Queso Dip

Let’s just settle in and have some full blown honesty here: There is no better chip dipping snack or taco topping than queso. Full of creamy, cheesy goodness, queso, hands down, rules the kitchen. It doesn’t matter what time of day it is, I could always eat a bowl of queso that is set in front of me. I pour it on top of huevos rancheros for breakfast, dip chips in it for a snack, and slather my tacos with it for dinner. Queso is simply perfection. Now for the good news! There is nothing overly challenging about this dish. With a few ingredients, and a small amount of time, queso can quickly be whipped up, no matter what time of day you hope to use it!

Directions

1 tbsp Butter

1 tbsp Flour

1 ½ cups Whole Milk

8 oz Shredded Hot Pepper Cheese (This is different from pepper jack. It is important for this recipe that you buy the right item.)

Directions

1. Shred up a block of Hot Pepper Cheese and weigh it until 8 oz has accumulated. 

2. Melt the butter in the bottom of a small pot. Once it is melted, add in the flour and stir it constantly for 30 seconds or until the flour and butter mixture is thick and bubbly. 

3. Add in the milk and continue to stir until the milk is steaming and beginning to boil a little. This takes between 5-7 minutes. 

4. Dump in the shredded hot pepper cheese and stir until the cheese melts entirely and the sauce thickens up. This will take about 5-7 minutes. Oftentimes the cheese sauce needs to be stirred while at a low boil to truly thicken to the proper consistency.

Kitchen Tip: One of the biggest complaints most people have when making any queso recipe is that it doesn’t keep it’s sauciness when it cools off. While this queso recipe isn’t immune to this problem, the use of hot pepper cheese, which has an American cheese base, does help keep it smoother. Another technique to help it is to keep it on the burner, on the lowest temperature setting, until it is ready to serve. A layer will still form on the surface of the sauce while waiting, but this layer is easily stirred back in and melted down as long as the sauce stays on low heat. 

A snack recipe really can’t get much simpler or more delicious than queso. I hope you enjoy this recipe, as this is probably one of my favorite foods that I make. Snack away!

Want a more filling snack? Serve the queso on top of Frijoles before dipping chips into it. 

Still hungry? Mix three of my recipes to create a Chicken Taco topped with Frijoles and Queso!

Do you still have some leftover after dinner or snacking? No worries! While the queso will harden when cooled, it can be reheated over a low burner to form back into sauce and be used again the next day.