Enhance Your Mac and Cheese with These 2 Mexican-Inspired Ingredients

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Besides being rich, creamy, and delicious, one allure found in the best decadent mac and cheese recipes is customizability. In fact, to make an easy, Mexican-inspired mac and cheese, all you need to add is two ingredients: taco seasoning and jalapeño-flavored evaporated milk. “So it depends on the flavor, but taco seasoning and the jalapeño evaporated milk would actually go really well with a taco-inspired mac and cheese,” chef and cookbook author, Tineke (Tini) Younger told Tasting Table, referencing her new collaboration with Nestlé Carnation, Kickin’ Jalapeño Flavored Evaporated Milk.

After her time on “Next Level Chef,” the 23-year-old became further known for her viral TikTok mac and cheese recipe. In the recipe, Younger uses evaporated milk, a more concentrated, canned form of milk, to make a super creamy mac and cheese with spiraled cavatappi noodles. To make the dish with a Mexican-inspired twist, all you need to do is add a tablespoon or two of taco seasoning with the spice blend of smoked paprika, garlic, salt, and pepper that Younger “blooms” in butter before making a flour-based roux. Then, just add in a can of jalapeño flavored evaporated milk with the 2 cups of heavy cream in the recipe and mix in the cheese. The result: A smoky cheese sauce with a spicy hint, reminiscent of your favorite taco variations.

While you can certainly keep your Mexican-inspired mac simple by adding taco seasoning and jalapeño evaporated milk, you can also get creative and adjust the taste to your liking. In her video, Younger says that she doesn’t measure the seasonings, “so if you’re unsure just start with a teaspoon and taste the cheese sauce as you go.” If you don’t have taco seasoning on hand, you can easily make your own taco seasoning blend by adding cumin and chili powder to the existing spices in the recipe. And if you can’t find jalapeño evaporated milk in stores or online, make your own spicy milk by steeping chopped jalapeños in evaporated milk on the stovetop.

Then, feel free to expand on the flavor with more of your favorite Mexican-inspired ingredients. Once you’ve added the cooked pasta to the cheese sauce, transfer the mac to a baking dish. At this point, mix in or top the mac with cooked taco proteins like carne asada, carnitas, or beef birria. Or give your mac and cheese a Tex-Mex twist by adding beef brisket. When all is said and done, add chopped fresh or canned jalapeños to the top of the dish as a piquant touch before baking it in the oven until nice and crisp. Before serving your Mexican-inspired mac and cheese, garnish your mac with chopped cilantro.