Use This Rule For The Perfectly Melty Cheese Sauce

We all love a good cheese sauce. Who wouldn't? Even dairy-free folks will sometimes cheat for some savory, cheesy goodness. But if you've been stirring up the same cheese sauce for your pastas, veggies, or whichever meal is in need of a little extra decadence, it might be time to invest in some new tips. Take your signature sauce to a whole new level by making it the meltiest it could possibly be.

Let's start with the basics of making a cheese sauce from scratch — there are a lot of ways to do this, but arguably the best way is to start by making a béchamel, which is a combination of flour, butter, and milk. And for those understandably questioning the difference between a roux and a béchamel, a roux is equal parts flour and melted butter, and a béchamel is once milk is added to the mix (via Bon Appétit). Once you've got a good béchamel going, you can start adding in your cheeses to create your cheese sauce.

There might be a few different reasons why your cheese sauce isn't coming out the way you'd hoped. Our thinking? You're not using the best combination of cheeses. In fact, you might have only been using one type of cheese, which is the likeliest cause for your less-than-perfect sauce. According to Spruce Eats, your best bet is to combine younger cheeses that melt well (but might not have the strongest flavors) and older cheeses with more developed flavor profiles but with less melt-ability. 

The outlet recommends using two parts monterey jack and one part cheddar. And of course, you'll want to make sure that whatever cheeses you decide to use are finely shredded or grated. Smaller cheese pieces have less surface area to cover when cooking, so they melt much, much faster. A high-quality cheese grater or microplane can help you get perfectly shredded cheese every time.