Slow cooker mac and cheese garnished with paprika in a round white bowl next to a spoon with cheddar cheese on a bamboo board behind next to a white and grey towel all on a wooden surface (with logo overlay)

Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese

Use real ingredients to make simple creamy slow cooker mac and cheese dinner. No pre-cooking required, just dump and set!

Jump to Recipe

Ok, so who didn’t grow up on macaroni and cheese? Everyone I know had this staple at their house. We often made it if my sister or I had friends over. We all ate it and it was quick and easy. Of course, that was the prepackaged boxed mac and cheese. Now, my favorite is delicious homemade slow cooker mac and cheese.

There was always the debate of which was better between Velveeta and Kraft. Personally, I only like the Velveeta because I never wanted the taste of the Kraft cheese or the elbow noodles they had. I prefer the shell-shaped noodles.

Velveeta cheese began to taste fake to me as I got older and started cooking more often. Don’t worry, I will still chow down on some Velveeta cheese when it’s in something like my Chili Nacho Dip. But overall, I prefer the real stuff.

When we wanted to make mac and cheese for dinner, I decided we needed to try something a little different. We’ve been trying to cook with real foods and more nutritious foods than that fake cheese product. I scoured through a few recipes I found online and took the best ideas from each to make my own.

One common factor in so many of the recipes is to use the slow cooker. Which of course I love because it makes dinner that much easier! For most of the recipes, the noodles didn’t even have to be cooked ahead of time. Just dump everything in the slow cooker, turn it on, and you have dinner in a couple of hours!

Since most mac and cheese is made with elbow noodles, I did that to start with. Next time I may try to buy the mini shell noodles since I usually prefer those as I mentioned. But the elbow noodles still worked pretty well in this recipe.

Step by Step

This recipe couldn’t be more straightforward. I use noodles (whichever shape you prefer), milk, half and half (to make it a little creamy), cream cheese (to get the right texture), cheddar cheese, salt and pepper, paprika, mustard (sounds strange but adds some tang), and butter.

Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese ingredients: Stainless steel bowls with shredded cheddar cheese, mustard, cream cheese, butter, macaroni noodles, and seasonings next to measuring cups of milk and half-and-half with a slow cooker behind all on a wooden surface

Dump all of the ingredients into the slow cooker.

All ingredients for slow cooker mac and cheese placed in the slow cooker sitting on a wooden surface

Stir up the ingredients, then set the slow cooker to low for about 90 minutes. Check if the noodles are soft and the cheese completely melted. Mine took just over two hours.

Slow cooker mac and cheese ingredients mixed in the slow cooker sitting on a wooden surface

Once everything is warmed through, and noodles are cooked, stir gently and serve warm.

Slow cooker mac and cheese garnished with paprika in a round white bowl next to a spoon with cheddar cheese on a bamboo board behind next to a white and grey towel all on a wooden surface (vertical)

Recipe

Originally Published On: April 3, 2019

Last Updated On: November 26, 2019

Slow cooker mac and cheese garnished with paprika in a round white bowl next to a spoon with cheddar cheese on a bamboo board behind next to a white and grey towel all on a wooden surface

Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese

Use real ingredients to make simple creamy slow cooker mac and cheese dinner. No pre-cooking required, just dump and set!
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 5 minutes
Course:
Main Dish
Cuisine:
American
Keyword:
cheese
|
cream cheese
|
macaroni
|
slow cooker
Servings: 6 cups
5 from 6 votes

Ingredients

  • 8 oz macaroni noodles (uncooked)
  • 2 cups milk
  • 4 oz half and half
  • 2 oz cream cheese
  • 2 cups cheddar cheese (shredded)
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3/4 tsp pepper
  • 1/4 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp yellow mustard
  • 4 tbsp butter

Recommended Equipment

Instructions

  • Add all ingredients to a slow cooker and stir
  • Cook on low for 90 minutes and check doneness of noodles
  • If noodles aren't done, continue cooking for another 30 minutes on high
  • Stir gently and serve warm garnished with paprika
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Nutrition Facts
Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese
Amount Per Serving (1 cup)
Calories 494 Calories from Fat 261
% Daily Value*
Fat 29g45%
Saturated Fat 18g90%
Cholesterol 90mg30%
Sodium 513mg21%
Potassium 359mg10%
Carbohydrates 36g12%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 9g10%
Protein 20g40%
Vitamin A 990IU20%
Vitamin C 1.1mg1%
Calcium 485mg49%
Iron 0.9mg5%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutrition content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.

36 thoughts on “Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese”

  1. 5 stars
    My husband whipped out the slow cooker last night and said, WE ARE USING THIS MORE — so he made some chicken which was decent (although nothing like my delicious salmon, LOL)…. That being said, um, THANK YOU FOR THIS RECIPE! Never even thought Mac & Cheese could work in the slow cooker!!! I am going to show him this and he would totally JUMP IN the slow cooker with the mac & cheese, LOL!

  2. This is a good looking creamy mac and cheese. I have never used evaporated milk and with the cream cheese in it that seals the deal of deliciousness. It would be convenient to just use a slower cooker and be done. I can’t wait to try it.

  3. I have never had Velveeta mac and cheese and now when I go out next I kinda want to grad some to compare. Whenever I make homemade though I tend to use shell noodles instead of macaroni. I love that you have paprika and yellow mustard in your recipe. Those are my two favorites to add when making it at home.

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