Simple Beer Cheese Recipe for Oktoberfest
I picked up some of Dream Pretzel’s Pressels at the store, and after trying them, I wanted to make a dip for Fall. This isn’t a sponsored review – I’m actually in love with these. The Everything flavor caught my eye (who doesn’t love Everything seasoning?) and when I read the bag, I knew I had to try them. They’re flattened pretzel chips that are baked with no artificial ingredients, MSG, preservatives, or trans fat. I’ve linked to them here in my Amazon shop (*affiliate link).
I looked up a couple recipes for beer cheese dips since I had a bottle of Anchor Steam Beer left; they’re a local San Francisco brewery. Full credit to Sally’s Baking Addiction and The Chunky Chef for the original recipes that I adapted. I wanted to use a little less butter and more cheese.
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons All-Purpose flour
2/3 cup beer (lager preferred)
1 cup whole milk [I substituted 1/2 cup almond milk and 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream since I didn’t have regular milk. *If you use a milk that has less fat content, the dip won’t thicken as much as one that uses whole milk]
1 teaspoon grainy mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese (the recipes suggested grating your own since pre-shredded cheeses have stabilizers in them and it affects the texture)
Let’s make beer cheese!
Before beginning, shred your cheese and set it to the side. Combine all of your spices into a separate bowl and set aside as well so you don’t have to worry about your sauce burning while measuring out all of the spices…the recipe calls for quite a few spices.
- In a pan on medium heat, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter and add 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour. Whisk vigorously and make sure there are no clumps.
- Once smooth, add your beer slowly while whisking to avoid clumps.
- Add in your milk slowly and mix.
- Let it simmer for a minute and once thickened, add all of your spices.
- Finally, slowly add the cheese in to melt.
You should end up with about 8-10 servings.
The sauce will be thin at first, but once it begins to cool, it should thicken. I ate a serving a few minutes after it came off the stove because I couldn’t resist! So delicious. If you want it spicy, add in chopped chilies/jalapenos, or add hot sauce! I tried it with sriracha the other day, and it was perfect. For something Instagram-worthy, garnish your serving bowl of beer cheese with some chopped parsley.
