This Spicy Beer Cheese Dip is like a cross between a spicy queso dip and a flavorful Welsh rarebit. It's delicious with tortilla chips or crackers.
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Welsh Rarebit is made with Cheddar, ale, mustard, sometimes egg, and it is served over toast. (Does anyone else call it Welsh Rabbit? Silly, but fun!) Queso is smoother and lighter tasting, usually with a spicy kick and great for digging into with tortilla chips.
Why am I telling you this? Because Both dips are cheesy- amazing and I decided to bring elements of each one together to make this delicious Spicy Beer Cheese Dip! It's full of flavor, melty, and spicy.
Why you'll love this recipe
The base for this dip includes a Pilsner or light lager beer, then melted Cheddar and Jack cheeses to make a smooth and savory sauce. A hefty dose of green chiles and seasonings bring a spicy kick. It's a really addictive dip!
You can enjoy it like a Welsh rarebit by enjoying it with toast points. (Slices of bread with crusts removed, toasted until very crisp, and cut into triangles.) Pita chips, crackers, fresh veggies, and, of course, tortilla chips are all very good with this spicy cheese dip, too!
🔪 How to make Spicy Beer Cheese Dip
Ingredients:
- Beer: I use a pilsner or lager for this cheese dip
- Cheese: A blend of cheddar and Jack cheeses
- Butter: It's used to make the roux base of this dip
- Flour: Also part of the roux
- Milk: Can't have a cheese sauce with milk!
- Green chiles: The little cans of diced green chiles
- Spices: Salt, onion powder, and cayenne pepper
- Worcestershire Sauce: Adds a savory flavor that's just made to be paired with cheese
Step 1: Make a roux
Melt butter in a large saucepan, then whisk in some flour. Cook this roux for a short time, then whisk in some milk and then the beer.
Step 2: Add the cheeses and seasonings
Stir the cheese into the beer-butter mixture, and stir until the cheeses are melted and everything looks smooth. Stir in diced chiles and the seasonings.
Step 3: Serve!
Pour the cheese dip into a serving dish, and scatter diced scallions over the top, with an extra dash of cayenne if you want. Serve it with tortilla chips, crackers, toast points, or fresh veggies.
We love this dip with a couple of cold beers, especially Puerto Rico's Medalla Light when we can get our hands on it!
The recipe for the Spicy Beer Cheese Dip is below, and here are more appetizer ideas, too:
💬 So how much did you like this dip? Leave a comment down below, and let me know!
Spicy Beer Cheese Dip
Ingredients
- ¼ cup butter
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour, unbleached
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 12 ounces light lager or pilsner beer
- 4 ounces sharp Cheddar cheese, cut into small cubes
- 4 ounces Jack cheese, cut into small cubes
- 2 tablespoons diced green chiles
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- Garnish: diced scallions, dash of cayenne pepper
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. When it just begins to bubble, add in the flour to make a roux. Stir to combine the ingredients and cook the roux over medium heat for about 1 minute.
- Whisk in the 2 tablespoons of milk. Pour in the the pilsner, and stir to combine the ingredients.
- Stir the mixture over medium heat until it just begins to simmer and has thickened. Remove the pan from the heat.
- Add in the Cheddar and Jack cheeses. Stir until the cheeses have melted and the mixture is smooth.
- Add in the chiles, salt, onion powder and Worcestershire sauce and whisk them in completely.
- Pour the cheese dip into a heatproof serving dish.
- Garnish with chopped scallions and a sprinkle of cayenne. Serve the cheese dip while warm, with tortilla chips, pita chips or toast points.
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