Skip the boxed mac and cheese and make your own in under 30 minutes. Our homemade mac and cheese recipe is just as cheesy as the boxed version and calls for just six inexpensive ingredients that you may already have on hand. We kept the classic elbow noodles but you can substitute any pasta shape you have on hand.

To create the sauce, start off by melting butter and adding an equal amount of flour. This mixture is called a roux and is often used to thicken sauces and soups. You'll want to cook this for a minute or two to remove the raw flour taste. From there, add the milk all at once and quickly stir to help remove any lumps. Next comes the best part: the cheese! To mimic the texture and flavor of packaged macaroni and cheese dinners, our Test Kitchen opted for processed American cheese. You could also use cheddar or Monterey jack cheese. Any good melting cheese would work in this recipe.

This is the best mac and cheese recipe to make for a quick weeknight side dish or kid-friendly lunch. It's best served just after making as it can thicken as it sits. To thin the homemade mac and cheese sauce, add a bit more milk and stir. Try spicing up your bowl with pickled jalapeno peppers, crumbled bacon, or hot sauce. Our recipe testers also loved the dish with a drizzle of buffalo sauce and sliced green onions. This easy mac and cheese recipe is endlessly customizable.