1 cup macaroni
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 1/4 cups milk
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste
extra grated cheddar for the dolsot
1/2 cup kimchi, chopped
1 sac mentaiko, roe scraped out of the membrane, using a spoon, optional
gochugaru, optional
Heat up a stone bowl, lightly oiled, over medium-low heat.

Cook the macaroni according to the package instructions, drain and set aside.

In a large sauté pan or skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and stir constantly for about three minutes, until completely smooth and incorporated. Pour in half of the milk in a thin stream while whisking. It might start out lumpy, but keep whisking and it will smooth out into a thick paste. Add the rest of the milk and whisk until smooth. Keep on medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, until the sauce thickens.

Remove from the heat and add the cheese and stir until melted. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the macaroni.

Sprinkle some cheese into the dolsot then add the macaroni and cheese. Top with more cheese, the chopped kimchi, and the mentaiko, if using. Mix it all up and push the macaroni against the sides of the bowl. The cheese will form a crispy frico/socarrat. The longer you wait, the crispier it will get. Enjoy! Add some gochugaru for an extra kick!

Mac and cheese will forever be one of my go-to comfort food dishes. There’s just something about that creamy combination of cheese and noodles that will always be my favorite food hug. I love how you can dress mac up or down, and no matter what, it’ll always be a bowl of deliciousness.
Mike and I came up with this dish together, which is, hands down, the best way to come up with ideas.
Of course I had to make it, even though it was 10 at night and we had already eaten dinner. No worries, we said to ourselves, we’ll just have a small taste and then eat the leftovers tomorrow. Yeah, um, there were no leftovers. It was worth it though! Creamy and tangy from the kimchi, with pops of bright funkiness from the mentaiko.

Mentaiko, if you haven’t had it, is amazing. It’s cod (or pollock) roe, made spicy and red by way of marination with salt and red pepper. It’s creamy, briny, slightly spicy and salty and it tastes amazing with noodles, on rice, basically, everywhere. It added just the right amount of umami to an already amazing combination of mac and cheese and kimchi.

Mac and cheese will forever be one of my go-to comfort food dishes. There’s just something about that creamy combination of cheese and noodles that will always be my favorite food hug. I love how you can dress mac up or down, and no matter what, it’ll always be a bowl of deliciousness.
Mike and I came up with this dish together, which is, hands down, the best way to come up with ideas.
Of course I had to make it, even though it was 10 at night and we had already eaten dinner. No worries, we said to ourselves, we’ll just have a small taste and then eat the leftovers tomorrow. Yeah, um, there were no leftovers. It was worth it though! Creamy and tangy from the kimchi, with pops of bright funkiness from the mentaiko.

Mentaiko, if you haven’t had it, is amazing. It’s cod (or pollock) roe, made spicy and red by way of marination with salt and red pepper. It’s creamy, briny, slightly spicy and salty and it tastes amazing with noodles, on rice, basically, everywhere. It added just the right amount of umami to an already amazing combination of mac and cheese and kimchi.

1 cup macaroni
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 1/4 cups milk
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste
extra grated cheddar for the dolsot
1/2 cup kimchi, chopped
1 sac mentaiko, roe scraped out of the membrane, using a spoon, optional
gochugaru, optional
Heat up a stone bowl, lightly oiled, over medium-low heat.

Cook the macaroni according to the package instructions, drain and set aside.

In a large sauté pan or skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and stir constantly for about three minutes, until completely smooth and incorporated. Pour in half of the milk in a thin stream while whisking. It might start out lumpy, but keep whisking and it will smooth out into a thick paste. Add the rest of the milk and whisk until smooth. Keep on medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, until the sauce thickens.

Remove from the heat and add the cheese and stir until melted. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the macaroni.

Sprinkle some cheese into the dolsot then add the macaroni and cheese. Top with more cheese, the chopped kimchi, and the mentaiko, if using. Mix it all up and push the macaroni against the sides of the bowl. The cheese will form a crispy frico/socarrat. The longer you wait, the crispier it will get. Enjoy! Add some gochugaru for an extra kick!