Queso

By Maria Lichty

Published on May 03, 2023

View RecipePin Recipe4.4691

Chips, salsa, and guacamole are my absolute favorite, but my boys are all about the queso. Ok, I like it too, who doesn’t love a cheesy dip? But they REALLY love it. 

This Queso Dip recipe is their all-time favorite. It’s creamy, slightly spicy, and really good with salty tortilla chips. 

And guess what? It’s easy to make at home. That’s right, you don’t have to go to a restaurant to get queso. You can make it from scratch and I promise it is the real deal. 

We love serving warm queso on game days or as a snack for parties or movie nights at home. Everyone loves it and dives right in! It’s delicious as a dip or drizzled over your favorite Mexican food dishes.

The Best Cheese for Queso

This recipe calls for both cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses. I do not recommend using pre-shredded cheese because it contains a powdery coating and doesn’t melt well. 

You’ll have the best results if you buy a block of cheese and shred it yourself. I promise the extra arm work is worth it. 

I also add in cream cheese, it’s the secret ingredient for keeping the queso super creamy. It melts right in and creates the smoothest queso and it will help the queso stay creamy after it cools down too. 

Spice It Up!

The queso has a jalapeno pepper, but I don’t think it is super hot, it just has a nice pleasant kick. For more heat, you can add a little bit of cayenne pepper in addition to the jalapenos. 

And if you want the BEST flavor ever, which I think you do, add chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. The flavor is SO good! You can find the peppers at almost any grocery store, look in the Mexican aisle.  You will need two chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, remove the seeds and finely chop them up. You can freeze the remaining peppers and sauce. 

But if you prefer a traditional queso, you can certainly leave out the chipotle peppers. It is good both ways:)

How to Make Queso

Ok, let’s get this party started! Who’s ready? I am always ready! 

• In a large saucepan, heat the oil or  butter over medium heat. Add the onion and jalapeno and cook until soft. Stir in the garlic and cook for just a minute. 

• Add the cream cheese and 1 cup of the milk and stir until melted. I recommend using whole milk because we want super creamy queso. Low fat or skim milk won’t get us there.  Season with salt and pepper. 

• Turn the heat to LOW and add the shredded cheese, ½ cup at a time, stirring constantly, until all of the cheese is added and melted. Make sure the heat isn’t too high, you want it to melt slowly. Once all of the cheese is melted, add the remaining ¼ cup of milk. 

• Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the green chiles, diced tomato, and cilantro. If you are using the chipotle in adobo pepper, stir that in as well. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.

Toppings

I love adding a few toppings to garnish the queso. You could even put toppings out and let everyone at the table customize their own little bowl of queso! Here are a few of our favorite toppings:

• Pico de Gallo
• Cilantro
• Diced avocado or a scoop of guacamole
• Jalapeno slices
• Diced tomatoes

Serving Suggestions

Serve the queso warm with tortilla chips. Dunk the chips into that warm cheesy sauce and you will be in heaven! 

You can also use the queso as a dip for taquitos, quesadillas, burritos, or drizzle it over tacos or nachos. This cheesy sauce is great with any Mexican meal. 

How to Store and Reheat

Store leftover queso in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Reheat in the microwave  stirring every 15 to 20 seconds, until the queso is heated through. If it is too thick, you can add a splash of milk and stir. 

More Appetizer Recipes

• Guacamole
• Pico de Gallo
• Skillet Queso Dip
• Chicken Taquitos
• Restaurant Style Salsa
• Mango Salsa
• Pineapple Salsa

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Appetizer

Queso

Deliciously creamy Queso Dip is easy to make from scratch and a crowd favorite every time! Serve with salty tortilla chips for the best appetizer ever!

4.46 from 75 votes

PrintSave RecipeReview

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Cuisine Mexican

Servings 12

Equipment

• Large Saucepan (I use All-Clad pots)

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 tablespoon avocado oil, can use butter
• 1/2 cup diced yellow onion
• 1 jalapeno, stemmed, seeded and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 8 oz cream cheese, cut into cubes
• 1 1/4 cups whole milk, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded
• 8 oz Monterey Jack, shredded
• 4 oz mild green chiles
• 1 Roma tomato, finely diced
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, from can, seeds removed and finely chopped, optional
• For garnish: pico de gallo, diced avocado, and cilantro
• Tortilla chips, for serving

Instructions

 

• In a large saucepan, heat the oil or butter over medium heat. Add the onion and jalapeno and cook until soft, about 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for one more minute.
• Add the cream cheese and 1 cup of the milk and stir until melted, this will take about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Turn the heat to low and add the shredded cheese, ½ cup at a time, stirring constantly, until all of the cheese is added and melted. Make sure the heat isn’t too high, you want it to melt slowly. Once all of the cheese is melted, add the remaining ¼ cup of milk.
• Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the green chiles, tomato, and cilantro. If you are using the chipotle in adobo pepper, stir that in as well. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.
• Pour the queso into a serving bowl and garnish with a little pico de gallo, diced avocado, and fresh cilantro. Serve immediately with tortilla chips.

Notes

Don’t use pre-shredded cheese. Buy block cheese and grate it for best results.

The chipotle peppers in adobe sauce are optional, but we love the flavor they add! 

Nutrition

Calories: 244kcal, Carbohydrates: 4g, Protein: 11g, Fat: 21g, Saturated Fat: 12g, Cholesterol: 60mg, Sodium: 425mg, Potassium: 133mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 720IU, Vitamin C: 6mg, Calcium: 331mg, Iron: 1mg

Keywords cheese

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