#039;s easy to prep.<\/p>\n<p>The microwave version took about the same amount of time to cook as the stovetop mac and cheese, but it wasn&#039;t as creamy and didn&#039;t have the sharp flavor I got from the stovetop and oven.<\/p>\n<p>All in all, the stovetop mac and cheese was the creamiest and did a wonderful job retaining its texture, flavor, and consistency after reheating compared to the microwave and baked mac and cheeses.<\/p>\n<p>If I&#039;m making the recipe for myself or someone else in my family and want to use minimal dishes, I&#039;ll stick to the stove.<\/p>\n<p>Read the original article on Business Insider<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Throughout the mac and cheese taste test, I kept the ingredients consistent to accurately measure results. Jennifer Messineo I tested the same mac and cheese recipe on the stovetop, in the oven, and in the microwave. The stove, my go-to appliance, made the creamiest sauce, but the oven version had the best flavor. The microwave [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-41980","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-usa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41980","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41980"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41980\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}