Crock Pot Mac and Cheese
Crock pot mac and cheese is an easy, super cheesy macaroni and cheese recipe made right in the slow cooker, great for a busy weeknight dinner. It comes together quickly and can easily be scaled up, which makes it perfect for potlucks, holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas, and any time you are feeding a crowd!
I am a macaroni and cheese lover through and through. I loved it when I was a kid, and I appreciate it and all of its varieties even more so now. I love trying new recipes at home (see all of my mac and cheese recipes here), and I can't seem to resist it on a menu when I go out to eat, either (my very favorite was this short rib variation I had years ago).
Why We Love This Creamy Mac and Cheese
Many years ago, I put together an easy and hands-off menu for 4th of July. I first planned on our favorite beer and brown sugar kielbasa and sauerkraut, and then started choosing side dishes and served up this slow cooker mac and cheese. It immediately became a huge favorite and has been making appearances at family functions ever since!
I love that this crockpot mac and cheese recipe doesn’t use eggs (I’ve never had luck using them in macaroni and cheese recipes), nor does it use condensed cheddar cheese soup.
This is perfectly creamy, and cheesy, and doesn’t require much at all in terms of prep.
Ingredient Notes
You only need a handful of ingredients to create this amazing mac and cheese; here are a few notes on them:
- Pasta – I love using elbow macaroni noodles because they’re so classic, but feel free to use whatever pasta shapes you like!
- Butter – Unsalted is called for, but you can substitute salted butter and just use a pinch of salt in the recipe.
- Evaporated Milk – Evaporated milk has been cooked down to allow some of the water to evaporate out, which results in a product that is more concentrated than regular milk. This means that it's richer and creamier, which makes for absolutely outstanding macaroni and cheese!
- Half and Half – If you do not have or cannot get half and half, simply substitute equal amounts of heavy cream and whole milk.
- Cheddar Cheese – I recommend not buying packaged shredded cheese, but instead buying a block and shredding it yourself, as it will melt better and produce a creamier cheese sauce. If you like a cheese blend, you can substitute all or part with colby-jack cheese.
- Velveeta Cheese – One of the keys to keeping this mac and cheese ultra-creamy! If you cannot get Velveeta cheese, you can substitute a half pound of American cheese, purchased at the deli counter and not the pre-packaged slices.
How to Make Crock Pot Mac and Cheese
It’s so easy! Here is a quick rundown of the steps:
- Boil the noodles, drain, then add them to the slow cooker and toss them with the butter until it’s melted.
- Stir in the milk, half and half, and almost all of the cheese, salt, and pepper, then stir to combine.
- Cook on low for 2 to 3 hours; 15 minutes before finishing, sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese on top, then keep warm until ready to serve.
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FAQ: Can You Cook the Noodles in the Slow Cooker, Too?
In this recipe, no; you'll need to boil the noodles to al dente on the stove before adding them to the slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients. Some recipes may be formulated to allow you to cook the pasta with the other ingredients, but this has the potential to result in very mushy pasta since it will be cooked for a longer period of time.
Enjoy More Mac and Cheese Recipes:
- Ultimate Baked Mac and Cheese
- Cajun Shrimp Macaroni and Cheese
- Butternut Squash & Bacon Mac and Cheese
- Hatch Chile Mac and Cheese
- Chrissy Teigen’s Mac and Cheese
- Creamy Stovetop Macaroni and Cheese
Watch How to Make Crock Pot Mac and Cheese:
If you make this crock pot mac and cheese recipe and love it, remember to stop back and give it a 5-star rating - it helps others find the recipe! ❤️️
Crock Pot Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 16 ounces elbow macaroni, uncooked
- 6 tablespoons (85 g) butter, cut into cubes
- 12 ounce can evaporated milk
- 2 cups (480 ml) half & half
- ½ cup (120 ml) whole milk
- 16 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (about 4 cups)
- 8 ounces Velveeta cheese, cut into cubes
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Spray a slow cooker (4 to 6-quart capacity) with cooking spray. Cook the pasta to al dente and drain. Place the macaroni in the slow cooker, immediately add the butter and stir until melted.
- Add the evaporated milk, half & half, whole milk, 3½ cups of the cheddar cheese, the Velveeta, salt and pepper; stir to blend well.
- Cover and cook on low for 2 to 3 hours. During the last 15 minutes of cooking, sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup of cheddar cheese. Once done, turn the slow cooker setting to warm until ready to serve. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Notes
- Crock Pot – A 4 to 6-quart capacity is ideal for this recipe. I recommend the KitchenAid 6-Quart Slow Cooker.
- Pasta – I love using elbow macaroni noodles because they’re so classic, but feel free to use whatever pasta shapes you like! I do not recommend adding uncooked pasta to the slow cooker, as it could absorb too much liquid and become mushy.
- Butter – Unsalted is called for, but you can substitute salted butter and just use a pinch of salt in the recipe.
- Half and Half – If you do not have or cannot get half and half, simply substitute equal amounts of heavy cream and whole milk.
- Cheddar Cheese – I recommend not buying packaged shredded cheese, but instead buying a block and shredding it yourself, as it will melt better and produce a creamier cheese sauce. If you like a cheese blend, you can substitute all or part with Colby-jack cheese.
- Velveeta Cheese – One of the keys to keeping this mac and cheese ultra-creamy! If you cannot get Velveeta cheese, you can substitute a half pound of American cheese, purchased at the deli counter, and not the pre-packaged slices.
- Increasing the Recipe – This recipe doubles and triples wonderfully! A great one for serving to a crowd. You can make a double batch in a 6-quart (or larger) slow cooker; if you want to make more than that, you’ll need an additional slow cooker.
- Storage – Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
This recipe was originally published on July 9, 2014.
[photos by Whitney Wright]
I will try this. I recently had my sisters crock pot Mac n cheese labor day. It was delish. I’m not a fan of whole wheat pasta, but couldn’t even tell the difference that it wasn’t regular pasta. She used Paula Deans recipe but omitted the sour cream and eggs. I’m sure there’s no big difference health wise between Velveeta a processed cheese food, or cheese in a soup can. Both probably produce the same smooth results.
I made this for the kids to eat at my sister’s wedding today, and it was a huge hit!! Adults were even digging into even though there was catered food available for them. It was completely gone within an hour! I had several people request the recipe! I did make just a couple of small changes – I used 16 oz. of elbow macaroni instead of 12, and I used 12 oz. of velveeta instead of 8. I kept everything else the same, and it came out awesome!
Hello! I made this recipe tonight and it tasted good! However, mine wasn’t creamy/gooey. It was a little mushy as if the ingredients didn’t harden? If that makes sense. Any idea why this happened for future reference? Thanks :)
Hi Stephanie, I’m not sure what you mean by harden? It should definitely be creamy, not hard in any way.
I made this, without cooking the noodles first. It was good, just had to add more Mike (I used the 1/2 and 1/2 as directed, then added skim) twice during cooking (probably about 1and one half cups).
What is half and half what do I half,also l would use philly soft cheese
Hi Lesley, Half and half is essentially half whole milk and half heavy cream. If you’re referring to cream cheese, it isn’t called for in the recipe and using it will alter both the taste and texture of the final product.
If you want to make this recipe even more totally delicious, leave out the Velvetta and substitute 8 oz cream cheese and 4 oz smoked gouda. And. if you like tomatoes in your mac and cheese, add a can of drained diced tomatoes.
It’s in the crockpot now! I don’t use Velveeta, even if I could find it here on the West Coast of Canada, so I used Philly cream cheese instead and threw in a generous portion of fresh Parmesan Regiano for flavour. It’s going to be delicious. Thanks for sharing your recipe. Mac & cheese in a crockpot…who knew?!
I made this for Christmas yesterday. It was so easy and a huge hit with the entire family! We’ve never had mac&cheese at Christmas before, but I think I’ll be making this every year. Thanks for the great recipe!!
My brother asked me to bring “outrageously cheesy” mac and cheese to Thanksgiving, and I chose this recipe despite my skepticism about Velveeta. It was awesome! Little bro was pleased with the cheesiness, all of my kids ate it, my picky-eater husband liked it, and I liked it too!
I made a double batch and used already shredded cheese and it was great!
I am making this in two days for Thanksgiving, and didn’t see the advice to shred a block of cheese versus using pre-shredded cheese before buying all the ingredients. is it that big of a deal? If so, maybe consider listing that tip in the recipe itself? I have made this once before and did end up cooking it on the stove and then baking it (my slow cooker decided to break that day.) it got rave reviews even though it wasn’t as creamy as I had hoped using that method.
Just wanted to say this turned out FABULOUS! I followed the recipe almost exactly. I went ahead used my whole 16 oz box of macaroni, so I added a touch more half and half and touch more sharp cheese. Everything else stayed the same. It was so perfect and creamy! I stirred a couple of times so I was able to serve it at the perfect consistency. Thank you for the great recipe!!
Thank you for this. Because I came across the same recipes calling for eggs, why? and EEWWW condensed cheese soup, what is that?
This recipe is delicious and so very easy. It is actually quite hard to mess up.
I am thinking of making this for thanksgiving in a 2.5 quart slow cooker (the triple kind). I have a few questions. 1. Is my crockpot too small? 2. Can I prepare everything the night before (cook the pasta and add ingred) and have it ready to go in the morning?
Thanks!
Hi Jackie, I fear your slow cooker may be too small. You can prep it the night before but I would refrigerate.
Made this (doubled) in a large crock and it was the first to go! I did use milk rather than half and half but that didn’t matter to my guests. A keeper, for sure!
Made this today – delicious :) I doubled the recipe since I have a big crock pot and came out great. Only needed 1.5 hours on low and it was heated through and the cheeses had melted. I used low fat evaporated milk and still came out very rich tasting. Family will love this version – thank you for the recipe. My only addition to your recipe was smoked paprika – adds a great flavor that really complements the cheese :) Will definitely be making and sharing your recipe many times over!
Just made this Mac & Cheese recipe,for a luncheon tomorrow. Now I am not a lover of Mac & Cheese but this is awesome.I just had to taste test it and ended up eating 2 bowls.
I did not cook the pasta before putting it in the crockpot. It is very important to shred the cheese rather than use the preshredded stuff. It is solo cheesy and was easy to.make.
thx for Mac n cheese recipe, hubby loves it in general. Now, I w ant to try you Rs and I don’t have a clue on “half n half” would someone please tell me.
Hi Diane, Half and half is a common ingredient in the U.S. – it’s essentially half heavy cream, half whole milk.
I’ve made this recipe a bunch of times in my crock pot and love it – thanks! I was wondering how you thought it would be if I did it in oven? I want to make a big batch and don’t have a crock pot where I am. Thanks!
Hi Jillian, I haven’t tried it in the oven – if you do, let me know how it turns out!
So good, except it’s way to rich and thick for us, anyway to “thin” it out but still keep it creamy?
Hi Shae, You could add more evaporated milk (or regular milk at the very end to thin the sauce).
Just tried this and it was excellent!!! I added about a teaspoon of ground mustard to it in addition to the salt and pepper. This is the third recipe I have tried from BEB and all have been spot on and really great!! Thank you for such awesomeness, can’t wait to try more!!! ;-)
Can this recipe be doubled easily? How long do you recommend cooking it if so?
Hi Christina, Yes! Maybe an extra 30-60 minutes.
I have tried many many too many recipes for M&C. All were edible some “really good, mom” but never a repeat recipe. This recipe changed all of that! This one is being requested as soon as the last batch is gone. Thanks!!!! Perfect as it was written!
I’m trying this today…. Yummy
this recipe was so easy and tasted so yummy I love it! I did use 1 cup less of the shredded sharp cheese and it worked out perfect still plenty of cheese in the dish. this will definitely be a repeat meal for us.
Hey! I have a WWMD (what would Michelle do?) question. I would LOVE to make this for a late afternoon christening party because I am making all of the food for it and crockpots will be my friend. The stickler is I need to transport it about 2 hours away! Therefore, how would you recommend cooking it? Should I cook it all in the morning, drive, and then just leave the crockpot on the “keep warm” setting to serve? Do you think it will get stringy and overcooked? Thank you!
Hi Sara, That’s tricky! If you can’t start it once you get to your location then I would do what you suggested – cook prior to transporting then set it to warm when you get there.
This recipe sounds fantastic! I might add a pinch of nutmeg, since whatever recipe I use for mac & cheese always has some in it.
Made this today in a 5qt crockpot and doubled the recipe. Used a rontini because i forgot to buy a second box of macaroni (go figure lol). Was terrified it wouldnt turn out with a different type of noodle because of you saying specifically macaroni regular nothing else! but i am glad to say that its freakin amazing and delicious. will be my go to recipe from now on.
made this for my daughter’s baby shower it was delicious and a big hit definitely a keeper
this is a great recipe, but it made a Lot and my 4 quart crock was too small
omg!!!!! this is everything!!!! i am absolutely in love with your recipes you are amazing… i cannot wait to make this for my family tomorrow….