Recipe: Gourmet Sriracha and bacon mac & cheese

Ingredients

1/3 cup (80ml) butter
1/3 cup (80ml) flour
3 cups (750ml) full cream milk
1 cup (250ml) cream
100g Wyke Farms Mature Cheddar, grated, plus extra to top
100g Gruyere, grated
Salt and pepper
Pinch of nutmeg
2 tsp (10ml) sriracha sauce, plus extra to drizzle
10g parsley, roughly chopped
½ cup (125ml) fresh breadcrumbs
2 tsp (10ml) olive oil
4 cups (500g) macaroni, cooked according to packet instructions
250g streaky bacon, chopped finely and fried until crispy

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190 °C.

2. To make the cheese sauce: Melt butter in a saucepan over a medium heat, and add flour.

3. Stir for 1 minute to cook out the raw flour.

4. Slowly whisk in the milk and cream until a smooth and creamy sauce is achieved, about 8–10 minutes.

5. Remove from heat, whisk in the cheeses and season with salt, pepper, nutmeg and sriracha sauce. Set aside.

6. To make the parsley crumb: Place the breadcrumbs, parsley, and olive oil in a bowl, season with salt and pepper and mix well. Set aside.

7. To assemble macaroni and cheese: Add the cooked macaroni into the cheese sauce, together with half the crispy bacon, mixing well to coat.

8. Pour into an ovenproof dish and top with a little extra Cheddar, the remaining crispy bacon bits, as well as the parsley crumb.

9. Bake in oven for 15 minutes or until lightly golden brown.

10. Remove from oven and serve immediately with an extra drizzle of sriracha sauce.

Recipe supplied by Checkers

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