Chile Con Queso
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Whip up my restaurant-quality chile con queso at home—a dish so deliciously creamy, cheesy and perfectly spiced, it’ll have everyone enthusiastically double dipping!
Every week, it’s the same story: my kids make a big pitch for take-out from their favorite Mexican place. They’re absolutely crazy about the food there, especially the chile con queso, a warm dip made from melted cheese, spices, and chilies. I’ve taken a few stabs at recreating this elusive queso at home, suspecting the secret might be a Velveeta-style cheese block (not exactly my go-to ingredient). But my culinary experiments were always met with a chorus of “too fancy” from my critics.
Determined not to be outdone by a block of processed cheese, I finally hit the jackpot with a recipe that’s a win-win for both my kids and me. This chile con queso is rich and creamy with just the right touch of spice. It’s perfect for scooping up with tortilla chips and makes a generous amount for a crowd. Enjoy it warm from the stove, and watch it disappear as quickly as it came together!
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Queso
I developed this recipe using pre-shredded cheese from a bag for ease and convenience, as it saves the effort of grating cheese by hand. Note that pre-shredded cheese is coated with anti-caking agents to prevent clumping, which incidentally aids in thickening the queso, resulting in a perfectly smooth and creamy texture ideal for dipping.
Should you choose to grate the cheese yourself, I recommend increasing the butter and flour in the recipe to 3 tablespoons each. This adjustment compensates for the lack of anti-caking agents in freshly shredded cheese, ensuring your queso still achieves that wonderfully rich and creamy consistency.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Melt the 2 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
Add the 2 tablespoons of flour.
Cook, whisking constantly, for about 1 minute.
Add the 2 cups half-and-half to the pot and whisk until evenly combined. Bring to a simmer and cook until thickened, a few minutes.
Turn the heat down to low and gradually add the 2 cups grated cheese, whisking and letting it melt as you go, until all of the cheese is incorporated.
Stir in ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon chili powder, ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, ¼ teaspoon cumin, ¼ teaspoon garlic powder, ¼ teaspoon onion powder, and 1 cup diced tomatoes and green chilies. The mixture may seem a bit thick at first, but it will thin out slightly as the tomatoes warm in the sauce.
Add the 1 tablespoon cilantro, if using, then taste and adjust seasoning if necessary; for more heat, add more cayenne pepper.
Transfer the queso to a bowl and serve warm with tortilla chips. If the dip cools while you’re serving it, you can reheat it in the microwave; just stop and stir at short intervals so it reheats evenly.
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Chile Con Queso
Whip up my restaurant-quality chile con queso at home—a dish so deliciously creamy, cheesy and perfectly spiced, it’ll have everyone enthusiastically double dipping!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups half-and-half
- 2 cups (8 oz) Mexican blend shredded cheese from a bag (I use Tillamook; see note)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 cup canned diced tomatoes and green chiles, such as Rotel (from a 10-oz can)
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped cilantro (optional)
- Tortilla chips, for serving
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, whisking constantly, for about 1 minute. Add the half & half and whisk until evenly combined. Bring to a simmer and cook until thickened, a few minutes. Turn the heat down to low and gradually add the grated cheese, whisking and letting it melt as you go, until all of the cheese is incorporated. Stir in the salt, chili powder, cayenne pepper, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, diced tomatoes and green chilies, and cilantro (if using). The mixture may seem a bit thick at first, but it will thin out slightly as the tomatoes and peppers release their juices. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary; for more heat, add more cayenne pepper. If the dip seems too thick, you can thin it out with a bit more half & half or some milk. Transfer the queso to a bowl and serve warm with tortilla chips. If the dip cools while you're serving it, you can reheat it in the microwave; just stop and stir at short intervals so it reheats evenly.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: The queso can be made up to 3 days ahead of time and reheated on the stovetop. If it's too thick, add a bit of half and half or milk to thin it out.
- Note: I developed this recipe using pre-shredded cheese from a bag for ease and convenience, as it saves the effort of grating cheese by hand. An important aspect to note is that pre-shredded cheese is coated with anti-caking agents to prevent clumping, which incidentally aids in thickening the queso, resulting in a perfectly smooth and creamy texture ideal for dipping. Should you choose to grate the cheese yourself, I recommend increasing the butter and flour in the recipe to 3 tablespoons each. This adjustment compensates for the lack of anti-caking agents in freshly shredded cheese, ensuring your queso still achieves that wonderfully rich and creamy consistency.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Serving size: 1/4 cup
- Calories: 233
- Fat: 19 g
- Saturated fat: 11 g
- Carbohydrates: 7 g
- Sugar: 4 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 9 g
- Sodium: 303 mg
- Cholesterol: 57 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Fun fact: cooling cheese does harden a bit, guys.
I didn’t want to buy a fake, shelved product for a dish I was making (who knows what they put in those!) so I substituted with this recipe. It was FANTASTIC! We followed these instructions, and it turned out perfect the first time. It tasted great! My family was eating it straight from the pot before I’d even served it. Would definitely make many more times.
Delightful and perfect! So excited to find this recipe and this blog. Easy to make and much better ingredients than most queso recipes. We’ll done!
This queso had really great flavor! On flavor it’s for sure a 5 but for our liking it was too thick which is why I’m giving it a 4. Perhaps adding some milk in addition to the half and half will help and that’s what I will try next time. I also recommend serving in something that keeps warm so that the cheese doesn’t stiffen up too quickly! I will be trying again- thank you for another wonderful recipe!
Hi Jen, this sounds yummy! I want to make it for a super bowl party on Sunday, do you think it would be ok if I made it today and kept it in the fridge?
Sure – just reheat it in the microwave. Enjoy!
Made this for friends, who asked for the recipe!
Can this be kept warm in a small crock pot?
Sure!
I’d love to try this recipe, but I’m wondering if I can use whole milk or fat free milk instead of the half and half?
Hi Dee, I think is best with half and half, but whole milk should work too. Enjoy!
Made this queso based on reviews. I agree with another reviewer, it tasted bland, weird texture. My son said it tastes like cheese for fondue, which I have to agree. It tastes more like a fondue base rather than queso.
Tastes more like an alfredo sauce…… should’ve read some of the reviews before I made it. It doesn’t taste like texmex queso I was hoping for.
Made this for a party and it was a big hit! I added cayenne pepper instead of red pepper flakes for more kick.
Mine comes out grainy/powder tasting.
Hmmm, I wonder if perhaps the cheese wasn’t melted quite enough or the flour was a bit clumpy?
Using packaged grated cheese rather then grating a block of cheese will find the sauce grainy from the chemicals in the packaged cheese to prevent the grated cheese from clumping in the package
Yep….I think they use too much flour. Other similar recipes call for half as much flour….one even uses 2tbs corn starch instead of flour.