This Crock Pot Mac and Cheese is a family favorite and appears at every holiday! With just minutes of prep, the sauce is unexpected and always gets rave reviews!
Serve this slow cooker macaroni as a holiday side dish or alongside baked ham for Sunday supper. This comes out of the slow cooker perfect every time!
Holly’s Notes From the Test Kichen
Elbow macaroni noodles are slow cooked in a rich, cheesy sauce. Homemade mac and cheese is my personal favorite food, and I can assure you that this is the best crock pot macaroni and cheese I’ve ever had!
- Unusual ingredients, amazing flavor. Thousands of reviews can’t be wrong!
- It has a perfect consistency every time, and the pasta is not mushy.
- This recipe takes only about 10 minutes of prep, and the slow cooker does the rest.
- This recipe can be doubled for a crowd and left on warm for serving.
- Everyone loves this recipe , it’s the best.
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Why This is the Best Crockpot Mac & Cheese Ever
1. Precooked Pasta
To ensure a perfect texture, precook the pasta to ensure it is perfect every time.
After testing countless “no boil” mac and cheese recipes that call for uncooked pasta, I’ve found the results to be inconsistent, with some brands becoming mushy or gummy.
Tip: Boil the macaroni about 2 minutes less than indicated on your package to keep it from getting mushy.
2. Sauce Ingredients
I prefer crock pot macaroni and cheese without Velveeta or evaporated milk. This sauce uses an unusual mixture that I created, and while some of the ingredients may seem odd, they come together to make the best cheesy sauce!
A traditional cream sauce or cheese sauce doesn’t hold up well in the slow cooker, as dairy can curdle and/or separate in the crock pot. The mayonnaise keeps the sauce silky smooth, you can’t taste it, and either regular or light mayonnaise or dressing will work.
Crock Pot Mac and Cheese is perfect for camping or potlucks, basically, anywhere you don’t have an oven. It’s also a great way to save oven space for Thanksgiving dinner (including turkey and stuffing!) and cook this on the side.
How to Make Crock Pot Mac and Cheese
This slow cooker macaroni and cheese takes less than 10 minutes to get into the Crock Pot and then it’s ready to go!
- Boil pasta for about 2 minutes less than the package indicates.
- While pasta is boiling, shred the sharp cheddar cheese.
- Put all of the ingredients into the slow cooker and cook per the recipe below.
Tips for Perfection
- Pasta: Do not overcook the pasta, it should be very firm after boiling. Rinsing the pasta stops it from cooking.
- Cheese: Our recent recipe tests have shown little difference between shredding your own cheese and pre-shredded cheeses.
- Cooking time: Check the pasta early, slow cookers can vary.
- Slow cooker size: A single batch of this slow-cooker mac can be cooked in a 4QT slow cooker. If using a 6QT slow cooker, it will cook faster so check it early.
- Double the recipe: To double this recipe, use a 6QT crockpot. Cook on high for 2 1/2 hours, stirring after 1 hour and 2 hours. (When stirring, try to do it as quickly as possible to keep the heat inside).
- Make ahead: To prepare this ahead of time, mix all of the ingredients except the pasta. The pasta can be cooked ahead, rinsed, and cooled. Combine the pasta and sauce ingredients in the crock pot just before cooking.
- Baking in the oven: If you prefer or if you are short on time, you can bake this in the oven (and I have many many times!) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake 30 minutes covered and 30 minutes uncovered.
Note: Slow cookers can vary! You may have to slightly adjust the time for your slow cooker. If your Crock Pot Mac and Cheese is done early, you can turn your slow cooker onto warm.
More Crock Pot Holiday Sides
- Crock Pot Creamed Corn
- No Boil Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes
- Crock Pot Scalloped Potatoes
- Crockpot Sweet Potato Casserole
- Crock Pot Stuffing
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups elbow macaroni uncooked
- 10.5 ounces condensed cream of chicken soup 1 can
- 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup shredded gruyere cheese
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup sour cream regular or light
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon dry mustard powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Boil macaroni noodles according to directions to make them very al dente. (I cook them for at least 1-2 minutes less than directed on the bag. Mine boiled for 5 minutes). Drain and rinse under cold water.
- Combine all ingredients in a 4qt* slow cooker and cook on high for 2 hours or low for 3 hours, stirring once or twice.
- Serve hot.
Video
Notes
- Pasta: Do not overcook the pasta, it should be very firm after boiling. Rinsing the pasta stops it from cooking.
- Cheese: If you do not have gruyere cheese, you can use an additional cup of cheddar instead (4 cups in total).
- Cooking time: Check the pasta early, slow cookers can vary.
- *Slow cooker size: A single batch of this slow-cooker mac should be made in a 4QT slow cooker. If using a 6QT slow cooker, it will cook faster so check it early.
- Double the recipe: To double this recipe, use a 6QT crockpot. Cook on high for 2 ½ hours, stirring after 1 hour and 2 hours. (When stirring, try to do it as quickly as possible to keep the heat inside).
- Make ahead: To prepare this ahead of time, mix all of the ingredients except the pasta. The pasta can be cooked ahead, rinsed, and cooled. Combine the pasta and sauce ingredients in the crockpot just before cooking.
- Baking in the oven: If you prefer or if you are short on time, you can bake this in the oven (and I have many many times!) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake 30 minutes covered and 30 minutes uncovered.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Casserole, Main Course, Pasta, Side Dish
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will be making this mac n cheese for a potluck. Any recommendations on making it spicy? Sriracha, chili, jalapeños, Buffalo hot sauce. if buffalo hot sauce would you recommend reducing one of the other items?
Jalapenos (canned/jarred) would be a great addition and the flavor would pair well with this recipe. You would also be fine to add buffalo sauce, depending on how much you add, you likely wouldn’t need to reduce the other ingredients however my only concern would be that it could make the dish a bit too salty. I hope that helps, let us know how it goes!
Made it yesterday for a party. I tripled the recipe, using a combo of cheddar, gruyere, and gouda cheese. I ended up adding sriracha to control the richness and add sauteed green onions and fresh jalapeños. It was delicious, even cold. For a crowd of 20, doubling the amount would have been plenty.
I would recommend trying a flavored cheese like buffalo wing cheddar to make it spicy before adding extras that could make it a little watery. You could serve with buffalo chicken and blue cheese crumbles on top. Yum!
What keeps the precooked pasta from sticking together?
Thank you.
It is rinsed which will keep it from sticking.
This sounds amazing. I’m planning to make it this weekend. We have some vegetarians in our family. I’d like to sub the condensed cream of chicken with condensed cream of onion. Your thoughts?
I think it’ll be delicious, it should work just fine.
Question: does an 8oz brick of cheese shred out to 1 cup?
8 oz of cheese is 2 cups as it is a weight and not a volume (fl oz).
Thank you so much for the lightening fast response!!! I was prepping everything to throw in the crock tomorrow for a work potluck! I had a complete brain freeze!
Enjoy, this is one of our family favorites!
Made this for our daughter’s birthday and didn’t get to try because it was gone before I could get to it.
I did eventually get to try it when I made it again ;-)
I brought the leftovers with me to work and a friend of mine whose pregnant wondered if it would freeze well if she made it in advance for meal prepping. I didn’t know what to tell her? I’m assuming because you’ve mentioned to others when preparing in advance not to add the noodles that this wouldn’t work out for her, but thought I’d ask anyway in case you know of any attempts to freeze/reheat.
Thanks in advance for any tips and for the the recipe! Making it again on Wednesday for a work potluck.
So glad you are enjoyed this recipe, Kelsey! It unfortunately doesn’t freeze well. The best way we found to make it ahead of time is by keeping the pasta and sauce separate and combining them just before cooking.
Made this for my company potluck and I was the hero of the day!! This is hands down the BEST Mac n Cheese recipe I’ve made, especially for a large group. It’s now my go-to, as I’m asked to bring it to EVERY potluck! Thanks for the win!
So happy to hear that, Reese! I am glad it was such a hit for you.
I made this for the first time for a fall party and it was a crowd pleaser! (My boys even liked it, and they do not appreciate true home-cooked foods.)
So so good!! I meal prep the mac and cheese and eat it throughout the week. However when reheated, there’s a ton of grease and oil at the bottom. I used light sour cream. Is there any way to fix this?
I would suggest adding a little milk and reheating at a lower temperature. If using the microwave, cook at a lower power. Hope that helps!
This is an amazing recipe! i was looking for something that stayed creamy and cheesy, and the noodles didn’t get mushy after at least 4 hours in the crock pot. I used this recipe to sell mac and cheese at a high school football game concession stand fundraiser. I ended up making 5x’s the recipe in one slow cooker, and it turned out PHENOMENAL!! I made a trial run first of just a single batch to make sure that was the one that would work. it did not disappoint! I also made it with cream of chicken and tried a batch with cream of cheddar. Both worked very nicely. The description states unconventional ingredients…but they work!
Thank you!
Omg how big is your crock pot?
Best Mac & Cheese I have ever eaten in my 67 years. Unexpected and really really good !!!!!
When you say 2c of pasta, is that by measure or by weight? Is it a whole 16oz box or 2c dry pasta? Just trying to make enough!
We do 2 cups of pasta by measure for this recipe.
I made this for this Labor-day weekend. I received so many good comments. The only thing I changed was adding Cheddar soup, another cup of Guyre cheese and 3/4 C of shredded sharp cheddar. I made sure I had scallions and bacon to top it off. It was delicious!
how big is the serving size?
Each serving is approximately ½ cup.
Will this recipe work with cheddar cheese soup instead of chicken? Thanks
I have only made this recipe as listed but other readers have used cheddar cheese soup with success! I would love to hear how it turns out for you.
turned out great. I used the small shells cause I like the cheese fills them.
I just made this. I added some bacon and green onions on top. Also I used gouda cheese and extra sharp block cheeses. This is the best mac and cheese I’ve ever had.
how can I use already grated cheese and have this turn out. I bought the cheese ahead of time without realizing it shouldn’t be grated. Oops! Making this for a neighborhood party this weekend.
Hi Laura, the flavor will still be delicious. The pre-shredded cheese may give the sauce a slightly gritty texture though.
I don’t have any sour cream, will it affect, the taste
I’ve only tried this as written however you could try Greek yogurt or plain yogurt.
If baking in the oven, could I completely prep the night before and put it in the fridge and then just bake in AM or do the noodles need to be boiled right before baking??
You can make this ahead but I would suggest keeping the pasta and sauce separate and combining them just before cooking. This will keep the pasta from soaking in the sauce and getting mushy.
This recipe is surprisingly good! I was skeptical because it’s not a conventional Mac and cheese recipe, but it tasted like the real thing and my husband loved it. 2 hours on low was plenty of time in my slow cooker so I’d recommend keeping an eye on it.