Everyone loves this side dish of Broccoli with Cheddar Cheese Sauce.
Broccoli is a pretty popular vegetable to grab at the store when you are looking for a vegetable to serve with the rest of your meal. And let me guess. You usually steam it, right? That’s the easiest way to do it. Add a little butter and salt, and you’ve got some simple steamed broccoli.
You know what makes broccoli 100% better? CHEESE! Add cheese sauce to broccoli and everyone will happily gobble it up.
The best way to steam broccoli:
Bring an inch of water to boil in the bottom of your pot fitted with a steamer basket. Put the broccoli in the steamer basket and then put the lid on the pot. Steam your broccoli anywhere from 3 to 8 minutes. 3 minutes will give you a crisp-tender broccoli. And 8 minutes will give you a tender broccoli. I recommend 5 minutes for perfectly steamed broccoli.
How to make cheese sauce for broccoli:
This is a really easy cheese sauce to make. You’ll melt butter in a pan, and then you’ll whisk in flour. Next you’ll add milk and a little bit of heavy cream. That mixture is cooked until it thickens slightly. Dijon mustard and shredded cheddar cheese are added in at the end and the sauce is stirred until the cheese has melted. A sprinkle of Kosher salt finishes it off.
The recipe calls for using white cheddar cheese. Use sharp cheddar for the best and boldest flavor. You are welcome to use yellow cheddar cheese, if that’s what you prefer.
Drizzle the cheese sauce over the steamed broccoli. Alternately, you can serve the cheese sauce in a little dish on the side for dunking. Kids seem to like that option. Enjoy!
Here are a few more broccoli recipes you might like to try:
- Broccoli Gratin
- Broccoli with Toasted Garlic Crumbs
- Romaine and Broccoli Salad with Roasted Garlic Dressing
- Four-Cheese Broccoli Pizza
- Broccoli Salad
- Cranberry- Almond Broccoli Salad
- Parmesan Roasted Broccoli
- Broccoli with Hot Bacon Dressing
Broccoli with Cheddar Cheese Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 pound broccoli, cut into florets
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1¼ cups milk
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 6 ounces sharp or mild white cheddar cheese, shredded
- kosher salt
Instructions
- In a large, deep saucepan, bring 1-inch of water to a boil. Fill a steamer basket with the broccoli, add it to the saucepan, cover and steam over high heat until the broccoli is crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer the broccoli to a platter.
- Meanwhile, in a saucepan, melt the butter. Add the flour and whisk over moderately high heat for 2 minutes. Add the milk and cream and cook, whisking, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Add the mustard and cheese and cook over moderately low heat until the cheese is melted. Season the sauce with salt, and drizzle over the broccoli.
Notes
- Use any leftover sauce for more broccoli or for topping baked potatoes. Yum!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
