Foodie Friday: Thai Curry Mac ‘n’ Cheese

When making this dish I realized that this is the first time Linz or I have featured mac ‘n’ cheese for Foodie Friday, I found this quite shocking. Variations on this classic cheesy noodle dish seem inevitable and I am surprised it has taken us 2 years to whip one up. My Aunt Stephanie helped me to re-create our own version of this dish from Aarti Sequeira of the Food Network.

Ingredients

Mac ‘n’ Cheese
-Kosher salt
-1 pound elbow macaroni
-5 tablespoons butter
-5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
-4-ounce jar of Thai curry paste
-5 cups whole milk
-1 cup Pepper Jack cheese, grated
-1 cup Cheddar cheese, grated
-1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
-2 teaspoons red pepper flakes

Crumb Topping:
-3/4 Panko bread crumb
-2 tablespoons butter, melted
-Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
-1 tablespoon sweet ginger garlic seasoning
-2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Directions

Mac ‘n’ Cheese
1. Cook macaroni according to directions.
2. Melt butter in sauce pan. Add flour and whisk for 1 minute until mixture thickens and begins to brown.
3. Add in Thai curry paste, whisk until mixed. Whisk continually while adding in milk and bringing to boil. Lower temperature and allow mixture to simmer until thickened, stirring as needed for about 5 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and add cheese. Stir to combine. Add cooked pasta.

Crumb Topping

1. Combine bread crumbs with melted butter and seasonings.
2. Put macaroni in broiler safe dish, top with crumb mixture. Sprinkle with parsley. Leave in for about 1 minute.