Chili Mac and Cheese
Chili mac and cheese is a simple one pot dinner that combines two of the most beloved, cozy comfort foods: chili and macaroni and cheese.😍
Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- 1 pound ground beef
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 onion diced
- 4 cups beef stock
- 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes undrained
- 1 can kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 4 ounces green chilies (small, 4 ounce can)
- 1 Tablespoon chili powder
- 1 Tablespoon cumin
- salt and pepper to taste
- 16 ounces elbow macaroni pasta
- 1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped green onion
Instructions
-
Brown the ground beef and onions over medium high heat until crumbly, about 8 minutes.
-
Add garlic and cook one minute more.
-
Drain off grease, if desired. I sometimes skip this step if I use extra lean (85/15 or leaner).
-
To the meat mixture, add the tomatoes, beans, green chilies, beef stock, cumin, chili powder and pasta; stir together, and bring mixture to a boil over medium high heat.
-
Once the mixture starts to simmer, stir it, reduce the heat to medium low, cover the pot with a lid, and cook until pasta is tender, about 8 minutes*. Stir and recover several times (2 or 3 times) to prevent pasta from sticking to the pot.
-
When the pasta looks done, remove the pot from the heat, stir it one last time to mix it all together. If it looks too liquid-y, leave it uncovered a few minutes and stir to allow some of the liquid to evaporate/ absorb into the pasta.
-
Top with cheese, and re cover to allow the cheese to melt for 3 to 5 minutes.
-
Serve immediately.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- I used small elbow macaroni. You can substitute large elbow macaroni (or other pasta shape), but it will need to cook longer (see pasta package instructions), and it may or may not need an extra splash of broth.
- Recipe makes 10 regular servings or 8 large, hearty servings. Nutrition information is for 10 servings.
-
Nutritional information is approximate and was calculated using a recipe nutrition label generator.