Heston's Macaroni Cheese
If you want a real centerpiece, cook the mac and cheese in the hollowed-out rind of a cheese - it adds to the overall cheesiness and looks great. But if you cant buy the whole cheese, I have included instructions for cooking it traditionally. If you cant get hold of these specific British cheeses, you can substitute them for a good quality cheddar.
If you want a real centerpiece, cook the mac and cheese in the hollowed-out rind of a cheese - it adds to the overall cheesiness and looks great. But if you cant buy the whole cheese, I have included instructions for cooking it traditionally. If you cant get hold of these specific British cheeses, you can substitute them for a good quality cheddar.
- black pepper
- 200 g macaroni
- â½ tsp salt
- 15 ml truffle oil
- 300 ml dry white wine
- 300 ml brown chicken stock, infused for 20 minutes with berkswell cheese rind, keep warm
- 80 g spenwood cheese finely grated
- 10 g cornflour
- 80 g soft cream cheese
- 15 g goat’s cheese, diced
- berkswell cheese, for gratinating
- Carbohydrate 43.4825407608696 g
- Cholesterol 57.1125 mg
- Fat 22.35669 g
- Fiber 1.62912502324581 g
- Protein 18.7455117826087 g
- Saturated Fat 11.1098575 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (258g)
- Sodium 706.763875 mg
- Sugar 41.8534157376237 g
- Trans Fat 5.383185 g
- Calories 507 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat the grill.
- Place 400ml of water, the pasta and the salt in a pan over medium-high heat.
- Cook until the pasta is done and all of the water has disappeared.
- Toss the pasta with the truffle oil.
- In a small saucepan, reduce the white wine over a high heat to 30ml.
- Add the warm chicken stock to the reduced wine.
- Mix the grated cheese with the cornflour and add to the pan.
- Stir until the cheese has been incorporated into the sauce, then add the pasta.
- Cook over a medium heat until the pasta is warmed through, then stir in the cream cheese.
- Season with freshly ground black pepper.
- Place in a hollowed-out cheese rind, sprinkle with diced goat’s cheese and add more macaroni on top.
- Alternatively, half fill an ovenproof baking dish with the pasta, sprinkle with diced goat’s cheese and add the remaining macaroni on top.
- Sprinkle some more cheese on top and place under the grill to melt and gratinate the cheese.
- Serve immediately.
Why is the sauce failing to cling to the noodles halfway through cooking? Starch control dictates whether a cheese sauce binds or breaks. Boiling macaroni in a precise measure of 400ml water ensures that all liquid is absorbed rather than drained away, retaining valuable starch molecules in the pan. This retained starch acts as a natural emulsifier, helping the dairy fats and wine reduction unite without graininess.
Dry white wine must reduce aggressively down to 30ml before chicken stock enters the pan. Skipping this reduction step leaves excess moisture, which thins the sauce and prevents the 80g of finely grated Spenwood cheese from melting smoothly. Tossing the cooked macaroni in 15ml of truffle oil immediately after absorption coats the starch barrier, preventing the pasta from swelling further while the sauce components finish on the stove.
Texture relies entirely on temperature discipline and moisture equilibrium. Excessive heat will shock the soft cream cheese and goat’s cheese, causing the dairy solids to separate from the fats into an oily slick. Keeping the stove at a medium level ensures gentle incorporation. Tossing the grated cheese with 10g of cornflour provides an extra safety net against separation by stabilizing the melting proteins.
British sheep cheeses like Berkswell and Spenwood bring distinct saltiness and earthy depth, but standard aged cheddars function as direct 1:1 weight substitutes if regional imports are unavailable. Baking the assembly under a preheated grill transforms the exterior into a golden crust.
