Add some cheesy goodness to your standard weeknight side dish. Broccoli with Cheese Sauce is simple to whip up and will make the whole family happy.
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This dish brings back all the childhood memories for me. It’s a classic side that I grew up eating and it’s super simple to make.
If you’ve never made your own cheese sauce for broccoli, get ready for a treat (can we call broccoli a treat?!). You’ll never go back to the frozen stuff.
Ingredients for Broccoli with Cheese Sauce
This side dish is relatively simple to make. Here’s what you are going to need:
Make the Cheese Sauce
Have you ever made homemade macaroni and cheese? If you have, it’s the same process to make this cheese sauce. We’ll start by making a simple roux.
A roux is a mixture of melted butter and flour. This is what will thicken the cheese sauce.
Heat a small saucepan over medium heat and add the butter. Once melted, sprinkle in the flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Whisk well and cook for 2 minutes, whisking often. This will cook out the raw flour taste.
Add milk to the roux and whisk well until it’s smooth. Continue whisking until the sauce has thickened. It should coat the back of a spoon.
Whisk in the shredded cheese and you’re good to go.
Cook Your Broccoli
You can cook your broccoli however you prefer. If you need something ultra quick, grab a frozen bag that you can steam in the microwave.
You can also steam or fresh broccoli on your stove top. Roasting broccoli is another great option for this recipe.
What I’m saying is, this cheese sauce is delicious on broccoli no matter how your prefer to cook it. I’ll include steaming instructions in the recipe below as that’s what I usually do with this recipe.
Have Extra Cheese Sauce?
If you have some extra cheese sauce at the end of your meal, place it in a container, let it cool to room temperature than cover and refrigerate.
This cheese sauce is delicious on steamed cauliflower, drizzled on cooked pasta as a dip for grill zucchini spears and so much more. I mean, it’s cheese. What’s not to love?!
More Cheesy Side Dishes
Broccoli with Cheese Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 to 6 cups fresh broccoli florets
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup milk (preferably whole or 2%)
- 8 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a saucepan. Place a steamer basket in the pan and add your broccoli. Top with a lid and steam until it reaches desired tenderness.
- Meanwhile, make the cheese sauce. Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add butter and allow to melt. Sprinkle in flour, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Whisk well and cook for 2 minutes, whisking often. Add milk to the flour mixture and whisk well until smooth. Bring to a simmer, whisking constantly, until the sauce has thickened enough to nicely coat the back of a spoon. Add shredded cheese and whisk until melted.
- Drizzle broccoli with desired amount of cheese sauce.
