White Queso, also known as Mexican Cheese Dip, is a creamy, cheesy dip made with a blend of cheeses, green chilies, evaporated milk and a few spices.
This white cheese dip mimics the white queso dip served at your favorite Mexican restaurants.
White Queso Recipe
This queso blanco dip is smooth, indulgent and is ready in as little as 20 minutes. Serve this queso recipe with crispy tortilla chips, veggies, or fresh and warm tortillas.
Here are a few more of my popular queso recipes: Salsa Con Queso, Smoked Queso, Rotel Dip, and Choriqueso.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Here are the main ingredients needed to make Mexican cheese dip, and substitution ideas.
- Green Chilies – canned or fresh green chiles work. Use your favorite. Of course you can always roast peppers at home.
- Cheese – I use a mix of American Cheese and Pepper Jack Cheese, but there are many cheese options to consider, including white cheddar or mozzarella. Velveeta Queso Blanco is a great substitute for American Cheese.
- Evaporated Milk – this is used to melt the cheese and thin out the queso. You can sub in half and half, if needed.
Serving vessels: Besides tortilla chips and veggies, try serving it with pork rinds, crackers, baguettes, pretzel bites, or pita chips.
White queso is known for its smooth texture, but it can still turn grainy if overheated – see how to prevent grainy queso for simple tips.
For the smoothest results, follow these tips on how to keep queso smooth to maintain a creamy, restaurant-style texture.
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White Cheese Dip Uses
Queso isn’t just a dip! You can use it in many other recipes, especially Mexican recipes.
- Taco Recipes
- Arepa Con Queso Filling
- Carne Asada Recipes
- Queso Chicken
- Cheese Quesadilla
- Queso Burger (Recipe coming soon)
Tips For Making Mexican Cheese Dip
- You must shred the cheese! Do not buy pre-shredded cheese, as it doesn’t melt as well. Check out my list of the best cheeses for queso for a list of great options.
- Keep the heat to low. When cheese heats too quickly it will get grainy and ruin the silky texture of this white queso recipe.
- Queso naturally thickens quickly as it cools. To avoid this, transfer the cooked queso dip to a slow cooker set to warm immediately after cooking.
White Queso
Ingredients
- ½ lbs white American cheese (*Note 1)
- ½ lbs pepper jack cheese (*Note 2)
- 1 12 oz can evaporated milk
- 1 4.5 oz can chopped green chiles, drained
- ½ tsp cumin
- ⅛ tsp garlic powder
- ⅙ tsp salt
- 1 pinch cayenne (*Note 3)
GARNISH AND SERVING IDEAS
- tortilla chips, bread or veggies, for serving
- chopped fresh cilantro, tomato and jalapeños, for garnish
Instructions
- Add the American cheese, pepper jack cheese and evaporated milk to a medium-size saucepan over low heat. Do not use a higher temperature as the cheese will be gritty. Stir until the cheese is melted and smooth.
- Add the green chiles, garlic powder, cumin, salt and cayenne and stir to combine.
- Remove from the heat, top with garnishes and serve with tortilla chips. To maintain the proper texture, transfer to a small slow cooker and keep on warm. (*Note 4)