White Sauce Pasta vs Mac vs Cheese: Difference and Comparison

Every country has different cultures and histories which also applies to meals. Meals are completely affected by the geographical condition of the nation because people use available resources to cook meals.

White sauce pasta and mac and cheese are two such meals that are introduced by Italy and France to the world.

Key Takeaways

1. White sauce pasta and mac and cheese are pasta dishes with creamy sauce.
2. White sauce pasta is made with a roux of butter and flour and includes cheese and cream.
3. Mac and cheese are made with a cheese sauce and uses elbow macaroni or a similar pasta shape.

White Sauce Pasta vs Mac and Cheese

White sauce pasta is made using a basic white sauce, which involves cooking a mixture of butter and flour until it forms a roux. Mac and cheese is a specific type of pasta dish that is made with macaroni and cheese sauce. The cheese sauce is made with a combination of cheddar cheese and milk.

White sauce pasta is a dish that uses pasta as its main ingredient. Also, a sauce that is made of milk and has a silky smooth texture over it, is used to complement the pasta.

Hence the name, white sauce pasta. This sauce originated from French and Italian cuisine and is also known to people as béchamel.

Mac and Cheese is a short term and American slang used for macaroni and cheese. Mac and cheese is a dish that uses macaroni and cheese sauce commonly known as cheddar.

Mac and cheese are very famous among nations since it feels super nice to taste. Mac and Cheese is a gooey and creamy macaroni dish.

Comparison Table

Parameters Of Comparison	White Sauce Pasta	Mac and Cheese
Origin	White sauce pasta is considered to have its original roots found in the 16th century.	Based on the information found in a book, Mac and Cheese were introduced in the 18th century.
Sauce	The name of the second main ingredient, sauce, used in white sauce pasta is known as béchamel.	The name of the second main ingredient, sauce, used in Mac and Cheese is known as Cheddar.
Types	The other general types of white sauce pasta are sauce Américaine pasta, Alfredo sauce pasta, Suprême sauce pasta, etc.	The other types of Mac and Cheese are Baked Pizza Mac Cheese, Mac Cheese with Black Beans, etc.
Other names	The alternative names used for white sauce pasta are besamel, besciamella, and simply a white sauce.	The other terms used to refer to Mac and Cheese are macaroni and cheese, macaroni pie, and macaroni cheese.
Cooking procedure	The white sauce pasta is mostly prepared in a saucepan over a stove and another medium.	The Mac and Cheese are prepared through both methods that are cooking with a saucepan and backing in the oven.

What is White Sauce Pasta?

A typical white sauce pasta takes about 30 minutes to be prepared and served. White sauce pasta is very saucy and creamy. People around the world use Italian herbs for the seasoning of pasta and red chili flakes for toppings.

White sauce pasta is not considered a heavy food.

Some other types of vegetables are also added to the white sauce pasta such as peas, red bell pepper, corn kernels, carrots, broccoli, etc.

The first step to preparing white sauce pasta is to boil some water with salt and then add pasta to it until it gets al dente. The required time to cook Pasta is written on the packages.

A perfectly cooked pasta should not be mushy but firm and tender. Then available vegetables are added to the oil to be cooked until they get crunchy.

To make the sauce, a person needs all-purpose flour, butter, garlic, milk, for the first step and herbs for the second step.

The seasoning of white sauce pasta can be customized by people depending on their preference. Some people also like to incorporate meat in white sauce pasta like sautéed chicken, shrimp, etc.

To add rich Italian flavor, herbs like oregano and thyme are used. These herbs not only trigger flavor but a delicious aroma as well.

What is Mac and Cheese?

Mac and Cheese is a macaroni pasta dish that is served warm and hot. Mac and Cheese can also have breadcrumbs, vegetables, and meat added to it.

It is considered to be both a side dish and a main dish. In modern times Mac and Cheese are prepared in a saucepan but traditional Mac and Cheese are still baked in an oven using a casserole.

There are also packages of Mac and Cheese that are available in the market so any person can cook them without having enough experience. In the US, people call it comfort food.

Looking into the history of Mac and Cheese, the blueprints appear in a book titled Liber de Coquina which was written in the 14th century.

In that book, it was denoted as makerouns. But the proper recipe of Mac and cheese was mentioned by Elizabeth Raffald in her book named The Experienced English Housekeeper.

This book was published in 1789, henceforth, the time when Mac and Cheese were introduced is known to be the 18th century.

Mac and Cheese are so popular and loved by people that it even has its day, National Macaroni Day. Mac and cheese can also be customized based on preference.

Main Differences Between White Sauce Pasta and Mac and Cheese

1. The most suitable shape of pasta used in white sauce pasta is flat and wide for the better consumption of sauce while Mac and Cheese use every type of pasta.
2. People also call white sauce pasta besciamella, besamel, etc. On the other hand, the other names used for Mac and Cheese are macaroni cheese and macaroni pie.
3. The main sauce used to prepare white sauce pasta is known as béchamel. On the other hand, the sauce used in Mac and Cheese is known as Cheddar.
4. The typical method to cook white sauce pasta involves a saucepan and stoves or burners. While Mac and Cheese can be backed in the oven as well.
5. White sauce pasta can be different from place to places such as Suprême sauce and Alfredo sauce pasta. While Mac and cheese come in the form of Baked Pizza and with black beans.

References

1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0950329322000040
2. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-84259-8_4

Last Updated : 15 July, 2023