Elevated Mac & Cheese: Putting The Heat Lab Twist On An Old Favourite
H.Mead, A. Bussey
Abstract
Aerators, infusions and smoke guns are all good and well, but research shows that the average adult spends less than 30 minutes preparing their evening meal -- less if they’re working late or trying to do something productive with their evening.
That’s barely enough time to knock up a semi-satisfying stir fry. Never mind concocting a culinary masterpiece ala Heston Blumental
Don’t resign yourself to mediocre mid-week meals just yet though. Extensive experimentation reveals that it’s surprisingly easy to create a properly punchy and incredibly satisfying mac and cheese in the 30 minutes most adults dedicate to the cooking process.
In fact, our research shows that a few subtle tweaks - carefully calibrated to maximise flavour - can elevate and enhance a staple comfort food: Turning it into a centrepiece that’ll satiate your need for comforting food, and cement your reputation as a top-tier chef, capable of pushing the envelope without turning to fancy gadgets, fluid gels or laboratory-grade equipment.
Rather than force you to slog through an essay about the creation process, or skim-read an essay about the mechanism by which garlic enhances flavours, we’re simply going to provide you with a brief overview of our favourite mac and cheese experiment: Walking you through the ingredients and method, explaining what you can expect from the finished dish, and covering off some key talking points after you’ve got all the information needed to duplicate our work.
Note: You’ll spy a couple of unusual ingredients in the materials and methods section of this paper. We explain why we’ve used these later in the process, but if you’re skipping straight to the cook, know that these are the key to elevating a mac and cheese. You can trust us. We are scientists.
Materials and Methods
Ingredients:
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75g butter
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50g gluten-free (GF) flour
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200mL milk
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50mL The Heat Lab Roasted Garlic Hot Sauce
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100g chorizo
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100g macaroni pasta
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300g strong cheddar cheese
Procedure:
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Melt the butter over low heat.
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Once fully melted, slowly introduce the flour, stirring continuously.
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In a separate pan, heat the milk until lukewarm.
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Gradually incorporate the warm milk into the butter/flour mixture while stirring to form a thickened sauce base.
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Once homogenous, add the cheddar cheese and gently stir until the cheese has melted.
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bring a pot of water to a rolling boil, add salt, and cook the macaroni until al dente, about 7-8 minutes.
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Dice the chorizo and sauté over low-medium heat until the oils are released and the edges crisp.
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Combine the cheese sauce, macaroni, and sautéed chorizo in a glass mixing bowl.
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Add The Heat Lab Roasted Garlic Hot Sauce and stir thoroughly to ensure even distribution.
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Transfer the mixture into an oven-safe dish and bake at 180°C (356°F) for 15-20 minutes or until the top achieves a golden crust.
Results
There are a few things to note here: First, the chorizo added in step 7 is transformative. The spices used to cure this traditional Spanish sausage are fat soluble, which means that they dissolve in and are best dispersed by fat. As the chorizo is sautéd at a low heat, the fat begins to render out, and provides a perfect vehicle for those all-important volatile organic compounds.
When added to your mac and cheese dish, these rich and flavourful compounds will add layers of flavour that would normally take hours to achieve.
Crisping the edges also helps via something called the Maillard reaction. This is where amino acids and sugars in the meat react in the presence of heat, forming compounds called melanoidins which add an additional layer of complexity. This process is often confused with caramelisation, but it’s a distinct reaction and one that definitely helps to elevate your mac and cheese to restaurant levels.
You’ll also note that garlic plays a starring role in this recipe. While raw garlic flavours are generally astringent and unpleasant, roasted or confit garlic has a completely different flavour profile. Slow cooking breaks down allicin, the sulfur compound responsible for the raw garlic's strong smell and taste, and mellows the overall flavor. Again, the maillard reaction and caramelisation also play a part, and the end result is a deep and complex flavour profile that’s really key to the success of this dish.
Obviously slow-roasting or confiting garlic is completely out of the question when trying to cook a week-night meal, but that’s ok because our own Roasted Garlic Hot Sauce is structured around, and designed to emphasise, those same flavour notes.
There’s another scientific benefit to adding hot sauce to your mac and cheese too: Traditionally, it’s contrast and balance that are thought to make dishes truly mindblowing, and the best way to contrast or play off a rich and creamy sauce is with fierce, peppery flavours that activate your taste buds and release endorphins.
Conclusion
We think this is a simple but effective way to elevate a week-night staple -- turning it into something truly tantalising. Ready in less time than most ready-meals, it’s filling, flavourful and versatile. Serve it as a main, as part of a party spread or as a side at your next BBQ.
Note: We’re always interested in receiving feedback from the community - scientific or otherwise. If you repeat this experiment, please consider sharing your results with the Heat Lab. We’re on Instagram @, and …
Conflicts Of Interest
This is a fun mac and cheese recipe. Not an actual scientific paper. That said, it’d be disingenuous of us not to disclose that one of the authors of this paper concocted the Heat Lab’s Roasted Garlic Hot Sauce. We’re still right to incorporate it in our recipe though. It’s a kick-ass hot sauce.
References
1. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1085302/time-spent-cooking-weeknight-in-the-uk/