Spicy comfort food

I don't make mac & cheese alot- I think there's something about being Asian that doesn't predispose us too much to dairy, and mac & cheese is probably not high on the list of favorites in your regular Chinese household. The SI people had a potluck today and I've been promising to make my spicy mac & cheese for the longest time. Yes, SPICY mac & cheese. I think the tangy spiciness cuts through the richness of the cheese sauce and makes it less cloying. Which is also why I use green onions instead of regular white or yellow ones. They're really fragrant and together with my secret ingredient, I think they give the whole dish a more flavorful depth than just dairy and starch.

After frying the chopped green onions in olive oil and butter, add 4 tablespoons of all-purpose flour to make the roux. I know, it looks a little suspect, but you need it to thicken the sauce later. And questionable as it sounds, it actually smelled really good because of the green onions and butter. You have to keep stirring it around so that they don't go all clumpy or burn.

This is the hardest bit for me; everything has to move really quickly because you're working with dairy and don't want things to mess up and go yeeky and gooey in the wrong way. Add the milk to the roux and stir it gently so that the roux gets incorporated. You want to heat the milk but not boil it. Once you see the milk beginning to get really hot (but not bubbling), add in the cheese bit by bit, and stir while you're at it so you don't get clumps. Add the sambal oelek now, as well as salt and pepper. I add the sambal oelek to taste or at least until the sauce turns a pretty salmon pink (the color of cooked salmon, not raw). For the cheese, I suppose you could be traditional and stick to just sharp cheddar, but I use shredded mixed cheese (monterey jack, cheddar and mozarella). I like the more varied taste to the sauce and it also doesn't look all Agent Orange... When I was home and made this for my sisters, I used a mix of gruyere, swiss and fontina. But only if you and your wallet are feeling a little indulgent...

Once the cheese has all melted, incorporate into your dish of cooked pasta. I used mini-penne (pennette), but anything tubey works, like regular elbow macaroni or cavatappi. Then top with more of the shredded cheese you used in the sauce, a generous sprinkling of grated parmesan (I didn't use it in the sauce because it can be a little overpowering, but perfect as a crust), and breadcrumbs for that toasty crunch.

After 30 minutes in a 375F oven, it should come out all golden and bubbly. The house smelled so delicious, you almost couldn't believe it's really at the end of the day a simple dish of cheese and noodles. It was really hot though and the fact that I used a 15 x 10 Pyrex baking dish (meaning the whole thing- with pasta and cheese- probably weighed about 8 pounds) made it really hard to handle. But we survived and got it to Rick and Emilee's safely with the help of two sections (yes, you're reading right, two whole sections) of the New York Times, and even then I could feel the heat through my hands...

All in all, I think Serene's Spicy Mac 'n Cheese went down well. It duly fed about 20 people, wasn't too spicy to scare people off, but enough bite to keep them coming back for seconds.

Like I said, I don't make mac 'n cheese often; but when I do, I try my best. I'm glad people enjoyed it as much as I had fun making it :)