Beer cheese is a Kentucky invention that Wisconsin adopted as its own: sharp cheddar and Monterey Jack melted into a beer and milk sauce, served with warm pretzel bites. It reheats on the cool side of any grill, and the one thing to check first is your stadium's fuel rule in our stadium rules table, since some lots ban charcoal or open flames.
At the lot: Make it at home, then reheat it on the cool side of the grill and keep it there so it stays hot. Homegating: Reheat it on the stove and keep it on warm in a slow cooker or a small pot.
Home gear: a heavy saucepan, a whisk, a 10 in. cast-iron skillet or 2 nested 8 × 8 in. foil pans, heavy foil
35 MIN
At home, up to 3 days ahead
40 MIN
At the lot
12
Serves
Ingredients
Dip
- 6 tbsp butter
- 6 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1½ cups lager or amber beer (one 12 oz bottle), or chicken or vegetable broth for a no-beer batch
- 1½ cups whole milk, plus a splash for reheating
- 1 lb sharp cheddar, shredded from the block
- 8 oz Monterey Jack, shredded from the block
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
- Kosher salt, to taste
Serve
- 2 bags (about 16 oz each) frozen soft pretzel bites, or about 2 lb store-bought pretzel bites
- 2 green onions or a small bunch of chives, thinly sliced
Steps
At home
- Shred the cheeses from the block. Pre-shredded cheese has an anti-caking coating that can make the dip grainy.
- Melt the butter in the saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook, whisking, for 1 to 2 minutes, until it smells toasty but hasn't browned.
- Slowly whisk in the beer (or broth), then the milk. Bring it to a simmer and cook, whisking often, until it thickens enough to coat a spoon, about 5 minutes.
- Turn the heat to low. Add the cheese a handful at a time, stirring until each one melts before adding the next. Stir in the mustard, Worcestershire, garlic powder, paprika and cayenne. Taste and add salt.
- Pour it into the skillet or the nested foil pans. Let it cool for no more than 30 minutes, then cover it tightly and refrigerate. It keeps up to 3 days.
- If you're using frozen pretzel bites, bake them at home on the morning of the game following the package directions. Let them cool, then wrap them in a foil packet. Slice the green onions and bag them.
At the lot
- Set up the grill for indirect heat at about 350°F. On charcoal, bank the coals on one side. On propane, light one side and leave the other off.
- Set the covered dip on the cool side and close the lid. Heat it for 25 to 35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until the center reads 165°F. Stir in a splash of milk if it's too thick.
- Put the pretzel packet on the cool side for the last 10 minutes to warm through.
- Top the dip with the green onions and serve it with the pretzel bites.
- Keep the dip on the cool side with the lid down while people graze, so it stays at 140°F or above. Stir it now and then so the bottom doesn't catch.
Pack for the lot
Lot notes
- Watch the bottom: cheese sauce scorches on thin foil. Cast iron is safest. In foil, nest 2 pans and stir often.
- The beer doesn't all cook off: a sauce simmered for a few minutes keeps a good share of its alcohol. If kids, drivers or anyone avoiding alcohol will be at the table, make it with broth instead of beer and tell people which batch is which.
Can you make beer cheese dip ahead?
Yes. Make it up to 3 days ahead and keep it covered in the fridge. Reheat it on the cool side of the grill, stirring every 10 minutes, until the center reaches 165°F, and loosen it with a splash of milk.
How do you keep beer cheese dip hot at a tailgate?
Keep the pan on the cool side of the grill with the lid down, and stir it now and then. The holding rules are in how to keep food hot at a tailgate.
How much beer cheese dip for 20 people?
Double it for about 24: 12 tbsp butter, ¾ cup flour, 3 cups beer or broth, 3 cups milk, 2 lb cheddar, 1 lb Monterey Jack and double the seasonings, plus 4 bags of pretzel bites. Heat it in 2 pans and put the second one on when the first is half gone.
Why is my beer cheese grainy?
Usually it's pre-shredded cheese or heat that's too high. Shred your own from the block, keep the heat low once the cheese goes in, and add it a handful at a time.
Gear for this cook
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