Thai Red Curry Mac 'n' Cheese

Thai Red Curry Mac 'n' Cheese
Recipe courtesy Aarti Sequeira

Prep Time:20 min
Inactive Prep Time: --
Cook Time:15 min
Level: Easy
Serves: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients
Mac 'n' Cheese:

Kosher salt
1 pound elbow macaroni
5 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 (4-ounce) jar Thai red curry paste
2 cups whole milk
2 cups cream (alternatively, use 5 cups whole milk instead of both milk and cream)
8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, grated
8 ounces Cheddar cheese, grated

Crumb Topping:

3/4 cup panko bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions
For the mac 'n' cheese: Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Salt generously, and then add the pasta and cook to box instructions, usually 6 to 7 minutes. Drain.

In another large pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Whisk in the flour and continue whisking until it deepens in color and releases a light toasted aroma, about 1 minute.

Whisk in the Thai red curry paste, and when fully combined, pour in the milk and cream (or all milk, if using). Bring to a boil, whisking constantly, and then turn down to a simmer. Simmer until the mixture thickens, whisking occasionally, about 5 minutes.

Off heat, whisk in the cheeses and stir until melted. Add the pasta and toss to combine.

Turn your broiler on.

For the crumb topping: Toss the panko with the melted butter and season with salt and pepper.

To assemble: Pour the mac 'n' cheese into a broiler-safe casserole dish, sprinkle with the bread crumb mixture, and broil until browned, about 1 minute.

Notes from cooking:
A bit pasty for my taste. In looking at other recipes I think it would be nicer to try the ones that are baked with milk and not a flour based cheese sauce. The curry was a good idea but too overpowering. I used authentic curry paste and it was too strong - overpowered the cheese flavor. Need to cut the curry by at least a 1/4. If using the grocery store variety it might not be too bad. The recipe would have been improved by baking in the oven for a while before broiling the top crumbs on top. Reviews on the website suggested using less cream, some used half and half. This might improve it as well. Too much cheese sauce in relation to the pasta. A pound and a half of pasta might have been a bit better.