Easy cheddar cheese sauce for vegetables made with just 6 ingredients. Perfect for pouring over your favorite veggies! Picky eater kids everywhere will love this delicious recipe.

If you’ve ever poured cheese out of a jar to get your kids to eat more veggies, this recipe is for you!

This easy cheese sauce recipe is so simple to make, and tastes delicious!

We love serving it over fresh steamed broccoli, or whatever veggie we are having for dinner that night.

Cheddar Cheese Sauce Ingredients

• fresh grated sharp cheddar cheese: don’t skip grating it yourself. Fresh is important here!
• 2% milk: or whole milk
• cornstarch: this is the easy thickener that we are using in place of a traditional flour and butter roux.
• garlic powder
• pepper
• paprika

How to make cheddar cheese sauce

Step 1: Grate the cheddar cheese fresh from a block

Step 2: Add the grated cheddar, milk, cornstarch, garlic powder, pepper, and paprika to a medium sized saucepan.

Step 3: Stir over medium heat until cheese sauce is thickened, around 5 – 10 minutes.

No funny ingredients or junk, just good old homemade cheese sauce.

This is the best sauce to serve over steamed or roasted broccoli.

If you have an air fryer you could air fry frozen broccoli and serve it with this cheese sauce for a simple side dish.

For this recipe, I used 2% milk in place of heavy cream or other higher fat milk.

You can’t taste the difference and it still gets thick thanks to cornstarch.

Ever since making my 5 minute nacho cheese sauce, I have been using this method to make all of my cheese sauces.

I may never go back to a roux again, this way is just so much easier and tastes delicious!

I’m a big fan of using cornstarch and don’t see that changing any time soon.

It’s just such a time saver!

All you have to do is stir to avoid burning, and use a whisk to get out any clumps of cornstarch or cheese.

You will end up with a velvety smooth cheese sauce!

The color of your cheese sauce will depend on your cheese block.

The paprika is totally optional, and does not make it spicy, but I like that little extra something something it gives.

If you have super picky eaters, just leave it out for a more mild flavor.

Pour over your veggie of choice and call it a win when your kids are eating their veggies without a fight.

I have made this recipe with colby jack cheese too and the taste is almost exactly the same.

I think it’s safe to say that any mild cheese would work here.

Let me know how your kids like this one and leave me a comment below!

We served ours with fresh steamed broccoli, garlic parmesan roasted potatoes, and veggie burgers for a well rounded dinner.

“This is the easiest, best tasting , ‘lightened up’ cheese sauce recipe ever!”

I found this recipe and made it for some roasted potatoes. My fam loved it! I’ll definitely make it again!

Looking for more easy recipes? Be sure to check out this copycat Papa John’s Garlic Dipping Sauce.

Are you making this recipe? I want to see! Don’t forget to tag me on instagram @buildyourbite and hashtag #buildyourbite with your recipe creations!

easy side dish recipes

Hungry for more? Here are some of our favorite easy dinner side dish ideas.

• Brussel Sprout Chips
• Roasted Garlic Baby Red Potatoes
• Garlic Butter Roasted Carrots

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