Pork Mac and Cheese
Rich, creamy Mac & Cheese embellished with savory bites of Perry’s Famous Pork Chop. Featuring three different cheeses, this Mac & Cheese is brought together into a warming bite with hints of nutmeg, then baked to melty, bubbly, and golden-brown perfection.
Ingredients:
- 1 Pound Elbow Pasta
- ½ Cup Bacon Fat, use butter if you don’t have bacon fat
- ½ Cup All Purpose Flour
- 1 Quart Whole Milk
- ½ tsp Ground Nutmeg
- 1 tsp Garlic Salt
- 1 tsp Black Pepper
- ½ tsp Turmeric Powder
- 6 Cups Shredded Cheese Mix (Swiss, Cheddar and Jack)
- 12 Ounces Perry’s Pork Chop, medium dice
- 1 TBS Olive Oil
Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil.
In a separate pot, melt the bacon fat and stir in the flour. Cook over medium heat while stirring, for 2 minutes. Turn the heat off briefly and quickly whisk in the milk. Whisk ingredients to make sure the flour is all dissolved before returning it to the heat. Season the milk mixture with garlic salt, black pepper, turmeric and nutmeg. Turn the heat back on and continue to whisk until it is thick and smooth. Stir in half of the cheese, saving 3 cups for the topping and the cheesy center. Keep the sauce warm while you cook the noodles.
Grease a 3 quart baking dish (9 X 13) and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Pour the noodles into the boiling salted water and cook for 5 minutes. Strain into a colander and place in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil to keep from sticking. Give them a toss with the reserved diced pork chop.
Pour the cheesy sauce over the pasta and mix well. Pour half of the noodle mix into the casserole. Top with half of the reserved cheese. Then pour the remainder of the noodle mix over the cheese. Top with the last of the cheese.
Optional: You can dust the top with Aleppo pepper and/or smoked paprika.
Bake the casserole for 25 minutes. If the cheese is not brown enough finish it under the broiler for a few minutes.
