The Tangy Dressing That Gives You The Creamiest Boxed Mac And Cheese

There are plenty of ways to elevate gooey, creamy mac and cheese. However, most of the suggestions that immediately come to mind concern the preparation of the dish, whether related to adjusting the milk to cheese ratio, adding flavor-packed ingredients like pimento cheese, or weighing the pros and cons of cooking your boxed pasta al dente. On the other hand, some tips come along every once in a while that might take you by surprise. Incorporating the tang of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing into a mac and cheese recipe may very well be one such recommendation.

Set aside any initial doubts, though. In fact, ranch dressing, dry ranch dressing mix, or powdered ranch seasoning are ingredients that can seriously upgrade the cheesy pasta dish. No matter which choice you make, all of these tangy options should be mixed into the cheese sauce along with any other seasonings before coating the cooked noodles. The added condiment adds a unique zest and richness to the dish that will keep guests glued to their spot at the table. Plus, the possibilities are endless with the potential cheese pairings to combine with ranch for extra delicious, creamy mac and cheese.

The beauty of uniting cheese and ranch is that it is extremely hard to mess up this particular pairing. Ranch, while having a very distinctive creamy, herbaceous flavor, is deliciously easy to match with different types of cheeses. You can even combine it with other mac and cheese mix-ins, from bacon to broccoli.

There are a plethora of cheeses that taste phenomenal when coupled with a bit of ranch. The most popular kind to use, by far, is the iconic cheddar cheese, which appears often in pub classics alongside ranch dressing like cheese dips and sandwiches. And while you can never go wrong with cheddar and ranch together (Hidden Valley felt so passionately about this that the brand debuted Cheezy Ranch Dressing, which incorporates real cheddar into the creamy condiment), there are more creative directions you can go with a pot of ranch-dressed mac and cheese.

More daring home cooks may opt instead for the divisive blue cheese for a more mature flavor in their dish, but there are also safer options to guarantee that the whole family will leave the dinner table with a full tummy. Parmesan and feta would also taste fantastic with the addition of tangy ranch dressing in the cheese sauce. No matter the flavor combination, adding a hint of ranch dressing to a mac and cheese dish will give it a bit of unique flavor that you can't get anywhere else.