Get my Cookbooks! Bacon Mac and Cheese
This Bacon Mac and Cheese has caramelized onions, hickory smoked bacon, and pasta shells smothered in a creamy three-cheese blend. You’ve never had mac and cheese like this before, it tastes like a specialty from a gourmet restaurant!
Be sure to try my Chili Mac and my Chicken Mac and Cheese recipes next!
Bacon Mac and Cheese
Warning: It is a little difficult to control yourself around this meal. This is definitely the best mac and cheese I’ve ever had in my life. I can see this being a specialty in a restaurant, people would come from far and wide to have a taste of this, and you can create it right in your own kitchen!
The caramelized onions, gruyere cheese, and hickory smoked bacon give this the gourmet flair that leaves you wanting more, while the cheddar and the Parmesan round everything out to create the creamiest, most flavorful cheese sauce you’ve ever had.
Now that we’re all hungry, scroll down to see how this is made, read through my PRO tips to ensure you have the creamiest cheese sauce, check out the storage information and more!
How to Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Slice the onions into even, 1/4-inch slices and toss in heated olive oil/butter. Caramelize slowly over medium/low heat. Remove and set aside.
Cook bacon until crispy in a large skillet while the onions caramelize. Remove and set aside. Reserve 4 Tbsp. bacon drippings and heat them in the same skillet. Add flour and whisk for 2 minutes. Add the heavy cream and milk in splashes, stirring continuously.
Add the seasonings and hot sauce. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Separately, boil the pasta until just al dente and drain.
Reduce heat to low and gradually stir in the shredded cheese. Add the caramelized onions and stir to combine.
Add the cooked pasta and stir to combine. Garnish with bacon and parsley.
Pro Tips
- Shred the cheese from a block instead of using packaged shredded cheese. It will melt much better and the flavor is superior as well. I use Emi Le Gruyere and Cracker Barrel Extra Sharp Yellow Cheese in this recipe.
- Make sure the base of the sauce isn’t too hot when the cheese is added, otherwise the dairy will separate and the consistency will be grainy.
- If you’re short on time, you can omit the caramelized onions. (Although they add the best gourmet flair!)
- A variety of pasta options work well with this recipe, macaroni or cavatappi is a good alternative. These are the Colavita pasta shells that I used.
- I recommend quality, thick-cut bacon with this recipe. You get what you pay for with bacon.
- You can’t taste the hot sauce or the mustard powder in this recipe, they are there to enhance the other flavors.
- Gruyere is so delicious in this recipe, but if you don’t have any, you can use all cheddar or a combination of orange/white cheddar. Monterey Jack can also be used.
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 143!
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- This mac and cheese doesn’t freeze/reheat back to it’s original consistency, but that doesn’t stop me from freezing it for easy microwavable lunches.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- This is the skillet I used in this recipe, (and in 90% of my recipes). It’s pricey, but it conducts heat really well and is oven safe. The size is perfect and the quality is great.
- Box Cheese Grater– Always shred your cheese from a block. Packaged shredded cheese doesn’t melt nearly as well.
- Pasta Strainer– This is the one I have and love.
Try These Next
-
- Chicken Mac and Cheese
-
- Easy Ravioli Sauce
-
- Chili Mac
-
- Garlic Parmesan Chicken
-
- Chicken Enchiladas
-
- Bacon Ranch Chicken
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Tried This Recipe?
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Bacon Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
Caramelized Onions, Optional
- 2 large yellow onions
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Mac and Cheese
- 6 strips thick-cut bacon, hickory smoked is great
- 1 lb. medium pasta shells
- 1/4 cup butter, not needed if you have enough bacon drippings
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 cups milk
- 1 teaspoon mustard powder
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce
- 1 cup gruyere cheese, shredded
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, shredded.
Instructions
Caramelize the Onions
- Slice the onions into even, ¼-inch slices.
- Heat the butter and olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and toss to coat. Let them reduce and caramelize for 40-50 minutes, stirring every few minutes. Reduce heat to low if they start to cook too fast. When they’re caramelized, remove and set aside.
Cook the Bacon
- While the onions cook: Cut the bacon into thirds, this makes it easy to move them around as they cook for even cooking. Add them to a large, high-walled skillet over low heat and let them cook low and slow until crispy on each side. (Tip: Measure out remaining ingredients while the bacon cooks.)
- Remove and set aside on a paper towel lined plate. Reserve 4 Tablespoons of bacon drippings. Use butter in place of drippings if you don’t have enough.
Make the Sauce/Cook the Pasta
- Note: Now is a good time to start boiling salted pasta water for the shells.
- Heat the bacon drippings over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and stir continuously for 2 minutes.
- Add the heavy cream in splashes, stirring continuously. Don’t add it too quickly or the roux will break. Add the milk in the same manner.
- Add the mustard powder, thyme, garlic powder, and hot sauce. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
- Cook the pasta until just al dente (refer to package instructions), don’t overcook. Drain.
- Reduce the heat of the sauce to low and let the base cool slightly. Gradually sprinkle in the cheese, stirring continuously until incorporated. Add the caramelized onions, then the drained pasta. Use a silicone spatula to stir until combined.
- Roughly chop the bacon and sprinkle it over the mac and cheese. You may stir some of it in as well.
- Garnish with parsley and serve!
Notes
- Shred the cheese from a block instead of using packaged shredded cheese. It will melt much better and the flavor is superior as well. I use Emi Le Gruyere and Cracker Barrel Extra Sharp Yellow Cheese in this recipe.
- Make sure the base of the sauce isn't too hot when the cheese is added, otherwise the dairy will separate and the consistency will be grainy.
- If preferred, you can omit the caramelized onions. (Although they add the best gourmet flair!)
- A variety of pasta options work well with this recipe, macaroni or cavatappi is a good alternative. These are the Colavita pasta shells that I used.
- I recommend quality, thick-cut bacon with this recipe. You get what you pay for with bacon.
- You can't taste the hot sauce or the mustard powder in this recipe, they are there to enhance the other flavors.
- Gruyere is so delicious in this recipe, but if you don't have any, you can use all cheddar or a combination of orange/white cheddar. Monterey Jack can also be used.
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 143!
Storage:
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- Creamy Mac and Cheese doesn't freeze/reheat back to it's original consistency, but that doesn't stop me from freezing it for easy microwavable lunches.
This is so so good! It’s better than the Mac from Capital Grille, which before this, was my favorite. I could eat this right out of the pot! My only issue was defending the chopped bacon before I was ready for it from kitchen thieves. Next time I’ll make decoy bacon so I have enough at the end.
Btw. I’m such a convert to your “no bagged shredded cheese” philosophy. Everything tastes so much smoother and creamier when it’s freshly shredded. I also didn’t know about lowering the temp for dairy ingredients before following you, so thank you again for the all the tips. I’ve yet to mess up a a single one of your recipes! 😆
I am sooo happy that you love this mac and cheese Lex! I always pictured this one being a mac and cheese specialty at a restaurant, so I’m thrilled that you’ve come to like it even more than your previous restaurant favorite! I TOTALLY hear you on the bacon thieves- I have them at my house too. 😂 And I’m psyched that you shred your own cheese and learned about the lower heat for dairy from me!! I wish I knew those tips back in the day, so passing them on makes me super happy. Thank you so much for your support!!
Can you use half and half? Because I have some left from making clam chowder.
And also when I make regular Mac and cheese I put in some American cheese, can i add it to this
You can use half and half, it’ll just be slightly thicker. If you add American to this I would leave out one of the other cheeses or use less of it. ☺️
Quite delicious! However, I’d probably half or quarter the thyme quantity next time.
I saved about a half cup of the pasta water to add to the mixture at the end. It really helped!!
Thank you for the recipe!
I’m happy that you enjoyed it Alyssa!! Thank you so much! 🙂
This is one of the best things I’ve tasted. I audibly moaned the first time I ate it. I wish I was joking as much as I wish there weren’t people in the room there to hear it.
5/5
There is no better compliment than that Derek!!! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave this wonderful review, I appreciate it so much, and it made me chuckle! 🙂 -Stephanie
Recipe says to reserve 4 Tablespoons bacon drippings then whisk in the flour (1/4 cup) where does the 1/4 cup of butter/bacon drippings come in. Is this all part of the roux?
Hi Karen! Next to the butter ingredient, it says “not needed if you have enough bacon drippings.” The roux calls for 4 Tbsp of “fat” essentially, either in the form of butter or drippings.