Nacho Cheese Sauce Recipe - The Cookie Rookie® (2024)

Nacho Cheese Sauce Recipe - The Cookie Rookie® (1)

By: Becky Hardin

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This homemade Nacho Cheese Sauce recipe is so quick and easy, you’ll only need 4 ingredients and 5 minutes! It has the best cheddar cheese flavor, with a little bit of spice thanks to pepper jack and hot sauce. You’re going to love the creamy and cheesy consistency. Use it to dip nachos, fries, and pretzels, or slather it on top of tacos, fajitas, and anything your heart desires!

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Table of Contents

What’s in this 5 Minute Nacho Cheese recipe?

This easy nacho cheese sauce is so dippable and so easy. You’ll be able to whip this up any time, for any meal or snack, game day, or Cinco de Mayo. Don’t forget the tortilla chips!

  • Shredded Cheese: Shredded cheese is easy to melt evenly. I recommend using sharp cheddar cheese, and pepper jack for a little bit of spice. Freshly-shredded cheese will melt best.
  • Evaporated Milk: Evaporated milk is thick and creamy, which lends to the perfect texture for our cheese sauce. Use unsweetened milk.
  • Cornstarch: Cornstarch is used here as a thickening agent. I prefer it over flour since cornstarch simply has more thickening power.
  • Hot Sauce: Use any hot sauce you like. Something classic like Frank’s works great. You can leave this out if you don’t want any heat, but it’s delicious.

Pro Tip: You can substitute flour in place of the cornstarch if you need to, but you will need more of it to achieve the same result. So slowly add more in and stir until you get the desired consistency.

What toppings can I add to nachos with cheese sauce?

This sauce makes a great dipping cheese for nachos, but you can also use it to make a regular plate of nachos. Spread out tortilla chips on a tray or plate, pour the cheese sauce on top, and add any toppings you like (make sure ingredients are already cooked, heated, or prepped as desired).

You can add ground beef, shredded chicken, jalapenos, barbacoa beef, black olives, sour cream, simple guacamole, easy salsa, green onions, caramelized onions, and more.

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How to Store and Reheat

This nacho cheese sauce is best consumed fresh and hot, because the texture will change when it cools. But you can store leftovers in an airtight container, in the refrigerator for 2 days.

Reheat in a pan on the stovetop over low heat. Add small amounts of evaporated milk to help freshen it up, and stir until fully heated through.

I do not recommend freezing this recipe.

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How can I use this homemade cheese sauce?

There are so many ways to use this quick and easy nacho cheese! Of course it’s ideal for dipping nachos, but that’s not where it ends.

Use it to dip chips, pretzel bites, French fries, tater tots, taquitos, and any number of things in it. Pour it over beef enchiladas, your favorite tacos, chicken fajitas, or rice.

I also use it for this Pretzel Crust Pizza. You’ll find so many ways to use this 5 minute cheese sauce, it’ll be your new go-to for Cinco de Mayo food, football food, and quick snacking.

If you make this recipe be sure to upload a photo in the comment section below or leave a rating. Enjoy!

Recipe

Homemade Nacho Cheese Sauce

4.52 from 268 votes

Author: Becky Hardin

Prep: 5 minutes minutes

Total: 5 minutes minutes

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Serves8

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Nacho Cheese Sauce is easy to make at home. It's perfect for game day, appetizer night, Summer get togethers, and more.

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Ingredients

  • 8 ounces extra sharp Cheddar cheese
  • 4 ounces Pepper Jack cheese
  • tablespoons cornstarch
  • 12 ounces evaporated milk
  • 2 teaspoons hot sauce such as Frank’s

Instructions

  • In a medium, heavy-bottom saucepan set over low heat, combine cheese and cornstarch. Toss to combine.

    8 ounces extra sharp Cheddar cheese, 4 ounces Pepper Jack cheese, 1½ tablespoons cornstarch

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  • Add evaporated milk and hot sauce and whisk constantly until cheese is melted. Continue whisking about 5 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and has thickened.

    12 ounces evaporated milk, 2 teaspoons hot sauce

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  • If cheese has thickened too much, add additional evaporated milk.

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  • Serve immediately.

Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!

Nutrition Information

Calories: 230kcal (12%) Carbohydrates: 6g (2%) Protein: 13g (26%) Fat: 16g (25%) Saturated Fat: 10g (63%) Cholesterol: 54mg (18%) Sodium: 323mg (14%) Potassium: 168mg (5%) Sugar: 4g (4%) Vitamin A: 495IU (10%) Vitamin C: 1.6mg (2%) Calcium: 421mg (42%) Iron: 0.4mg (2%)

Did You Make This?I want to see! Be sure to upload an image below & tag @thecookierookie on social media!

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More Cheese Dips We Love

  • White Restaurant-Style Queso
  • Velveeta Rotel Dip
  • Beer Cheese Dip
  • Crockpot Queso
  • Queso Fundido
  • Fried Chili Cheese Dip
  • See all of our favorite Dip Recipes!

What kind of cheese is best for nachos?

Cheddar cheese is the best option for that classic nacho cheese flavor and it melts well. You could use monterey jack or colby instead. And the pepper jack adds a little bit more spice, which I love!

Why is my cheese sauce clumping?

You need to make sure all ingredients are mixing and melting evenly to avoid clumping, so it’s important to whisk constantly until everything is fully combined and melted.

How do you keep nacho cheese warm and creamy?

As soon as the cheese starts to cool, it will harden and change texture. You can keep it over low heat and continue stirring regularly. But you may need to stir in more milk once it’s started to harden, to refresh it’s creamy texture.

How do you thicken nacho cheese sauce?

Add more cornstarch (just a little bit at a time), and continue heating and stirring until it reaches your desired consistency.

How do you thin out cheese sauce?

Add more evaporated milk (a little bit at a time), and continue heating and stirring until it reaches your desired consistency.

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Nacho Cheese Sauce Recipe - The Cookie Rookie® (2024)

FAQs

What is nacho cheese sauce made of? ›

Ingredients: Nacho sauce is typically made with a combination of melted cheese, tomatoes, and spices, while cheese dip is usually made with a blend of melted cheese and milk or cream. Consistency: Nacho sauce is usually thicker and more paste-like in consistency, while cheese dip is typically thinner and more pourable.

What is the best melting cheese for nachos? ›

Sharp cheddar gets my vote for nacho cheese. It melts smoothly without being stringy, while having a nice flavorful punch. You can use mild or medium cheddar if you prefer, but the flavor will be a bit blander. Monterey jack and pepper jack also melt really well into sauces and make a great white nacho cheese sauce.

What nacho cheese is used at baseball games? ›

Teams like the Rangers, for instance, use Tostitos for chips and Ricos for the jalapeños and cheese sauce. Others use Gehl Food & Beverage for the cheese sauce and Ricos for the jalapeños.

What makes nacho cheese liquidy? ›

Salts such as sodium citrate and sodium hexametaphosphate are known in the cheese industry as melting salts. Their primary purpose is to swap sodium ions for calcium ions bound to the casein proteins in cheese. In doing so, they loosen these proteins and make them water-soluble. We used two different recipes.

How to make cheese sauce that doesn t harden? ›

For Smooth, Stable Cheese Sauces, Cornstarch and Evaporated Milk Are Your Friends. How to make a stable emulsion of melted cheese using two basic pantry staples.

What is the difference between nacho cheese and cheddar cheese sauce? ›

While nacho cheese and regular cheese sauce share some similarities, nacho cheese is specifically formulated to have a bolder flavor and a smoother texture. It often includes additional ingredients such as spices and peppers to give it a distinct taste.

What kind of cheese do Mexican restaurants use on nachos? ›

Asadero Cheese

It elicits a subtle tanginess that offers a little more dimension than Oaxaca cheese. Because of its spectacular melting properties, it's an ideal base for queso on nachos, burritos, tacos, enchiladas or any Mexican dish.

What cheese is the hardest to melt? ›

There are many kinds of cheese that don't melt, including Lithuanian white cheese, queso fresco, juustoleipä (often called bread cheese), halloumi, and Indian paneer.

Is Velveeta real cheese? ›

Though Velveeta is no longer an FDA-defined genuine cheese, it does have some similarities, namely pasteurized milk and cheese culture.

What brand of nacho cheese do movie theaters use? ›

Since then, the unmistakable aroma of Ricos Nacho Cheese Sauce has become synonymous with the joyous spirit of entertainment venues, sports arenas, and movie theaters across the globe.

What cheese do taco shops use? ›

Queso fresco has a bolder, tangier flavor than mozzarella cheese but is smoother and saltier than that of goat cheese. It is used in several classic Mexican dishes such as tacos and bean dishes. Using queso fresco cheese on any dish can give it a cheese accent making it tastier.

What does nacho in nacho cheese stand for? ›

Nachos are tortillas with melted cheese and often other toppings (such as jalapenos). The name “nacho” comes from the name “Ignacio” of inventor Ignacio Anaya.

What does nacho stand for in cheese? ›

Sodium citrate is the chemical that makes nacho cheese smooth. And it's made out of four elements: sodium, carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen whose chemical symbols spell out NaCHO.

What kind of cheese doesn't melt? ›

There's one type of cheese that no amount of tweaking will melt: Acid-set cheeses, like fresh goat cheese, quick farmers cheese, paneer, queso fresco, and ricotta, just can't do it.

Does nacho cheese have real cheese in it? ›

The nacho cheese they pump onto tortillas comes from a can and contains only a small percentage of real cheese. It is mostly water, milk and oil thickened with corn starch. The cheese lends flavor to the sauce but accounts for little of the total volume.

Is Taco Bell nacho cheese sauce real cheese? ›

Nacho Cheese Sauce: Nonfat milk, cheese whey, water, vegetable oil (canola oil, soybean oil), modified food starch, maltodextrin, natural flavors, salt, dipotassium phosphate, jalapeno puree, vinegar, lactic acid, cellulose gum, potassium citrate, sodium stearoyl lactylate, citric acid, annatto and oleoresin paprika ( ...

What's the difference between nacho cheese and queso? ›

"Nacho cheese" is a specialized cheese sauce designed for nachos, a popular snack, or appetizer, known for its smooth, creamy texture and mild, slightly tangy flavor. In contrast, "queso cheese" is a more general term that encompasses various cheeses used in Mexican cuisine, available in different f…

Is nacho cheese made from American cheese? ›

Cheese Options:

You can use a processed American cheese like Velveeta, or any melting cheese can be made into a nacho cheese sauce including: Cheddar, Colby Jack, or even Mozzarella.

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