Cheese sauce with cornflour (cornstarch) is an easy way to make a healthy, gluten-free cheese sauce. It's quick, with an all-in-one method, which makes a smooth lump-free sauce with just three everyday ingredients. There's no flour, no roux and no butter, so this healthier cheese sauce is much lower in fat.
Jump to:
Why make cornflour cheese sauce?
Using cornflour to make cheese sauce means the sauce is lower in fat, gluten-free and very easy to make.
- Using cornflour means that there is no butter in the recipe. A flour-thickened sauce needs fat to help it incorporate smoothly into the liquid. A conventional béchamel sauce recipe uses an equal amount of butter and flour to thicken the sauce. This healthy cornstarch cheese sauce without butter is much lower in fat. It contains a third of the fat of a conventional recipe, yet tastes deliciously cheesy.
- Cornflour is naturally gluten-free. So this is a super easy way to make a tasty gluten-free cheese sauce.
- It's much easier to make a sauce with cornflour. Provided that you remember the golden rule to add the cornflour to a cold liquid, it's very easy to make a smooth sauce with no lumps. Cornflour also cooks quickly, so your sauce will be ready in a few minutes.
There's scarcely a week that goes by that I don't make either this cornflour cheese sauce or healthy white sauce. It's transformed my everyday cooking as it's so much easier and healthier than a bechamel and I use them both regularly to incorporate into easy, healthy family meals!
Ingredients
Cornflour. Cornflour is a fine white powder made from the starchy kernel of corn. In the US and some other countries, it's known as cornstarch.
Cornflour is different to cornmeal, which is used to make cornbread and tortillas.
In most supermarkets, cornflour is found in the baking aisle near products such as baking powder and bicarbonate of soda.
Milk. You can use any kind of milk to make this recipe. As cheese is high in fat, I prefer to balance this by using skimmed milk, but you can use whole milk if you prefer, or a dairy-free alternative.
Cheese. Use a strong-tasting cheese to make this healthy cheese sauce to give a good flavour. I think mature or extra-mature cheddar cheese makes the best cheese sauce.
You could also use parmesan if you prefer, or a vegan cheese.
Red Leicester or Double Gloucester adds a beautiful, rich colour to the sauce, but it will be less cheesy as it's not so strong in flavour.
Gouda or Gruyère can also be used in this cheese sauce as they melt well and have a good flavour.
For a lower-fat cheese sauce, use a reduced-fat, lighter mature cheddar.
Seasoning. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remember that cheese is quite salty, so taste the sauce before you add too much salt.
I also like to add mustard powder as it brings out the delicious cheesy flavour. You can also add nutritional yeast to enhance the cheesiness.
Or you could use a teaspoon of wholegrain mustard. Otherwise, some grated nutmeg will also enhance the flavour of the sauce.
How to make healthy cheese sauce with cornflour
Simply add the cold milk, cornflour (cornstarch) and seasoning to a cold pan.
Place over a medium heat, and stir constantly. As the mix comes up to the boil, it will start to thicken. Simmer for a minute or two and turn off the heat.
Add the grated cheese whilst the sauce is still hot and stir until melted. Voilà - it's ready to enjoy!
This recipe will make a fairly thick sauce. If you'd prefer a slightly thinner sauce, simply stir in a little more milk.
Storage and serving tips
This healthy, gluten free cheese sauce with cornflour will keep well in the fridge for a couple of days if you want to prepare it ahead of time. It may thicken more as it chills, so give it a stir and add a little more milk if necessary.
This quick and easy homemade cheese sauce is a useful, versatile sauce. It transforms veggies into a delicious, comforting meal and the milk and cheese in the recipe adds extra protein to help fill you up. This healthy cauliflower cheese recipe is a great way to get kids (and adults!) to eat an extra portion of veg.
Cornstarch cheese sauce also makes a quick, healthy pasta dish (mac and cheese anyone??). Why not try this tuna and sweetcorn pasta bake with gluten free cheese sauce, which is an easy midweek storecupboard meal?
Cheese sauce is also good as a tasty dip for breadsticks and crudités.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Just stir in a little more milk, a tablespoon at a time until you get the desired consistency.
If you need to add more cornflour to thicken your sauce, add it to a little cold milk first, then add this slurry mixture to the sauce. Bring it back up to the boil again, stirring constantly.
If you have a recipe which calls for a pint of cheese sauce, then you'll need 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon of cornflour to thicken a pint of milk for the sauce.
No, if you use cornflour, you can make cheese sauce without a roux. A roux is a method where flour is mixed with fat to help make a smooth sauce. But cornflour mixes easily into a sauce without fat.
This cheese sauce is made without flour and is gluten free. Cornflour is unrelated to wheat flour, and contains no gluten.
Yes, you can make macaroni cheese (or mac and cheese) with cornflour cheese sauce. Cook the pasta, and mix in the sauce. Top with a little more grated cheese and/or breadcrumbs for crunch. Maybe add some cooked peas or broccoli as well. Pop into a hot oven or under the grill until browned and bubbling.
Other healthy sauce recipes
You might also like to try these other healthy sauce recipes. They are all gluten-free and quick and easy to make.
If you loved this easy, healthy recipe please leave a rating and comment at the bottom of the page. Your email will not be published.
Your feedback and questions are much appreciated.
You can also follow me on Pinterest and Facebook.
Why not subscribe to the newsletter to receive free delicious healthy recipes straight to your inbox?
Recipe
Healthy Gluten Free Cheese Sauce with Cornflour
Ingredients
- 450 ml milk
- 2 tablespoon cornflour
- 50 g grated strong cheese
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the cold milk, cornflour and seasoning to a cold pan and mix well.450 ml milk, 2 tablespoon cornflour, ½ teaspoon mustard powder, salt and pepper to taste
- Place on a medium heat. Bring to the boil whilst stirring constantly. The sauce will start to thicken. Simmer for a minute then remove from the heat.
- Add the grated cheese whilst the sauce is still hot, and stir until thoroughly mixed.50 g grated strong cheese
- If you'd prefer the sauce a little thinner, add a splash more milk and stir again.
Notes
- Note that cornflour is known as cornstarch in the US and some other countries. It is not the same of the kind of corn flour or corn meal which is used to make cornbread and tortillas.
- A strong flavoured mature cheddar cheese is ideal for this sauce. You could also use parmesan, or a strong flavoured swiss cheese.
- You can use skimmed or full fat milk, dairy or non dairy. The calorie count is for skimmed milk
- Cheese sauce with cornflour will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Nutrition
Please note nutritional information is per serving and is provided for guidance only.
Jay says
Made half quantity but increased ratio of cheese for cauliflower cheese, in fridge ready to reheat tomorrow but had a taste, delicious. I’ve always known that cornflower makes an easy white sauce but afraid to use it for savoury because of all the emphasis on making a rue, think I’ll try it for Turkey/chicken pie
Wendy Faulkner says
Thank you for your comment. I've used this cheese sauce in chicken and vegetable pies and it works well.
Sonjha says
Added mushroom and garlic for a fantastic tasty sauce to add to pasta 🤤
Wendy Faulkner says
Sounds delicious, thank you:)
Hilary Roden says
Fine as a basic sauce BUT please use metric measurements , not a mixture of inaccurate US and very accurate grams. Also not enough cheese!!
Wendy Faulkner says
Hi, thanks for your comment. You can certainly add extra cheese to the sauce, and of course the flavour also depends on the strength of your cheese. I tend to use measuring spoons for smaller quantities as I think it's easier, especially for people with analogue scales.
Belle says
Hey Wendy.
Nice, easy recipe.
I’m an Australian short order cook and cake baker/decorator…there is absolutely nothing wrong with using spoon measurements for smaller quantities and grams and millilitres for all other ingredients.
Just shocked at some people’s comments.
Making the sauce tonight.
Thank you
Wendy Faulkner says
Thank you:) I hope you enjoy the cheese sauce.
Shelley says
Hi The colmans mustard has got wheat flour in, I use whole grain that doesn’t tend to have it in, but always check if you have wheat intolerance 😀
Wendy Faulkner says
Thank you, that's really helpful. It's a shame they don't use rice flour as standard! In some countries it is GF, but it is very inconsistent so it's definitely worth checking all labels carefully.
Jane says
Absolutely brilliant thankyou so much best ever easy to make and tastes fantastic x
Wendy Faulkner says
Aw, thank you so much:)
Sharon says
Hi this sauce is quick and easy and so delicious 😋 Thanks Cheers
Wendy says
Thanks for your feedback, great to hear:)
natasha says
Hi 🙂
Do we have to sue mustard powerder
Wendy says
Hi there, it's not essential so feel free to leave it out.
Isla says
So easy to make and delicious thank you.
Wendy says
So glad you like the recipe, thanks for your comment.