Smoked Mac and Cheese
On May 30, 2023 (Updated July 24, 2023)
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Smoked mac and cheese is comfort food in a cast iron skillet. This mac and cheese is creamy, rich, and topped with a crisp panko topping. It’s rounded out with the perfect kiss of smoke flavor from being baked in a backyard smoker.
Smoked Mac and Cheese
A good mac and cheese can make or break your perfect backyard BBQ meal, so I have spent years perfecting and refining my recipe. I’ve tried different cheeses, milks, cream, toppings, and more to come up with the perfect blend of flavors and textures. Each ingredient plays an important role, especially in this smoked mac and cheese recipe. You need to be able to taste the smoke without it overwhelming the subtle notes of the cheese and pasta underneath.
After much trial and error, I’ve put all of my tips and info into this recipe for you to enjoy!
If you’ve been using a smoker for a while, you know that porous, wet, or soft items take on smoke really quickly. That is great news if you want to whip up this smoked macaroni and cheese as a side dish for something like a smoked brisket or pork shoulder. You can pull off your big meats to let them rest for an hour and get your mac and cheese right into the smoker without having to preheat your grill.
How to Make Smoked Mac and Cheese
Alright, enough talk about how tasty this dish is; let’s get to the process. Here’s how to make the best smoked mac and cheese of your life.
- Preheat and cook the noodles. Preheat the smoker to 225 degrees F and prepare the noodles according to the packaging. Cook until the noodles are al dente.
- Make a roux. Melt butter in a 12-inch cast iron skillet and add flour to make a roux. Next, whisk in the mustard powder.
- Finish making the sauce. Add in the half-and-half then the cream cheese. Finish up by adding the cheddar and gouda cheese and stir until melted.
- Combine noodles and sauce. Add the cooked noodles to the cheese sauce and stir to combine.
- Make the crumb topping. Mix melted butter, Hey Grill Hey Sweet Rub, and panko bread crumbs together in a bowl. Sprinkle over the top of the mac and cheese.
- Smoke. Place the mac and cheese on the smoker, close the lid, and smoke for 1 hour.
- Enjoy. Remove the smoked mac and cheese from the smoker and serve while nice and warm.
How Long to Smoke Mac and Cheese
It takes approximately 1 hour to smoke mac and cheese. If you prefer your mac with a very smoky flavor, you can leave it in the smoke for up to 2 hours.
Keep in mind that this will take on quite a bit of smoky flavor fairly quickly. I always recommend starting your mac and cheese in the smoker for a shorter amount of time and increasing the next time if you decide you’d like more smokiness.
Tips for the BEST Smoked Mac and Cheese
Now that you’re ready to make this smoked mac and cheese, here are a few tips to keep in mind before you dive into the process.
- Use cast iron. A 12-inch cast iron skillet will go from stovetop to smoker to the dinner table without too much hassle or too many dishes. Plus, it will give you plenty of surface area for your mac and cheese to take on smoke.
- Keep your smoker temperatures low. Anything over 225 degrees F will overcook your noodles and make your mac and cheese dry.
- Use a mild wood. I recommend lighter woods like cherry, apple, maple, or pecan for this recipe.
- Feel free to mix it up! This mac and cheese is a great base for other flavor additions like bacon, green chiles, lobster, or pulled pork. Get creative! My favorite thing to do is add my Hey Grill Hey Sweet Rub to the panko topping for that classic BBQ flavor.
More Mac and Cheese Recipes
If you like this mac and cheese recipe, I’m betting you’ll love these other smoked mac and cheese recipes from Hey Grill Hey.
Smoked Mac and Cheese Recipe
Watch the video below in the recipe card, and I’ll show you step-by-step how I make this smoked mac and cheese recipe at home. You can find more of my smoking and grilling recipe videos on YouTube, Instagram, or our Facebook Page. Follow along and let’s make awesome food together!
This post was originally published in April 2019. We recently updated it with more information and helpful tips. The recipe remains the same.
Smoked Mac and Cheese
Video
Equipment
- 1 Smoker I highly recommend this pellet grill!
Ingredients
- 1 pound elbow macaroni noodles cooked according to package instructions
- ½ cup butter
- 4 Tablespoons flour
- 1 Tablespoon mustard powder
- 2 cups half and half
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 3 cups cheddar cheese
- 1 ½ cups gouda cheese
Breadcrumb Topping
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- ¼ cup butter
- 2 Tablespoons Hey Grill Hey Sweet Rub
Instructions
- Cook the noodles. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the macaroni noodles until they are al dente, meaning they still have a bit of chew and texture (not too soft).
- Preheat. Preheat your smoker to 225 degrees F using a mild hardwood. My favorite is cherry or apple.
- Make a roux. Heat a 12-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat. Melt 1/2 cup of butter and then whisk in the flour until a smooth, thin paste forms. Next, whisk in the mustard powder.
- Finish making the sauce. Carefully pour in the half and half and bring the sauce up to a boil while whisking. Reduce the heat and whisk in the cream cheese until smooth. Lastly, whisk in the cheddar cheese and gouda cheese and stir until melted.
- Add the noodles. Turn off the heat and pour in the cooked macaroni noodles. Stir gently until the noodles are coated by the cheese sauce.
- Make the breadcrumb topping. Combine the melted butter, sweet rub, and panko bread crumbs in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the top of the mac and cheese.
- Smoke. Place the skillet in the smoker, close the lid, and smoke for 1 hour. You can smoke for up to 2 hours if you want a stronger smoker flavor, but the noodles will take on quite a bit of smoke fairly quickly.
- Enjoy. Remove the smoked mac and cheese from the smoker. Serve it while it is still warm and the cheese is nice and melty!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I was smoking ribs yesterday and needed a side dish; on a whim I looked up “smoked mac and cheese” and tried this one.
I cheated somewhat by using box mac ‘n cheese and used McCormick’s Sweet and Smoky rub instead of making it from scratch. I waited a while before adding the topping; just smoked the pasta & stirred it a few times.
My 7 year old thought it was too spicy (not unusual), the 10 year old said it’s the best mac ‘n cheese she’d ever tasted. I thought it was awesome, and it was definitely easy to make. It’s going in the arsenal long term.
Recipe calls for 1/2 cup of butter. Isn’t supposed to be 1/2 of stick to make the roux ratio correct?
The video looks like she is using 1/2 stick, which is what I would think would be proper. Did you make this? If so, what quantity did you use?
I had to improvise with items on hand. I made approximately a half batch using 4% milk, sharp cheddar, Velveeta, Havarti, cream cheese along with the rest of the recipe. It was really good!! Your recipes and techniques never disappoint. Thank you!
Really liked the recipe. Didn’t use all the noodles it said so it was creamy which was good. Taste was a bit bland so I think adding the green chili’s or bacon would be a great idea to add in some extra flavor. Overall though very happy with it.
Great recipe! I enjoy smoking mac and cheese and it is a dish you can definitely play around with. Try different cheeses: 1lb Sharp Cheddar with 1/4 lb Monteary Jack and 1/2 lb Taleggio or Gruyere. Once the roux is done and have brought the half and half to a light boil, mix in the cheese, then once the cheese sauce is made, mix in the 16 ounces of noodles. Finally add 1 cup of mayo and 1 cup of sour cream and mix. Once mixed, put on the smoker. I use a dutch oven, keep the lid off, and place on the smoker. I usually use a fruit wood blend at 300 – 325 degrees of indirect heat for 1 hour.
Regardless… HeyGrillHey, this is a great recipe!
Thank you so much!
I am going to be trying this tomorrow, I couldn’t tell in the video but I assume you were doing indirect heating in your smoker?
Yes!
Last night was the second time that I made this. The first time, it was delicious, but a little dry. I think that I left it in the smoker for too long or at too high a temperature. Last night, I only left it in for almost an hour and I backed the pellet grill down to 160 degrees. Not too dry at all, but still had a smokey flavor.
The first time, I didn’t mess with the recipe. The second, I added a can of green chilies. That was not enough and I could barely taste them. Next time, I will add at least a couple of cans.
Also, I intend to make this by adding jalapenos and bacon (maybe even at the same time.) It’s a lot of mac and cheese so it will need a lot of additives.
Regardless, a great dish and pretty easy to pull off.
Any suggestions on how to make the sauce more creamy? Everyone liked the taste, but wished that the sauce was a little creamier (sorry, but they are used to the sauce that comes with Kraft Mac-N-Cheese box). Should I add more butter or add a little oil? Any suggestions are appreciated.
After making it a couple a times and adding more half and half (or milk and heavy cream,) I measure how much extra I was adding.
On top of the 2 cups of half and half listed in the recipe, I added another 2 cups. It tasted richer when using the milk/heavy cream combo for the extra 2 cups.
We also mix in cooked bacon pieces, and put a little extra sweet rub on top. Delicious!!
Everybody that had it loved it and said it was the best mac and cheese they ever had. I thought it was a little rich I didn’t know if there was a way to maybe not make it so rich or what you would recommend substituting for it if anything?
I replaced the half & half cream by soy cream. It was really good, less rich and had the expected texture.
This turned out perfectly..!! I used several casserole dishes in the smoker instead of one cast iron skillet (which I don’t have) My family and office staff thank you in advance.???? Just Yum..!!
If I cut the recipe in half should I cut the smoke time in half
The smoke time is more about the flavor imparted to the noodles rather than cooking. I’d stick with an hour but that’s totally up to you.