Whenever my lovely wife and I venture out to our favorite neighborhood Tex Mex eatery, no matter what time of day or what else might be on the menu, it’s a sure bet that she’ll insist that we order a cup (or bowl) of her favorite Queso Blanco, topped with a big dollop of really fresh pico de gallo, a bit of fresh cilantro, and a lime quarter or two on the side.
With the Queso Blanco so damned silky smooth, delightfully cheesy, with perfectly-softened diced onion, jalapeno (or serrano) peppers, green chiles and more, her addiction has only intensified over the past few months of winter.
We’ve experimented over the years with Queso Blanco at home, though of late it’s become imperative to find a recipe that produces restaurant quality queso without the clumpiness and flat flavor that so many of the “white American cheese” queso recipes present.
This Real Deal Queso Blanco is the closest recipe we’ve found to her lofty ideal, and it’s due to using a great cheese (asadero or Monterey jack) and making a simple roux before you melt any cheese (actually I guess a Béchamel sauce if you want to get pedantic about it).
Get everything ready before you start and this one is easy peasy to put together and serve; you’ll reach for this one again and again. Don’t forget to add some of the ‘extras’ below…
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup AP flour
2 cups whole milk (or 1/2 milk and 1/2 half-and-half)
1-2 tsp ground cumin
8 ounce can chopped green chiles
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp EVOO
2-3 fresh jalapeno peppers, trimmed and seeded, finely chopped
8 ounces good asadero or Monterey jack cheese, grated
Salt and pepper to tasteConsider
1/4 cup or more chopped cilantro
1 cup good, fresh pico de gallo
More pickled jalapenos
Some finely spiced and drained taco meat or chorizo
Chop, prep, and measure everything in your ingredient list to get things ready.
Sauté the onion in the EVOO for 10 minutes over medium low heat; add the garlic and jalapeno, drop the heat to low, and cook, stirring frequently for another 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
In a medium saucepan, now melt the butter over low heat, then whisk in the flour. Add a bit more heat (the roux should bubble gently) and then whisk/stir constantly for two minutes. Now add 1/2 a cup of milk, whisking till well mixed, then gradually add the rest of the milk.
Turn the heat up to medium, then whisk more or less continually for another 5-10 until the mixture (your béchamel sauce) has thickened. Now whisk in the onion/garlic/jalapeno mixture, green chiles, cumin, and a bit of salt and pepper.
When well combined, turn off the heat, and stir in a handful of cheese at a time, adding another only when the last one has melted and the mixture is creamy smooth.
As noted above, my lovely wife can’t imagine eating this without chopped cilantro and a big dollop of a great pico de gallo on top…
Enjoy.
