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This easy Nacho Cheese Sauce comes together in 5 minutes or less with just 4 ingredients – and no roux! It’s perfect for nachos or as a spicy dipping sauce, and you can easily control the heat depending on how many jalapeños you add.
Meggan’s notes
I’ve been making the easiest 3-ingredient, 5-minute homemade cheese sauce for years – I put the cheese sauce on broccoli, serve it with appetizers like soft pretzels, even toss it with cooked macaroni for the easiest homemade mac and cheese.
As a classically-trained chef, I’m always wondering what else I can do with the recipes I have, and this cheese sauce seemed ripe for a spicy makeover. It turns out all you need is a can of pickled jalapeños, and it’s even easier if they’re already diced.
Stir in a tablespoon or more (I like two tablespoons) and that’s all it takes to make the homemade nacho cheese dip of your dreams. Enjoy it with tortilla chips, soft pretzels, and baked potatoes or on burritos, tacos, and quesadillas. So many options for the simplest nacho cheese sauce on the planet!
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Shredded cheese: It’s okay to use pre-shredded cheese here. Although they are tossed with agents to prevent the cheese from sticking together, it will still melt and thicken up fine.
- Cornstarch: The perfect thickener for this easy cheese sauce.
- Evaporated milk: This pantry-friendly milk substitute lends the perfect consistency.
- Salt: It’s so important to taste your sauce as you season it or it might be bland. I keep a jar of tasting spoons next to my stove-top just for this purpose.
- Jalapeños: Look for diced jalapeños or buy whole or sliced and chop up yourself. I love San Marcos brand. I add just 1 tablespoon if I’m serving kids.
Step-by-step instructions
- In a small saucepan, combine cheddar cheese and cornstarch. Toss until cheese is evenly coated.
- Stir in evaporated milk and salt and pepper to taste (I like 1 teaspoon salt). Heat over medium-high heat, whisking occasionally, until cheese is melted and smooth, about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Stir in jalapeños. Reduce heat to low, cover, and keep warm until serving time. Or, transfer to a slow cooker on the “warm” setting for serving.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes about 2 cups Nacho Cheese Dip.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat over low heat on the stove.
- Slow cooker: Make the recipe as directed below, on the stove, and then transfer it to your favorite slow cooker (I used one of the “mini sizes” and there is room for a double batch of this cheese sauce recipe). I’ve left it on the “warm” setting for a few hours and all it ever needs is a little stir. It works really well!
- Regular cheese sauce: Just leave out the jalapeños! For a milder nacho sauce, add a can of Ro*tel tomatoes and green chiles, drained.
- Cheese sauce for broccoli: I grew up eating Velveeta on frozen vegetables, and I can personally say that this homemade version is much tastier! Just leave out the jalapeños (unless you want them in it, of course).
Nacho Cheese Sauce FAQs
Medium cheddar cheese melts easily without graininess, so I reach for that over sharp cheddar. Mozzarella, gruyere, Monterey Jack, and Havarti are also excellent melters. They will give a different flavor to your cheese sauce, though.
Some food purists implore you to shred cheese straight from the block, citing added anti-caking agents as a disaster for cheese sauce. However, shredded cheese is often tossed with cornstarch, and we are adding that here anyway. I’ve never had a problem making this cheese sauce with pre-shredded cheddar, and you shouldn’t either.
You can thicken cheese sauce by creating a roux on the front end (usually with butter and flour) or with a thickening starch such as corn starch, tapioca starch, or arrowroot starch.
Cheese sauce thickens as it cools, so if yours is getting too thick to handle, stir in milk (a tablespoon at a time) while heating your cheese sauce over medium-low heat.
Either thickener can work. I reach for cornstarch because it’s powdery consistency leads to a smooth, silky cheese sauce that doesn’t have a raw flour taste. Cornstarch is also a stronger thickener, so you can use less overall compared to how much flour you’d need to thicken the same amount of sauce.
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Nacho Cheese Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (see note 1)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
- Salt
- 2 tablespoons pickled jalapeños or to taste (see note 2)
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, combine cheddar cheese and cornstarch. Toss until cheese is evenly coated.
- Stir in evaporated milk and salt and pepper to taste (I like 1 teaspoon salt). Heat over medium-high heat, whisking occasionally, until cheese is melted and smooth, about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Stir in jalapeños. Reduce heat to low, cover, and keep warm until serving time. Or, transfer to a slow cooker on the "warm" setting for serving.
Notes
- Shredded cheese: It’s okay to use pre-shredded cheese here. Although they are tossed with agents to prevent the cheese from sticking together, it will still melt and thicken up fine.
- Jalapeños: Look for diced jalapeños or buy whole or sliced and chop up yourself. I love San Marcos brand. I add just 1 tablespoon if I’m serving kids.
- Yield: This recipe makes about 2 cups Nacho Cheese Dip.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat over low heat on the stove.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
This Nacho Cheese Sauce was just as you described – super easy and really creamy. Actually used it for an easy mac and cheese. Just added cooked pasta to the sauce and we loved it!
I’m glad you loved it, Cathy! Take care! – Meggan