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About the Recipe
Macaroni Gratin is a dish that has a few components but once you get the hang of it, is simple to make! The Japanese version is slightly different from a western style macaroni gratin. What I love about it though is that you can just place it in the middle of the table and enjoy it together with friends and family! You can have it on its own or with a side of salad.
Feel free to go crazy with the cheese too!
Ingredients
3/4 box fusilli pasta
1 chicken breast (cut into small cubes) (if you're vegetarian skip the chicken)
1/2 a large head of broccoli
5 cloves of garlic (minced)
Mushrooms (sliced) (optional)
4 tablespoons of unsalted butter
3 tablespoons of flour
300-350ml whole milk
Salt
Black pepper
Consommé (or veg stock cubes)
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 packet mozarella cheese
A sprinkle of parmesan cheese (optional)
Panko (optional)
Equipment
1 large pan/wok
1 small pot
1 medium pot
1 large baking dish (approx 14" by 14")
Preparation
Step 1
Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees celsius (with fan) and butter your dish.
I like to add a tiny cube of butter to the dish and use either my [clean] hands or a paper towel to cover the bottom and sides of the dish with butter.
Step 2
Fill half of a medium pot with water and boil. Add fusilli (follow instructions on the packet for how long to boil).
You want the fusilli to be cooked just before al dente as it will also cook in the oven
Tip: you can either wait for the pasta to boil, strain it and add the pasta to the dish before moving onto the next step (I recommend this if you're new to cooking and/or this recipe) or you can move onto the next step before the pasta has finished cooking. Just make sure to keep an eye on the timer!
Step 3
In a large pan/wok, heat the vegetable oil at medium heat and fry the minced garlic for 1 min. Then add the cubed chicken and fry until cooked through (skip if vegetarian). Add broccoli and cook until the stem has turned a deep green. (Optional: you can also add the mushrooms with the broccoli).
Tip: cut the broccoli and the chicken into small pieces so that you can distribute better at the end
Note: you don't need to fry the broccoli for very long. It will also cook in the oven and the slight crunch of the broccoli brings a nice texture to the end product.
Step 4
Keep the fried chicken and broccoli in the pan to the side.
Note: you're keeping it in the pan because you will be adding the white sauce/bechamel to it later!
If you haven't already, I would check on the pasta and drain the water from the pasta if it's done! You can then add your pasta to your dish. If it isn't done, I would wait until it is before moving to the next step. You will need to be attentive when working on the white sauce!
Step 5
Melt the butter in a small pan over medium heat. Once it has melted, add the flour and mix thoroughly until it forms a paste. You may need to add more flour depending on how thick (or thin!) you want the sauce to be.
The more flour you add, the thicker the sauce will be. You don't want it to be too thin otherwise it will be runny and just go straight to the bottom of the dish when you assemble. You also don't want it to be too thick otherwise it will clump.
Step 6
Turn down the heat to medium low and add about 100 ml of milk at a time, mixing well after every addition, until the sauce reaches your desired consistency. You want the sauce to thicken slightly after every addition but be careful not to let it curdle!
Tip: keep mixing the sauce and try not to stop or take your eye off it! It's very easy for it to over boil and then you may need to start again. If you need to leave for a minute, take it off the heat until you are able to watch it.
Add the milk and wait for it to thicken before deciding if this is the right consistency for you. I usually use about 350ml of whole milk.
Step 7
Once the sauce has reached your desired consistency, switch to low heat and add salt and black pepper to taste and 2 cubes of consommé or veg stock cubes. Mix well until the cubes have dissolved.
Note: you may need to add a bit more milk if the sauce has become too thick after this step.
Step 8
Add 2 spoonfuls of the white sauce to the chicken and broccoli pot and mix.
Step 9
Pour half of the white sauce into the dish (the pasta should be there already) and mix the white sauce and pasta together.
Step 10
Pour the chicken and broccoli on top of the pasta and spread so that the chicken and broccoli covers the top of the dish evenly. Pour the rest of the white sauce evenly on top.
Step 11
Sprinkle the mozarella cheese generously on top. Optional: you can also sprinkle some parmesan on top of the mozarella as well as a bit of panko.
The parmesan really makes the cheese brown and adds a nice flavour and crunch. The panko is there for crunch.
Step 12
Bake for 10-15 minutes until the cheese is brown on top.
Step 13
Once the cheese is brown, take it out of the over and let cool for 5 mins.
Step 14
Serve and enjoy!
Meal Prep Factor
Can I keep...
1) the unbaked macaroni gratin overnight?
YES! You can but I wouldn't recommend it unless you're meal prepping for the next day. You're almost there anyway! Just 10-15 minutes in the oven and you're done! I've never tried it but I don't think I would recommend it just because the cooked pasta is soaking in the white sauce as it's sitting there unbaked.
2) the baked macaroni gratin overnight?
YES! You may keep the baked macaroni gratin in a container for 2-3 days in the fridge. To reheat, either place in the microwave or if you want to be extra, you can rebake it for about 3-5 minutes at 200ºC in the oven.
How I Like It
My favourite foods to serve with macaroni gratin:
1) Nothing!
2) Small side salad with dressing (sesame or balsamic vinegar)
Do you also prefer to eat gratin on it's own?
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