Kielbasa and Beer Mac and Cheese
What’s for dinner? Nothing says comfort food more than this stove top beer mac and cheese with kielbasa and sauerkraut.
I love macaroni and cheese as it’s such a simple yet very versatile meal. Boil the pasta. Make the sauce. Put the two together with any mix ins you want and boom – dinner ready in 30 minutes. If I don’t know what to make for dinner, chances are I make mac and cheese (assuming I have enough cheese to make it). I always make it on the stove top because I don’t understand baked pasta. Yes, I get that baking it gives it the crunchy bits everyone loves, but I’d rather eat my dinner now while it’s still saucy rather than wait another 30 minutes for it to bake. What can I say? I’m impatient when I’m hungry.
When I was telling a friend about how I made Kielbasa and Beer Mac and Cheese, she told me it sounded very Pittsburgh of me. All that was missing was a pierogie on top. Pittsburgh definitely has a reputation for Polish food, including but not limited to pierogies, haluski, and kielbasa. We even have a neighborhood called Polish Hill. We love our beer too. I’m sure all cities love their beer, but we really love it here. It’s hard to say where the inspiration for this dish came from. One minute I’m struggling to come up with another savory recipe to post in December. The next minute, I’m wanting to make beer mac and cheese and somehow ended up adding kielbasa to it. I love adding kielbasa to dinner because it’s already fully cooked; all you need to do is warm it up. Throw in a little sauerkraut, and you have a very Pittsburgh Oktoberfest dinner you can eat any day of the year.
The beer is a pretty prominent flavor in the recipe, so the key to a good sauce is using a beer you’d actually drink. Don’t use a cheap beer you wouldn’t drink on its own (especially since you’ll still have half a bottle leftover to drink). Ideally you’d want to use a pale ale, but I used a brown ale since that’s what I had in the fridge.
I was debating on whether I should add sauerkraut to the mac and cheese. After all, you can’t have kielbasa without sauerkraut! Since I absolutely love it, I had no problem adding it in. However, if you’re one of the few crazy people who hates it, feel free to leave it out.
Kielbasa and Beer Mac and Cheese
Nothing says comfort food more than this stove top beer mac and cheese with kielbasa and sauerkraut.
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound (8 ounces) uncooked elbow macaroni
- Salt, to taste (preferably kosher salt)
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup chopped onion
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup beer (preferably pale ale but most types will work)
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup kielbasa slices*
- 1/2 cup sauerkraut, drained
- Sliced green onion, for garnish
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, add a big handful of salt then add the macaroni. Cook as directed on the package until al dente, about 9-11 minutes. Drain into colander.
- While the pasta is cooking, make the sauce. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and a big pinch of salt. Cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the flour to coat and make a roux (paste). Slowly whisk in the milk, beer, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, turn the heat down to a simmer. Cook until thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese until melted. Taste and adjust for salt if necessary.
- Mix together the pasta, cheese sauce, kielbasa, and sauerkraut. Top with green onion for garnish.
More Mac and Cheese Recipes
Pulled Pork Macaroni and Cheese
Sweet Chili Mac and Cheese Shells
Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese
Bacon and Pesto Macaroni and Cheese
This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchase.
You got me with this one, Carla. I love all the components of the dish, so putting them together would be perfect. Finally a way to use up the sauerkraut that’s been sitting in my freezer forever. And the extra kielbasa from the pizza I’m making this week. And the beer – I’ll have to choose something for that. The only beer in our fridge right now is Stone Vertical Epic 11-11-11, which we can’t drink for another 6 years… (it’s intended to be cellared). Wish I were in Pittsburgh where I could get some good local beer. We don’t have any here. Boohoo!!!
Oh kielbasa pizza? That sounds intriguing! Not sure what the stores are like around you, but our one grocery store sells national craft beer brands. You can buy one of those to use. Before I moved back to Pittsburgh, I lived in the country so I would buy one bottle of beer from a bar for recipes because the beer stores only sold beer by the case.
You had me until you added the sauerkraut. Of course being a Pittsburgher and of German descent I LOVE sauerkraut but I just can’t imagine it in mac and cheese. How did it taste? I think I will try the kielbasi and mac and cheese. That sounds good. Maybe cook a little kraut on the side and try it with the mac and cheese.
See I’m totally fine mixing flavors together like that, even if most people find them not normal lol I’ve eaten hot dogs with sauerkraut and cheese sauce before (kinda like a chili cheese dog without the chili), so I was ok with it. I think it would be a great idea to cook sauerkraut on the side and try a little bit. If you don’t like it with the cheese, you can eat them separately on your plate.
Carla, our grocery store does give us the ability to buy individual bottles of some craft beers. The pizza I’m making is the Fig, Goat Cheese and Kielbasa Sausage Pizza from The Spiffy Cookie. Erin makes killer pizzas, and this one is great. However, I’d probably recommend that you caramelize the onions in something other than butter, because I’m burning the ones I’m currently trying to make.
That pizza does sound delicious! As for the butter, are you cooking the onions too high? Since caramelizing onions take 20-30 minutes, it’s important to cook them low and slow, especially on a gas stove because they cook faster than an electric stove (like mine). Sometimes if you add a little bit of oil to the butter in the beginning, it’ll help with the burning.
Yes, Carla, I was cooking it at too high a heat. Not the first time, and probably won’t be the last. I do have a gas stove, and didn’t realize that it’s worse than an electric one for doing caramelized onions. Fortunately my husband figured he could eat those onions, because he’s done the same thing himself… Pizza is baking as I write.
My parents have a gas stove while I have an electric stove. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve burnt things on my parent’s stove because I’m not used to how efficient it is! Low on their gas stove is probably medium on mine.
Dear Carla, this is pure comfort food and right up my alley. I know my family would absolutely love this for dinner. A perfect winter meal. xo, Catherine
Thanks Catherine!
I tried this tonight and we really enjoyed it. The best beer I could find – that my husband would drink – was Alaskan Amber Ale. It worked well. I have to confess that I upped the cheese, sauerkraut and kielbasa, and I did sauté the kielbasa before adding it. Definitely a great dish for a chilly winter night. I’m sure I’ll be making it again.
I was hesitant on how much sauerkraut to add because I know people are hit or miss with it. Definitely add more if you love it :D Glad the beer and the dish overall worked out for you both!