Cheddar Broccoli Noodles

This Cheesy Broccoli pasta is the kind of weeknight dinner that comes together in under 30 minutes and somehow tastes like you put in way more effort than you did. A simple roux-based cheddar sauce, tender pasta, and broccoli all in one bowl — it’s comfort food that actually fills you up.

Why You’ll Love It

Ready in under 30 minutes — one pot for pasta and broccoli, one saucepan for the sauce, and dinner is done
The cheese sauce is the real thing — made from a proper roux, it’s silky and smooth, not gluey or heavy
Broccoli that actually gets eaten — tucked into a creamy cheddar sauce, even the pickiest eaters go back for seconds
Great leftovers — reheats beautifully with just a splash of milk
Easily customizable — add chicken, swap the pasta shape, or mix in a different cheese depending on what you have

About the Ingredients

The pasta shape genuinely matters more than people admit. I use elbows or shells most often — something with a curve or a pocket that catches the sauce. Penne works too, the ridged kind especially. I made this once with spaghetti because it was all I had and it was fine but it felt wrong, like all the sauce just slid off and pooled at the bottom of the bowl. Something to keep in mind.
Fresh broccoli is better than frozen here, just for texture. Frozen tends to get a little waterlogged when you add it to the pasta water, which makes the sauce a bit thinner. That said — I’ve used frozen plenty of times when I forgot to check what I had before I started cooking, and it still works fine. I just add it in the last minute instead of two or three.
Sharp cheddar. Not medium, not mild — sharp. And please, if you can, grate it yourself. The pre-shredded stuff has a coating on it that keeps it from melting smoothly. I use a box grater and yes, it takes an extra few minutes and yes, I still do it every time because the sauce is noticeably better.
The Parmesan is listed as optional but I don’t actually skip it. It adds this savory depth that makes the sauce taste more complex than it has any right to be for how simple it is. I usually add a little more than the recipe says, if I’m honest.

Ingredients

250g pasta — elbows, penne, or shells (I usually do shells)
2 cups broccoli florets, fresh, cut into small bite-sized pieces
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, minced (I usually do three, but I won’t tell you that officially)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups whole milk — or 2%, either works, I use whatever’s in the fridge
1½ cups sharp cheddar, freshly grated
About ¼ cup Parmesan, grated — more if you feel like it
½ teaspoon salt, adjusted to taste
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon paprika, if you have it

Instructions

Bring a big pot of water to a boil. Salt it — more than you think, like a pasta-water amount of salt, not a pinch. Add the pasta and cook according to the package, but in the last two to three minutes, throw in the broccoli. This is the part I always forget to time right — I get distracted, wander off, and either the broccoli goes in too early and comes out mushy or I miss the window entirely and have to add it separately. Set a timer. I should have learned this by now. I haven’t.
Drain everything together. Set aside. Don’t rinse it — you want that starch.
While the pasta’s cooking, start your sauce. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and just let it go for about thirty seconds — you want it fragrant, not browned. Browned garlic at this stage will make the whole sauce taste bitter and you’ll be annoyed.
Whisk in the flour. Keep whisking. It’ll form this paste that kind of smells like nothing at first and then after a minute or so it’ll smell faintly toasty and that’s when you know it’s ready. A lot of recipes say “cook one minute” and I think that’s right but I go by smell more than time.
Then — slowly — pour in the milk while you’re whisking. Slowly is the key word. If you dump it all in at once you’ll get lumps and you’ll have to fish them out or just accept a lumpy sauce, which is fine but not ideal. A slow pour, constant whisking, and it’ll come together into a smooth, thin liquid that you then let simmer until it thickens. This takes maybe three to five minutes. Don’t walk away from it. I know I said I get distracted but this part, stay.
Once it’s thickened — it should coat the back of a spoon — take the heat down to low and stir in the cheeses. Cheddar first, then Parmesan. Stir until it’s fully melted and glossy. Season with salt, pepper, and the paprika if you’re using it. Taste it. Adjust. Add a little more salt if it needs it.
Pour the sauce over the pasta and broccoli in the pot, or add everything into the saucepan — whichever vessel is bigger. Toss it all together. The sauce will seem like a lot at first and then the pasta will absorb some of it and it’ll even out.

Variations

This works really well with shredded chicken stirred into the sauce — makes it a full dinner rather than a side. A little more substantial. Adding extra paprika, almost a smoky amount, is worth trying too — wasn’t sure about it at first but now I kind of love it.
I’ve tried it with cauliflower instead of broccoli when that’s what I had. Honestly, very similar result — maybe slightly softer. And I’ve done a version with gouda mixed into the cheddar when I found half a block of smoked gouda in the back of the fridge. That one was excellent, actually, though a little rich. We ate it in smaller portions than usual.

Leftovers

This keeps well in the fridge for about three days in a sealed container, though I’ll admit I’ve pushed it to four without incident. To reheat, add a small splash of milk — a few tablespoons — and warm it slowly on the stove, stirring as it heats up. The microwave works in a pinch but the sauce gets a little uneven, some parts too hot and some not hot enough. I still use the microwave when I’m in a hurry, which is most of the time.