Serious Mac & Cheese in the Slow Cooker

Seriously. This is it. About seven years ago, I had some fantastic Mac at a potluck; I have been trying to find a recipe to match that memory ever since. That’s usually a hopeless quest, but I have found the one! Visit the original post for a discussion on sodium citrate, how this recipe works, etc. Thank you, Serious Eats, and perhaps also Modernist Cuisine.

I’ve adapted this recipe for making in a slow cooker instead of a casserole. One recipe is about 3 quarts. A double-batch fills a 7 quart slow cooker nicely, with some room to stir. I also added Benefiber and switched from Panko to Ritz crackers for the topping. The nice thing is, the crackers shower down deeper in the pot as you serve, so everybody gets some. So far I haven't gotten a photo before we ate it all; I'll have to try again!

Variations to try sometime (I haven’t gotten over the original yet though):
Replace water with flavorful liquids like beer and/or chicken stock.