15 Macaroni and Cheese Recipes to Curl Up With on the Couch

Classic or unconventional, baked or on the stovetop, these are the recipes our readers love.

Credit...Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

By Becky Hughes and Allison Jiang

Published Jan. 12, 2022 Updated Oct. 22, 2025

All macaroni and cheese is good macaroni and cheese, but these recipes from New York Times Cooking are especially fine — and wide-ranging, whether saucy or creamy, tender or crispy, meat-studded or dairy-free. The picks below include some of the greatest interpretations, both classic and clever.

1. Creamy Baked Macaroni and Cheese

An overhead image of an oval baking dish full of creamy, sauce mac and cheese. There is a spoon in the dish — Credit...Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.

Stouffer’s macaroni and cheese is, in Eric Kim’s opinion, the most exemplary version of the dish. After testing a number of techniques and ratios, he finally came up with his nostalgic, creamy, Velveeta-y take.

Recipe: Creamy Baked Macaroni and Cheese

2. Macaroni and Peas

An overhead image of a bowl of cheesy macaroni noodles, topped with Parmesan, ham and peas. — Credit...Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Cyd Raftus McDowell.

Eggs, cream and Parmesan create a carbonara-esque cream sauce that feels decidedly grown up in this recipe from J. Kenji López-Alt. It’s perfect if you’re cooking for yourself (or a sophisticated child), or if you need to use up those frozen peas at the back of your freezer.

Recipe: Macaroni and Peas

3. Southern Macaroni and Cheese

An overhead image of a baking dish full of mac and cheese with a burnished crust. There is a serving spoon in the dish — Credit...Johnny Miller for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Rebecca Jurkevich.

For many Southerners, this recipe from Millie Peartree, adapted by Kiera Wright-Ruiz, is as classic as it gets. The base of milk and eggs lends the pasta an extra-rich, custardy texture, particularly in the molten center (arguably the best part).

Recipe: Southern Macaroni and Cheese

4. Stovetop Mac and Cheese

An overhead image of a Dutch oven full of mac and cheese, with a wooden serving spoon in the pot — Credit...Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

The platonic ideal of mac and cheese, this recipe from Genevieve Ko is just five ingredients: milk, butter, flour, pasta and cheese. Follow her instructions to make a simple roux, then add any cheese you have sitting in your fridge (as long as at least half of it is Cheddar), and you have comfort in a bowl.

Recipe: Stovetop Mac and Cheese

5. Ayesha Curry’s Crab Mac and Cheese

A baking dish full of mac and cheese with pasta shells and pieces of crab meat, topped with scallions. There is a spoon in the dish — Credit...David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Crab meat is the star of this recipe from Ayesha Curry’s 2020 cookbook “The Full Plate.” She uses small pasta shells to trap every bit of the sauce, while the rest of the dish gets a little bite from chili sauce and sliced scallions.

Recipe: Ayesha Curry’s Crab Mac and Cheese

6. Easy Baked Mac and Cheese

A blue baking dish full of baked mac and cheese with bread crumb topping, with a spoon in the dish — Credit...Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.

You don’t have to boil the noodles for this baked mac from Melissa Clark, so it’s a real time saver. It features cream cheese, milk and Cheddar for a rich, satisfying dish that one reader called “pure gold.”

Recipe: Easy Baked Mac and Cheese

7. Spam Macaroni and Cheese

An overhead image of a Dutch oven and a small bowl full of Spam macaroni and cheese. There is a spoon in the pot — Credit...Christopher Simpson for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Know what you can add to any dish to make it even better? Fried cubes of Spam. Trust Von Diaz, whose version of macaroni and cheese merges her upbringing in both Puerto Rico and the South. The base is simple, using a flour and milk slurry for thickness instead of a roux. But “during tough times,” she suggests, “a box of instant mac and cheese and a can of Spam will also yield delicious results.”

Recipe: Spam Macaroni and Cheese

8. Pimento Mac and Cheese

An overhead image of mac and cheese in a baking dish, with pieces of pimento pepper and a bread crumb topping. There is a spoon in the dish — Credit...Kelly Marshall for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Roscoe Betsill. Prop Stylist: Maeve Sheridan.

For anyone who’s ever fallen in love with pimento cheese, this new recipe from Vallery Lomas is a no-brainer. The addition of cream cheese, sliced pimentos, jalapeños and paprika to an otherwise straightforward take is exactly as terrific as it sounds.

Recipe: Pimento Mac and Cheese

9. One-Pot Broccoli Mac and Cheese

An overhead image of a pot full of broccoli mac and cheese. There is a wooden serving spoon in the pot, a smaller bowl of mac and cheese to the side and an empty bowl containing two forks above. — Credit...Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

In Ali Slagle’s 25-minute recipe, the pasta cooks in the milk, along with chopped broccoli, and cheese gets stirred in at the end. It seems almost too easy to be delicious, but it is — and you’re getting equal parts pasta and vegetables.

Recipe: One-Pot Broccoli Mac and Cheese

10. Creamy Macaroni and Cheese

An overhead image of a baking dish full of mac and cheese with an orange crust. There is a spoon in the dish — Credit...Con Poulos for The New York Times. Food Styling: Simon Andrews.

Julia Moskin’s recipe is one of the most loved New York Times Cooking recipes of all time, with more than 16,000 ratings (at the time of writing) and well over a thousand glowing comments. The secret ingredient is cottage cheese,but the best part is you don’t have to boil the noodles first; they cook to al dente perfection in the oven.

Recipe: Creamy Macaroni and Cheese

11. Lobster Mac and Cheese

An overhead image of a blue baking dish full of lobster mac and cheese. There is a spoon in the dish — Credit...Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.

Luxury! Sam Sifton took Julia Moskin’s classic creamy macaroni and cheese recipe, above, and made it extra special with tender pieces of lobster meat. Commenters have called it “fabulous,” “truly delicious” and “superb,” and they’re all correct.

Recipe: Lobster Mac and Cheese

12. Trinidadian Macaroni Pie

A side image of a slice of Trinidadian macaroni pie with a burnished crust. There is a fork in the background — Credit...Kelly Marshall for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Roscoe Betsill. Prop Stylist: Maeve Sheridan.

There’s so much comfort to be found in this firm, crispy-topped casserole, heavily flavored with savory spices and Scotch bonnet pepper. Lesley Enston’s version of this Trini holiday staple yields excellent leftovers, so don’t cook this recipe only for big functions — make it for yourself and enjoy it over a few days.

Recipe: Trinidadian Macaroni Pie

13. Vegan Mac and Cheese

An overhead image of two bowls of vegan mac and cheese with shells. There are forks in each of the bowls. — Credit...Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Alexa Weibel’s vegan version is as spot on as a dairy-free macaroni and cheese can get, thanks to three sources of creaminess: blended raw cashews, nut milk and umami-rich nutritional yeast.

Recipe: Vegan Mac and Cheese

14. French Onion Macaroni and Cheese

Credit...David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.

Leave it to Ali Slagle, a weeknight dinner wizard, to create a mash-up that makes you say, “French onion soup and macaroni and cheese really do belong together!” The little Gruyère toasts on top really bring it home.

Recipe: French Onion Macaroni and Cheese

15. Vegan Poblano Macaroni and Cheese

An overhead image of a bowl of vegan mac and cheese, with sliced poblano peppers for ganish. There is a spoon in the bowl — Credit...Bryan Gardner for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne. Prop Stylist: Paige Hicks.

Here’s another recipe for the dairy-free: Jocelyn Ramirez’s creamy (and creamless) sauce includes potatoes and carrots for starchiness and sweetness, and charred chiles for lots of smoke and spice. Again, nutritional yeast adds a distinctly cheesy flavor that seals the deal.

Recipe: Vegan Poblano Macaroni and Cheese

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