Description
Ready in under 15 minutes, this crowd-favorite appetizer is creamy, salty, savory, and filled with flavor. Serve with homemade soft pretzels or the variety of foods listed above this recipe.
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter
- 3 Tablespoons (24g) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk or half-and-half*
- 2/3 cup (160ml) beer*
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 and 1/2 cups (315g; 10 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese (see note)
Instructions
- First, make sure your cheddar cheese is freshly-shredded and ready to go. Set aside for step 4.
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk together until a thick and clumpy paste forms, about 1 minute.
- In a slow and steady stream, whisk in the milk. After it’s all added, continue whisking until it slightly thickens, about 1 minute.
- One at a time, whisk in the remaining ingredients.
- Remove the cheese dip from heat and pour into a serving dish. Sprinkle with extra cheese, if desired. The dip will be thin right off the stove, but will begin to thicken after a few minutes. It’s delicious warm or room temperature.
- Cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Heat over stovetop or in the microwave before serving again.
Notes
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Box Grater | Saucepan | Whisk
- Whole Milk: Whole milk or half-and-half is best for a thicker dip. You can use 2% or lower fat (or non dairy) milks, but keep in mind that the dip will be very thin.
- Beer: You can use your favorite. See Best Beer to Use for Beer Cheese Dip in the post above. For a non-alcoholic version, use my Spicy Nacho Cheese Sauce. You can control the spice in that cheese dip recipe.
- Cheese: I recommend cheddar cheese in this recipe, but you can use another relatively harder cheese such as pepper jack, gouda, or colby cheese. Avoid very soft cheeses. For best taste and texture, shred cheese off the block yourself with a cheese grater. Pre-shredded cheese is drier than freshly shredded. If you have extra cheese, shred a bit for garnish on top of the dip for serving.
- Spice: If you want to add spice, stir in a bit of hot sauce or cayenne pepper after the dip comes off the stove. Taste, then add more if desired.