# Smoked Macaroni and Cheese



## jimthebeerguy

I've been threatening to do this for a while and finally got around to it yesterday.  It made a fine accompaniment to smoked sliced brisket flat, burnt ends made from the point, and a Carolina-style slaw made by my wife.

3 1/2 TB flour
3 1/2 TB butter
1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
3C whole milk, heated not quite to boiling
maybe 12 oz worth of shredded cheese (I used a combination of plain old grocery store cheddar, with some cave-aged cheddar, smoked goat milk cheddar, and a 5-year-old cheddar)
Box of macaroni elbows
bread crumbs and a little additional shredded cheddar for topping

First cook the macaroni in salted water until it's a bit underdone, slightly harder than al dente (maybe 5 or 6 minutes for dried pasta), drain it and rinse it with cold water to stop the cooking.

You melt the butter in a sauce pan over low heat and then add the flour, mustard powder, and black pepper to make a roux.  Let the roux cook a bit but you don't want to give it much color, just cook the flour so it doesn't taste quite so floury.

Then you use one hand to hold the pot handle, another hand to whisk constantly, and your third hand to slowly pour in the hot milk a little at a time.  Once that hot milk hits the flour and butter, it binds up but you just keep stirring, making sure each addition of milk is fully incorporated before adding the next one, until it's all been added and you have a thin sauce.  Then slowly add the shredded cheese, a small handful at a time, and let each addition melt before adding the next, until all the shredded cheese (except for the little bit you'll use for the topping) are added and you have a nice cheese sauce.

Combine the macaroni and the cheese sauce in a slightly buttered 9x13 pan until all the macaroni is covered in cheese sauce.  pat it down so that it's level.  Sprinkle a light coating of bread crumbs over the top and then a bit of shredded cheese, more to garnish than to coat.

Put it in the smoker for a couple of hours until it looks something like this (apologies for crappy cell phone pic):








My in-laws are visiting (they also thought it was delicious) and they got some pics too so if I'm able to get a better picture from them I'll post it.  I've had a bug up my you-know-what to try this for a while and I'm glad I finally did!


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## beer-b-q

Looks Great, thanks for the recipe...


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## chefrob

i think it is a great idea..........smokie-cheezy-goodness!


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## ellymae

I love mac and cheese..... looks great!


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## uberhack

Wow! That looks and sounds incredible.
Thanks for sharing.


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## txbigred

Looks great, thanks for the detailed instructions.!!

dave


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## richoso1

Congrats on a tasty treat. Thanks for sharing the recipe. It's all good my friend.


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## blue

That looks delicious. Thanks for the recipe.


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## got14u

I luv smoked mac and cheese. I did some earlier this year and the kids keep hounding me for it. I think you just pushed me over the edge. Have you ever thought of smoking quiche ?? http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...ghlight=quiche

here is what my mac turned out like. it was more a southwest mac


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## mballi3011

Very nice Mac n cheeses I like the smoked part the best. It seems like mac n cheese is moving right up the sides ladder and sitting next slaw and beans to round off the perfect bbq meal.


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## meateater

Wow, looks great!


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## jimthebeerguy

That looks delicious!  I definitely have to try this again, I've been itching to fire up the smoker but haven't been able to for several weeks.  Hopefully this weekend!


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## biaviian

Thanks for the recipe!  I realize this is an old thread but I thought it was worth a bump.  I'm about to make some of this to go along with homemade buns, salad, and a 6lb butt.


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## rdknb

now I like that


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## tjohnson

On my list for this weekend!

Todd


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## smokey2569

Last M & C I made was smoked as well, and it came out real good. I used bacon grease instead of butter for the base of the roux, and it added another level of smokey flavor.

Plus the cooked bacon made a delicious garnish! All garnish should be cut from swine...who needs parsley??


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## magik grill

Wow..  That sounds Great..   another things added to my to do list..   Thanks..  LOL


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## kris kantz

What temp in the smoker?  What kind of wood?  Cover with foil?  Thx!


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## mccaf

Nice! I decided this would be a great side dish to help me with the initial breakin of  the newest member of the family, Red KAMADO Joe classic. Unfortunately the dish never made it to the smoker. Timing issues :biggrin:

It was however happily devoured by all in attendance for dinner and was the perfect complement to the baby-backs with Texas whiskey BBQ sauce and red slaw. I used Smoked Gouda and Pepper jack. I also made a MOD to the recipe since we like things kicked up a notch and took the liberty of adding a half pound of bacon bits fresh out of the frying pan, gently folding them in with the ribbed macaroni. 

Next time I really want to taste this Smoked as intended. Highly recommend this easy side dish,
5- thumbs up !


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## underhaze

Hey Jim the Beer Guy,

I follow your posts, and look forward to the day that you and I can sit down somewhere and have a beer!

My family (me, wife and 4 children (19, 14, 12 and 6) made your smoked mac and cheese this afternoon.  (8/19/13).

I hate to say it (I do, as a  fellow smoker) but it was really plain.  No fun at all.

My 6 year old daughter brought it back and called it "yucky".  

2 1/2 hours:  first on lump, then on red oak, then on hickory.

I am going to try it again next weekend.  Don't have an update yet, but I am thinking a little half and half, garlic, paprika, chili pepper and bacon grease.

I'll give an update.

Derrick


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## sigmo

I'd like to give this a try, too.  Thanks for the great recipe and instructions!

My wife loves mac and cheese.

So I may just have to make a batch of this while she's out sometime and serve it up to her when she gets home.  It'd be fun to see what she thinks.

I, too, would like to know what temperature you ran the smoker at for this.

Jim


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## patriot-bbq

I made this for the 2nd time this weekend and it is consistently the best mac-n-cheese that anyone has ever had.

I added some fried up bacon chunks and it could have used some more but I was in a hurry.

Note to anyone who hasn't tried this yet - don't get caught up in the specificity of cheese types.  Cheddar dominates the flavor as does the smoke and - in my case - the bacon.  But the firmness of the result is awesome.  I served it at an outdoor party and it tasted great hot, warm and cool at the end.

BTW, I set the Smokin-It at 230 degrees and it cooked for about 90 minutes.  I'm pretty sure 15 minutes less or 30 minutes more wouldn't have negatively affected the flavor.  I made 3 batches - 2 on 1 shelf and 1 above.  All 3 had different amounts of brown on top and all 3 were awesome.  I put in some hickory chunks but there wasn't a distinct hickory flavor - more of a general smoke and toasted cheese.


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## hambone1950

Every time I see a post about smoked Mac n cheese I just about drown in my own saliva! I have yet to make this my own self , but I vow on my ancestors that I will do this before I die. 
:sausage::sausage::sausage::sausage::sausage:


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## fish killer

Man do I love me some smoked mac an cheese!  Yours looks awesome.


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## marteenhook

It’s looks so yummy.  Macaroni and Cheese superb combination. I will try this recipe definitely.


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