Macaroni and cheese
Encyclopedia
Macaroni and cheese, also known as "mac and cheese", "macaroni cheese" in British English
, or "macaroni pie" in Caribbean English
, is a casserole
consisting of cooked macaroni
and cheese
sauce
. Macaroni and cheese is sometimes prepared using a packaged food mix.
There is a similar traditional dish in Switzerland
, called Älplermagronen (Alpine Herder's Macaroni), which is also available in boxed versions. Älplermagronen are made of macaroni, cream, cheese, roasted onions, and potatoes. In the Canton of Uri
the potatoes are traditionally omitted, and in some regions bacon or ham is added. Mac and cheese is also one of the main foods used for Thanksgiving
.
, one of the oldest medieval cookbooks. A cheese and pasta casserole known as Makerouns was recorded in an English cookbook in the 14th century. It was made with fresh hand-cut pasta which was sandwiched between a mixture of melted butter and cheese. It was considered an upperclass dish even in Italy
until around the 18th century.
Thomas Jefferson
, who called all pasta "macaroni", is known to have had a pasta maker as early as 1793 and to have served a macaroni pie at the White House
in 1802. There are also records of his purchasing, or attempting to purchase, imported pasta after his term as president.
The dish has been popular in the United Kingdom since the Victorian era.
. A white sauce, called Béchamel sauce in French cooking, is traditionally made by whisk
ing scalded milk
gradually into a white flour
-butter
roux
(equal parts clarified butter
and flour by weight). Another method, considered less traditional, is to whisk kneaded flour-butter (beurre manié
) into scalded milk. The thickness of the final sauce depends on the proportions of milk and flour. Cheese is incorporated into the sauce either as flavoring or as a substantial portion of the final product. Taste and opinion differs widely, but modern opinion seems to favor substantial amounts of cheese. After mixing together the sauce and cooked macaroni, it may be served immediately — or, alternatively, placed into a casserole for baking. The latter method may include various toppings, including breadcrumbs. A precooked version known as "Macaroni and cheese loaf" can be found in some stores.
In Scotland, the dish is often presented in a pastry shell as "macaroni cheese pie".
, consisting of boxed pasta and either a liquid cheese sauce, or powdered ingredients to prepare it. In the latter case, the consumer may add either milk or water, and margarine, butter or olive oil
. In preparing the dish, the macaroni is cooked and drained, then mixed with the cheese sauce. Extra ingredients, such as cooked ground beef
, jalapeños, sliced hot dog
s, Spam
, tabasco sauce
, fried bacon
, canned tuna or salmon, peas
, broccoli or other vegetables are sometimes incorporated into the dish. The product can be prepared in a microwave
, baked in a traditional oven, or cooked on a kitchen stove
.
There are a number of different products on the market that use this basic formulation with minor variations in ingredients.
British English
British English, or English , is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the United Kingdom from forms used elsewhere...
, or "macaroni pie" in Caribbean English
Caribbean English
Caribbean English is a broad term for the dialects of the English language spoken in the Caribbean, most countries on the Caribbean coast of Central America, and Guyana. Caribbean English is influenced by the English-based Creole varieties spoken in the region, but they are not the same. In the...
, is a casserole
Casserole
A casserole, from the French for "saucepan", is a large, deep dish used both in the oven and as a serving vessel. The word casserole is also used for the food cooked and served in such a vessel, with the cookware itself called a casserole dish or casserole pan...
consisting of cooked macaroni
Macaroni
Macaroni is a variety of moderately extended, machine-made, dry pasta made with durum wheat. Macaroni noodles do not contain eggs, and are normally cut in short, hollow shapes; however, the term refers not to the shape of the pasta, but to the kind of dough from which the noodle is made...
and cheese
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
sauce
Sauce
In cooking, a sauce is liquid, creaming or semi-solid food served on or used in preparing other foods. Sauces are not normally consumed by themselves; they add flavor, moisture, and visual appeal to another dish. Sauce is a French word taken from the Latin salsus, meaning salted...
. Macaroni and cheese is sometimes prepared using a packaged food mix.
There is a similar traditional dish in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, called Älplermagronen (Alpine Herder's Macaroni), which is also available in boxed versions. Älplermagronen are made of macaroni, cream, cheese, roasted onions, and potatoes. In the Canton of Uri
Canton of Uri
Uri is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland and a founding member of the Swiss Confederation. It is located in Central Switzerland. The canton's territory covers the valley of the Reuss River between Lake Lucerne and the St. Gotthard Pass. German is the primary language spoken in Uri...
the potatoes are traditionally omitted, and in some regions bacon or ham is added. Mac and cheese is also one of the main foods used for Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day in the...
.
History
Macaroni is mentioned in various medieval Italian sources, though it is not always clear whether it is a pasta shape or a prepared dish. However, pasta and cheese casseroles have been recorded in cookbooks as early as the Liber de CoquinaLiber de Coquina
The Liber de Coquina is one of the oldest medieval cookbooks. It survived in two codices from the beginning of the 14th century. Both are conserved at the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris / France.- Description :...
, one of the oldest medieval cookbooks. A cheese and pasta casserole known as Makerouns was recorded in an English cookbook in the 14th century. It was made with fresh hand-cut pasta which was sandwiched between a mixture of melted butter and cheese. It was considered an upperclass dish even in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
until around the 18th century.
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
, who called all pasta "macaroni", is known to have had a pasta maker as early as 1793 and to have served a macaroni pie at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
in 1802. There are also records of his purchasing, or attempting to purchase, imported pasta after his term as president.
The dish has been popular in the United Kingdom since the Victorian era.
Variations
Macaroni and cheese is generally cooked macaroni with white sauce that has a cheese flavor. In the French style of cooking, such a sauce is called Mornay sauceMornay sauce
A Mornay sauce is a Béchamel sauce with shredded or grated cheese added. Usually, it consists of half Gruyère and half Parmesan cheese, though some variations use different combinations of Gruyère, Emmental cheese, or white Cheddar....
. A white sauce, called Béchamel sauce in French cooking, is traditionally made by whisk
Whisk
A whisk is a cooking utensil used in food preparation to blend ingredients smooth, or to incorporate air into a mixture, in a process known as whisking or whipping. Most whisks consist of a long, narrow handle with a series of wire loops joined at the end. The wires are usually metal, but some are...
ing scalded milk
Scalded milk
Scalded milk is milk that has been heated to . At this temperature, bacteria and enzymes in the milk are destroyed. Since most milk sold today is pasteurized, which accomplishes both of these goals, milk is typically scalded simply to increase its temperature, or to change the consistency due to...
gradually into a white flour
Flour
Flour is a powder which is made by grinding cereal grains, other seeds or roots . It is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many cultures, making the availability of adequate supplies of flour a major economic and political issue at various times throughout history...
-butter
Butter
Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
roux
Roux
Roux is a cooked mixture of wheat flour and fat, traditionally butter. It is the thickening agent of three of the mother sauces of classical French cooking: sauce béchamel, sauce velouté and sauce espagnole. Clarified butter, vegetable oils, or lard are commonly used fats. It is used as a...
(equal parts clarified butter
Clarified butter
Clarified butter is milk fat rendered from butter to separate the milk solids and water from the butterfat. Typically, it is produced by melting butter and allowing the different components to separate by density...
and flour by weight). Another method, considered less traditional, is to whisk kneaded flour-butter (beurre manié
Beurre manié
Beurre manié is a dough, consisting of equal parts of soft butter and flour, used to thicken soups and sauces. By kneading the flour and butter together, the flour particles are coated in butter...
) into scalded milk. The thickness of the final sauce depends on the proportions of milk and flour. Cheese is incorporated into the sauce either as flavoring or as a substantial portion of the final product. Taste and opinion differs widely, but modern opinion seems to favor substantial amounts of cheese. After mixing together the sauce and cooked macaroni, it may be served immediately — or, alternatively, placed into a casserole for baking. The latter method may include various toppings, including breadcrumbs. A precooked version known as "Macaroni and cheese loaf" can be found in some stores.
In Scotland, the dish is often presented in a pastry shell as "macaroni cheese pie".
Packaged mixes
Packaged versions of the dish are available as a convenience foodConvenience food
Convenience food, or tertiary processed food, is commercially prepared food designed for ease of consumption. Products designated as convenience foods are often prepared food stuffs that can be sold as hot, ready-to-eat dishes; as room-temperature, shelf-stable products; or as refrigerated or...
, consisting of boxed pasta and either a liquid cheese sauce, or powdered ingredients to prepare it. In the latter case, the consumer may add either milk or water, and margarine, butter or olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
. In preparing the dish, the macaroni is cooked and drained, then mixed with the cheese sauce. Extra ingredients, such as cooked ground beef
Ground beef
Beef mince, ground beef, hamburger meat , hamburg or minced meat is a minced meat food, made of beef finely chopped by a mincer. It is used in many recipes including hamburgers and cottage pie...
, jalapeños, sliced hot dog
Hot dog
A hot dog is a sausage served in a sliced bun. It is very often garnished with mustard, ketchup, onions, mayonnaise, relish and/or sauerkraut.-History:...
s, Spam
Spam (food)
Spam is a canned precooked meat product made by the Hormel Foods Corporation, first introduced in 1937. The labeled ingredients in the classic variety of Spam are chopped pork shoulder meat, with ham meat added, salt, water, modified potato starch as a binder, and sodium nitrite as a preservative...
, tabasco sauce
Tabasco sauce
Tabasco sauce is the brand name for a hot sauce produced by US-based McIlhenny Company of Avery Island, Louisiana. Tabasco sauce is made from tabasco peppers , vinegar, and salt, and aged in white oak barrels for three years. It has a hot, spicy flavor...
, fried bacon
Bacon
Bacon is a cured meat prepared from a pig. It is first cured using large quantities of salt, either in a brine or in a dry packing; the result is fresh bacon . Fresh bacon may then be further dried for weeks or months in cold air, boiled, or smoked. Fresh and dried bacon must be cooked before eating...
, canned tuna or salmon, peas
PEAS
P.E.A.S. is an acronym in artificial intelligence that stands for Performance, Environment, Actuators, Sensors.-Performance:Performance is a function that measures the quality of the actions the agent did....
, broccoli or other vegetables are sometimes incorporated into the dish. The product can be prepared in a microwave
Microwave oven
A microwave oven is a kitchen appliance that heats food by dielectric heating, using microwave radiation to heat polarized molecules within the food...
, baked in a traditional oven, or cooked on a kitchen stove
Kitchen stove
A kitchen stove, cooking stove, cookstove, or cooker is a kitchen appliance designed for the purpose of cooking food. Kitchen stoves rely on the application of direct heat for the cooking process and may also contain an oven, used for baking.In the industrialized world, as stoves replaced open...
.
There are a number of different products on the market that use this basic formulation with minor variations in ingredients.
External links
- A brief history of mac and cheese, commentary on National Public Radio
- Steingarten, JeffreyJeffrey SteingartenJeffrey Steingarten is a leading food writer in the United States. He has been the food critic at Vogue magazine since 1989. His monthly columns in Vogue have earned him a National Magazine Award, and nearly a dozen James Beard Awards and nominations...
(1997). The Man Who Ate Everything. New York: Vintage. ISBN 0-375-70202-4. The chapter, "Back of the Box", was first published in 1992. - Blog post by Amy Sherman on Epicurious.Com