Why It Works
- A food-processor dough keeps the butter in small, cold pieces, creating a short, tender, ultra-crisp texture that’s impossible to achieve with puff pastry or hand-mixed dough.
- Finely shredding the Cheddar ensures even distribution without disrupting the butter structure.
Cheese straws are a Southern specialty that inspire fervent devotion. “Along with pecan tassies and pepper jelly with cream cheese,” crispy, buttery cheese straws are an absolute must at Southern holiday parties,” says Serious Eats associate editorial director, Megan O. Steintrager, who grew up in North Carolina. Many families have their preferred style—some whisper-thin and delicate, others sturdy enough to survive a picnic basket—and it’s common for cooks to swear theirs is the only proper way to make them. But the non-negotiables are universal: They should be boldly cheesy, lightly crisp, a little flaky, and just spicy enough to keep you reaching back into the tin. This recipe, developed by our Texas-raised colleague Jasmine Smith in our Birmingham, Alabama, test kitchen, hit all those marks in a way that feels classic but not fussy.
While it may be tempting to reach for a box of frozen puff pastry for an easy shortcut, we wanted a cheese straw that was crispier, crunchier, and unapologetically cheesier than anything store-bought dough could deliver. Instead, this version relies on a simpler, more reliable technique: a food processor dough that rolls out easily and cuts cleanly into long, graceful strips. Buzzing the flour, finely shredded extra-sharp cheddar, seasonings, and cold butter together gives you a dough that bakes up short and tender—think the grown-up cousin of a Goldfish cracker, with a buttery snap and actual cheese flavor. Twisting the strips before baking adds a little visual flourish, but more importantly, it creates crisp ridges and pockets where the flavor concentrates.
A few rounds of testing dialed in the texture and shape. Jasmine found that too much baking powder caused the straws to puff dramatically and lose their elegant lines, so the amount is kept deliberately low. Strip width turned out to matter more than expected: 1/2-inch twists tended to break, and 1-inch pieces ballooned; 3/4inch was the sweet spot for both structure and ease of handling. Finely shredding the cheese (rather than using large shreds) ensures it integrates smoothly into the dough without disrupting the butter pieces that are key to flakiness.
With a touch of garlic powder to boost the cheese and a whisper of cayenne for warmth, these bake up deeply savory and hard to stop eating. Serve them with cocktails, sweet tea, or just straight off the rack—you’ll understand why Southerners love their cheese straws so fiercely.
This recipe was developed by Jasmine Smith; The headnote was written by Leah Colins.
