Southern Macaroni and Cheese Recipe
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This Southern Macaroni and Cheese Recipe is a rich, creamy baked mac and cheese with a crunchy topping. It’s a heirloom family recipe and a favorite comfort food loved for generations!
Macaroni and Cheese is one of those dishes it seems that everyone enjoys – my family certainly loves it! This Southern Macaroni and Cheese recipe features special ingredients that make it a unique, tasty, and favorite side dish for family suppers any night of the week! Baked in the oven with a crunchy butter cracker topping, it’s cheesy, creamy, and delicious! It is perfect to make ahead or freeze for later as well. It makes a great holiday side with your turkey, green bean casserole, and pecan pie, too!
I have always adored this family Southern Macaroni and Cheese recipe. It is creamy, cheesy, rich, and comforting, with a slight change from most macaroni and cheese recipes. It’s very simple to make, and it still tastes like you have been hard at work making it. And if you want to meal prep, it makes the perfect make-ahead side dish and is freezer-friendly, which is a big help for a super busy weeknight!
Why I Love This Recipe
- Delicious taste – It’s unique from many mac and cheese recipes, and it has a cozy, comforting flavor with a bit of crunch in the topping!
- Easy recipe – Ingredients are easy to prep, then mix and bake.
- Favorite side dish – It’s a dish that’s been a family favorite for generations. Perfect for Sunday suppers and holidays and even great to make ahead and freeze to pop in the oven on a busy weeknight!
Table of Contents
How to Make Southern Macaroni and Cheese
This homemade mac and cheese is a family favorite recipe that both my husband’s aunt and my grandmother made. It must have been a loved southern recipe even back in their days since they both made it – and I’m surely glad it was so that they shared it! It’s always a delicious variation on mac and cheese that I think you’ll enjoy as much as we do!
Ingredients
Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full listing of ingredients, instructions, notes, and estimated nutritional information.
- Elbow noodles
- Sharp cheddar cheese – I recommend grating it from the block of cheese yourself. Also, if you prefer medium or mild cheddar over sharp, you can use that variety.
- Cream of chicken soup – I use the homemade version (it’s so delicious); however, you can use canned if you wish, as detailed in the recipe.
- Mayonnaise
- Pimento pepper – This adds a delicious flavor and pop of color to the dish!
- Ritz crackers – This makes such a tasty, crunchy topping on this baked mac and cheese.
- Butter – You can use salted or unsalted butter or ghee, depending on your preference.
Grate The Cheese
I recommend grating your cheese instead of using store-bought shredded cheese. You can easily grate or shred your cheese in a food processor or box grater.
Store-bought shredded cheese includes a coating to prevent the cheese from clumping together, which can cause the cheese not to cream together as well as cheese that is freshly shredded from a block of cheese.
But if it’s all you have, you can use pre-shredded cheese.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Cook and Drain the Noodles
Boil the elbow noodles and drain them well. Be sure to preheat your oven, too.
Mix Ingredients (Except for Topping)
Combine the well-drained noodles with the cheese, cream of chicken soup, mayonnaise, and pimentos together in a large bowl. Mix until combined. Spread into a baking dish.
Make the Cracker Topping
In a mixing bowl, mix crumbled Ritz crackers and melted butter until they are thoroughly blended. Then sprinkle on top of the macaroni mixture in the baking dish.
Bake Until Golden and Serve
Place the buttery cracker-topped macaroni and cheese into the oven and bake until the cheese has melted and the topping is golden brown. This should take about 30 minutes. Serve warm.
Storage Tips
To store. Allow the mac and cheese to cool completely. Cover well with wrap or place in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven or microwave until warmed throughout.
To freeze. Let the macaroni and cheese cool completely. Cover well with freezer wrap or place in an airtight freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Then reheat in the oven or microwave until warmed throughout, and the cheese is melty.
Make Ahead Southern Mac and Cheese
Prep the dish (minus the buttery cracker topping) without baking and place it into an airtight container, and store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When ready to bake, top with the cracker topping and bake as directed.
To freeze the make-ahead mac and cheese, prep without baking (minus the cracker topping) and place into airtight freezer-safe containers. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight, then top with cracker topping and bake as directed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sharp cheddar cheese makes the best mac and cheese!
No. My recipe for Southern baked mac and cheese does not have eggs. This generations-old recipe is rich, creamy, and cheesy and contains cream of chicken soup and sharp cheddar.
Here’s our Southern Macaroni and Cheese Recipe. I hope you love it as much as we do!
Southern Macaroni and Cheese
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 (8-ounce) package elbow noodles, cooked and drained
- 1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
- 2 cups cream of chicken soup, or 1 (10 3/4 ounce) can cream of chicken soup + 10 3/4 ounces of water
- 3 heaping tablespoons mayonnaise
- 3/4 cup pimento pepper, chopped (large jar)
- 1 sleeve Ritz Crackers, crumbled
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º F.
- Mix the cooked noodles, cheese, cream of chicken soup (and water if using store-bought), mayonnaise, and pimentos together in a large bowl. Spread into a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, mix Ritz Crackers and melted butter until thoroughly blended. Sprinkle crackers on top of casserole.
- Bake at 350º F degrees until the cheese has melted and the top is golden brown, 30 minutes.
Notes
Storage Tips
To store. Allow the mac and cheese to cool completely. Cover well with wrap or place in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven or microwave until warmed throughout. To freeze. Let the macaroni and cheese cool completely. Cover well with freezer wrap or place in an airtight freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Then reheat in the oven or microwave until warmed throughout, and the cheese is melty.Make Ahead Southern Mac and Cheese
Prep the dish (minus the buttery cracker topping) without baking and place it into an airtight container, and store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When ready to bake, top with the cracker topping and bake as directed. To freeze the make-ahead mac and cheese, prep without baking (minus the cracker topping) and place into airtight freezer-safe containers. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight, then top with cracker topping and bake as directed. Make-Ahead:Prepare Southern Macaroni and Cheese recipe without baking and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Bake as directed for serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
My boys wanted Macaroni and Cheese today so I headed to your site to get a different recipe to try instead of the usual stovetop method I typically use. I didn’t have pimento on hand so I had to omit it, but followed the recipe and it is delicious! One of my kids scooped out a bowl before I had topped it with the crackers or even baked it! He said he would do a comparison after it was totally finished….and he wasn’t disappointed. Thank you for another delicious southern recipe.
Thank you, Kimberly. My true taste test was always if my son liked it.
Delicious! I doubled the recipe. I only had one cream of chicken so added one cream of mushroom. Also I didn’t have pimentos so I had to omit them. I added Cajun seasoning. I will try shallots instead of onion next time. This Mac and Cheese was great leftover, very creamy.
Thanks, Dana.
Yes, and it’s one of our favorites, delicious!
So glad you enjoy it! Thanks so much Charlamange!
Best Mac and Cheese ever!
So glad you enjoyed it, Debra! Thanks!
Thank you for everything 🙂 especially the notes.
I am glad you liked it, Lita! Thanks! xo
This is the best mac & cheese I had , been looking for one that stays creamy the next day ,it was even better the next day , it tast so good ,I made it for our church Christmas party every one loved it ,it was a big hit I had many request for the recipe – try it you will love it too!
Thank you so much, Barbara! I hope you have a Merry Christmas! xo
This is a great guide. I am so happy that you posted this. I have been searching for this information for a long time. Am glad that I got it! It is very simple and clear to understand. This is very informative to us readers. Keep posting such great information.
I wonder…would a cream of broccoli soup work to make this vegetarian?
Hi Jen,
Yes! Absolutely! You could also use a cream of mushroom or cream of celery would work as well. I hope you enjoy it! xo
Thank you for solving my Monday dinner ! Have a pleasant weekend !
I hope you love it! xo
This recipe was very delicious, it definitely lives upto its name. I did add a few other things, I bought roisterer chicken to use for the other recipe(chicken salad with grapes) for my husband and decided to throw in some of the extra left over pieces, and then I added more sharp cheddar on top before adding the ritz topping and oh my! my daughter loves it and she is quite picky, even my husband tried it!:o haha he said it was delicious.
Thank you so much for the recipe Robyn! I can’t wait to try more of your recipes:)