This Cheese Sauce is creamy, smooth, and silky! Made in just 15 minutes with cheddar, half and half, cornstarch, and butter, this sauce is perfect over steamed broccoli, in pasta, as a base for soups, or with fries.
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Why This Recipe Works
How do you turn steamed broccoli into a dish that disappears from everyones' plates? You serve it with cheese sauce. And not just any sauce. Definitely not store-bought stuff. This cheese sauce is made from scratch and ready in under 15 minutes. You make it once, and become a fan instantly!
If you ever tried any of my sauce recipes, you know my favorite duo of ingredients: cornstarch and half and half. Together they make smoothers, rich and creamy sauces ever! This also makes this dish gluten-free since we are making the sauce without flour.
Ingredients:
- cheese: I used mild and sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated
- butter: unsalted, divided
- half and half: better for making sauces than milk but lighter than heavy cream
- cornstarch: better for making smooth sauces than flour
- salt and pepper: to taste (add a pinch of cayenne for heat)
- broccoli: fresh, cut into florets (follow my easy tutorial on how to steam broccoli)
How to make cheese sauce for broccoli?
- Start by whisking half and half with cornstarch.
- Melt two tablespoons of butter in a small saucepan.
- Add half and half mixture, ¼ cup at a time. Whisk constantly.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes. This will allow the cornstarch flavor to melt away.
- Add shredded cheese to half and half mixture. Stir in until melted.
- Remove sauce from heat and add the last tablespoon of butter. Stir in to melt. Season sauce with salt and pepper.
- The sauce is now ready to be served.
Best tips for making cheese sauce!
- Use cheddar from a block and grate it on a large hole side of a box grater; store-bought shredded cheese is coated with starch to prevent clumping and it will add chalky flavor to the sauce.
- Half and half is a mixture of milk and cream and it's my favorite liquid for making creamy sauces.
- Butter base makes the sauce rich but stirring one tablespoon of it into a ready sauce adds to the silky texture.
- I used a 1-quart saucepan to make this sauce and it was a perfect size.
How to serve it?
The most popular way to serve the cheese sauce is with broccoli, but baked potatoes and pretzels are right there too! We enjoy it for dipping fries and drizzle over burgers. This sauce, just like cheese, goes so well with many dishes, like casseroles and soups.
Recipe FAQs:
There is no flour in this sauce so yes, it is gluten-free. Always make sure you are using quality ingredients, according to your cooking preferences.
I do not recommend freezing this sauce. It will separate and once you thaw it, the texture will be gritty, not smooth.
Prepared cheese sauce should be stored in a container with a lid, in the fridge. It will stay well for 4 days. I do not recommend freezing this sauce. The texture will become grainy.
To reheat the sauce, pour it into a saucepan and heat up over low heat. Stir often so it will not burn on the bottom.
More sauce recipes:
If you like this recipe and make it, let me know in the comments below! Don't forget to rate it if you enjoyed it!
Best Cheese Sauce for Broccoli
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
- 1 ¼ cup half and half see note
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 cups freshly grated cheddar cheese
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- a pinch of cayenne optional
Instructions
- In a glass measuring cup, whisk half and half and cornstarch. Mix well until there are no clumps.
- Shredd the cheddar on a large-hole size of a box grater. Set aside.
- In a small saucepan (I used 1-quart stainless steel saucepan), melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat.
- Pour half and half into melted butter, slowly drizzling it in and whisking at the same time. Stop once in a while to let the sauce thicken a little bit.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook, whisking often, for 2 to 3 minutes. This will cook off the starch flavor.
- Add cheddar cheese to half and half mixture and stir in until melted. The sauce should thicken nicely right away.
- Add the last tablespoon of butter to the sauce and stir until melted. This will enhance the silky texture.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Your sauce is now ready to be served.
Notes
- Use block cheddar cheese and shredded yourself. Store-bought shredded cheese is coated with starch to prevent clumping and it will add chalky flavor to the sauce.
- Half and half is a mixture of milk and cream and it’s my favorite liquid for making creamy sauces.
- I used a 1-quart saucepan to make this sauce and it was a perfect size.
- Store this sauce in a fridge for up to 4 days.
- Reheat in a saucepan over low heat.
- Please note, that the nutrition value can vary depending on what product you use. The information below is an estimate. Always use calorie counter you are familiar with.
Jamie says
Never knew I could do this without velveeta. Turned out very tasty!
Anna says
Yay! Thank you for making my recipe, Jamie!
Larry Dawdy says
Can this sauce be frozen for later use or frozen in small meal size portions?
Anna says
Hi Larry! Information about freezing is included in the post above the recipe.