Eat it. · PickleRadio

Pickle macaroni and cheese

Name: Pickle macaroni and cheese
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 35 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 250 g dried macaroni; 30 g butter; 30 g plain flour; 500 ml milk; 180 g mature cheddar, grated; 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard; 120 g drained dill pickles, finely diced; ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper; 35 g dry breadcrumbs; 1 teaspoon olive oil; ½ teaspoon fine salt for the pasta water

A cheddar macaroni bake with finely diced pickles and a crisp breadcrumb lid. Add the pickles after the sauce is smooth.

By PickleRadio editorialUpdated 18 September 2026

Jump to recipe

Baked macaroni in cheddar sauce with small pickle pieces and a golden breadcrumb topping

In this guide4 sections

Use small pickle pieces in the sauce

The pickle should turn up between the macaroni rather than dominate an entire forkful. Dice it small and drain it well, then fold it into a finished cheddar sauce. A breadcrumb top gives the dish some crunch without requiring extra cheese on every surface.

A shallow baking dish of about 2 litres suits this quantity. Grate the cheddar and measure the milk before beginning the sauce. Once the butter and flour are in the pan, keep the spoon moving; having the milk beside you makes that much easier.

Yield: 4 servings. Prep time: 15 minutes. Cook time: 35 minutes.

Ingredients

250 g dried macaroni
30 g butter
30 g plain flour
500 ml milk
180 g mature cheddar, grated
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
120 g drained dill pickles, finely diced
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
35 g dry breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon olive oil
½ teaspoon fine salt for the pasta water

Method

Heat the oven to 200°C conventional or 180°C fan. Boil the macaroni in a large pan of water with the salt, stopping 2 minutes before the packet’s full cooking time. Drain well.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly, until it forms a smooth paste.
Keep stirring until the butter and flour form a smooth paste.
Add the milk gradually, whisking each addition smooth before adding more. Bring to a gentle simmer and stir for 3 to 4 minutes, until the sauce coats a spoon.
Whisk each addition smooth before adding more milk.
Take the sauce off the heat. Stir in the cheddar, mustard and pepper until the cheese melts. Blot the pickles dry and fold them into the sauce with the drained macaroni.
Fold the drained macaroni and dry pickle pieces into the sauce off the heat.
Transfer to the baking dish. Mix the breadcrumbs with the oil and scatter evenly over the top. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, until the edges bubble and the topping is golden. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

A loose sauce goes into the oven

The pasta continues taking up liquid during baking. Before the dish goes in, the sauce should move readily around the macaroni. If you have accidentally reduced it until thick and stiff, loosen it with a small splash of milk and stir thoroughly.

Cheese is easier to melt into the sauce after the pan leaves the heat. Avoid boiling the finished cheese sauce hard; keep the final oven bake just long enough to heat the dish and colour its top. A shallow dish gives more topping per serving than a deep one.

If you would rather use the oven for a crisp base, make pickle pizza. The potato and pickle frittata is another shared dinner. Browse the recipe library by the meal you need.