Grilled Mac and Cheese

These pork burritos are fantastic! After making some adjustments to my Aunt Pennie’s original recipe, I now make this dish whenever friends come over for supper. One batch of filling usually yields 20 to 24 burritos for me. Add lettuce, tomatoes, green onions, sour cream, salsa, avocados, black olives, and additional Cheddar cheese to the dish before serving.

Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 1 hr 10 mins
Total Time: 1 hr 25 mins
Servings: 8
Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

  1. 1 (16 ounce) package elbow macaroni
  2. 1 pound bacon, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
  3. 3 large onions, minced
  4. 4 cloves garlic, minced
  5. 1 quart whole milk
  6. ½ (8 ounce) package cream cheese
  7. 4 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided
  8. ½ (6 ounce) package fish-shaped cheese crackers (such as Goldfish®)

Instructions

  1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook elbow macaroni in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain and set aside.
  2. Set up an outdoor grill for indirect cooking over medium heat. For charcoal, use coals on one side of the grill. For gas, shut off one side of the grill.
  3. Place an 8-quart cast iron Dutch oven over the hot side of the grill. Add bacon; cook and stir until it renders its fat, but doesn’t crisp up, 5 to 7 minutes. Add onions and garlic; move the Dutch oven so only about half of the pot is over the heat. Cook and stir until onions start to become translucent, about 5 minutes. Pour in milk and cook until hot, but not simmering. Melt in cream cheese.
  4. Stir in about a handful of Cheddar cheese at a time until 3 cups have been melted into the mixture. Move the Dutch oven to the cooler side of the grill. Stir in cooked macaroni. Crumble the cheese crackers over the top. Sprinkle with remaining 1 cup Cheddar cheese.
  5. Close the lid of the grill and let cook until bubbly and reduced, about 40 minutes, rotating the Dutch oven every 5 minutes or so to keep from burning. Remove from heat and serve.
  6. You can cook this indoors, but you’ll lose a lot of flavor.

Nutrition Facts

Calories 782 kcal
Carbohydrate 61 g
Cholesterol 121 mg
Dietary Fiber 3 g
Protein 38 g
Saturated Fat 23 g
Sodium 1035 mg
Sugars 10 g
Fat 42 g
Unsaturated Fat 0 g

 

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