Chili Mac and Cheese tastes like your favourite Chili – with the added cheesy goodness of Mac & Cheese! Sensational ground beef dinner recipe that’s on the table in just over 20 minutes – and it’s all made in one pot. It’s truly fabulously delicious!
On the table in just over 20 minutes, made with beef mince, pasta, beans, canned tomatoes, everyday spices, and some kind of cheese, it’s sinfully scrumptious!
Chili Mac and Cheese
There’s plenty of food mash ups in the world. Like pizza – it seems like there is a pizza-everything: tacos, casserole, dips, soup, pie, pasta, cake.
I’m not above doing mash ups. I’ll do them when combining two recipes brings something else to the dish, rather than doing them just for the sake of being “cool” or “out there”. I’m beyond the years of playing with food for the sake of being trendy, I just want it to be tasty!
So – Chili Mac and Cheese. A cross between Chili and Mac and Cheese, all made in one pot. The sauce flavour is like beef Chilli Con Carne, with the addition of macaroni and cheesy goodness stirred into it as well as on top.
SO GOOD!!!
Yes, you can freeze Chili Mac!
Cool, then freeze in airtight container for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in fridge then reheat in microwave until steamy, stir well. I like to sprinkle extra cheese on then pop it back in the microwave. This Chili Mac recipe freezes well because it’s a saucy, juicy version!
What goes in Chili Mac and Cheese
Here’s what you need. Nothing unusual here!
My Chili Mac is made with a homemade Chili Powder. What’s known as “Chili Powder” in the US is actually a spice mix, not just pure chili, and it varies from brand to brand. It’s not sold here in Australia, though I’ve always got a stash because I stock up when I travel to the States.
So I prefer to make my own – for consistency of flavour, no matter where you are in the world!
How to make it
Chili Mac and Cheese is completely made in one pot. Start the usual way – sautéing garlic and onion to create the flavour base – add the beef, the spices and everything else. The pasta will cook while the sauce thickens, and a mere 15 minutes later, you’ll have dinner on the table!
I love a cosy one-pot pasta like Chili Mac. It’s a firm favourite alongside Cheeseburger Casserole (Homemade Hamburger Helper!), One Pot Vegetable Pasta and One Pot Spaghetti Bolognese!
I love how the macaroni sucks up all the flavour as it cooks in the sauce. And the fact that there’s only one pot to clean up is certainly a big plus!! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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One Pot Chili Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 onion , finely chopped
- 1 red capsicum / bell pepper , chopped
- 500g / 1 lb ground beef (mince) , I use lean
- 800g / 28 oz crushed canned tomato
- 420g / 14 oz can red kidney beans , drained
- 2 1/2 cups (625 ml) beef broth (chicken broth also ok)
- 250g / 8 oz elbow macaroni pasta (elbow pasta), uncooked
- 2 cups (200g) shredded cheese (cheddar, Monterey Jack, tasty cheese)
- 1/4 cup coriander / cilantro finely chopped, for garnish
Spices (Homemade Chili Powder):
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or pure chilli powder (adjust spiciness to taste) (Note 1)
- 2 tsp paprika powder
- 2 tsp cumin powder
- 1 1/2 tsp onion powder (can sub garlic powder)
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Heat oil in large pot over high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 1 minute. Then add capsicum and cook until onion is translucent.
- Add beef and cook, breaking it up as you go.
- Once the beef turns from red to brown, add remaining ingredients except cheese. Stir, bring to simmer, then turn the heat down to medium.
- Cover and cook for 12 minutes or until the macaroni is al dente, meaning just cooked, still a tiny bit on the firm side. It should be saucy but not tons of liquid (see video).
- Turn the stove OFF but leave the pot on the stove. Stir through half the cheese – it should be a bit saucy. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Top with remaining cheese, put the lid back on and leave until the cheese melts – about 2 minutes (sauce will absorb further during this period).
- Sprinkle with coriander, if desired, and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Chili Mac recipe originally published October 2017. Updated October 2019 with new photos, brand new video and spruced up the writing. No change to recipe – I wouldn’t dare!
And some more handy quick-meal one pot recipes for you
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Life of Dozer
The other day, he spent the better part of the morning buried under the blanket like this. Whether he was cold, or trying to hide (I can’t see you, so you can’t see me….)?? 🤷🏻♀️🤷🏻♀️🤷🏻♀️
And Life of Dozer from the first time I published this recipe in 2017:
{I was in Fiji with friends at the time!} Usually when I travel, Dozer goes to stay with his “family” with a golden retriever boarder. He thunders around the house, rumbles with his friends, and generally completely forgets all about me.
Unfortunately, he’s a bit lame at the moment (nothing serious, just pulled a muscle from excessive beach craziness) so I left him with my mother for some quiet healing time.
Apparently, this is how he’s spending his day. 😢
Fantastic. 5 stars. A little too much cheese for me but perfect for the mac and cheese feel.
I was confused by your description as it being “terrifically moorish”, and turns out you may have invented a new phrase! 😛
Chili mac is a favorite in our house, so good!
Pushed this up a level by adding sliced jalapeños early and finishing like a normal Mac Cheese with a crispy top. Cooked end to end in a Dutch oven.
Nagi, you feature so much in my cooking these last few years. Thank you from the bottom of my extended belly🤣
This was phenomenal as is!
I used venice for our meat, taste was delicious but it was a little too watery. Will try again tho
I usually turn my nose up at Chilli mac but I never thought of doing this way. Whole different ballpark than left over mac and a can of chilli
I’m in the UK and Nagi has become one of my favourite chefs. None of her recipes have ever failed me and I tell everyone about her. I love that she does a video showing how she cooks the recipe first, and she also adds so much information and tips into her recipes. Everything she makes is straightforward and so tasty. I love her. 🙌
Wanted to comment because I’ve been making this recipe at least once a month for a couple years now! We love it!!
The ultimate comfort food! Yummy. I had leftover spaghetti sauce with ground beef in the fridge, so this was even easier and faster. I used a can of chilli beans too, so I tweaked the spice amounts a little. Thanks for this keeper.
Such a great easy dinner! We were wanting a cozy fall meal and this was just that! My boyfriend kept raving about it.
Soooo yummy. And fast! Perfect quick meal.
I’ve made this recipe several times as written, and it’s always delicious. Today I made it exactly as written, but with some garden substitutions. It was equally delicious! Instead of canned tomatoes, I had a counter full of tomatillos from my garden. So I roasted them with some garden peppers in the oven, blended them in a food processor and substituted it for the tomatoes. I also stirred in some fresh corn at the end. Otherwise, the amounts of all other ingredients were the same.
Easy and very beautiful.
Where I live, in the upper Midwest part of the States, this is called “American Goulash”, and sometimes just “Goulash”. You can look for a recipe for goulash and get something totally unexpected.
Awesome recipe! The chili Mac came out great!
Great easy recipe, I love a one pot meal. I love your recipes Nagi but I did have to increase the spices. I’m not fond of the kapow of cayenne so only put in a quarter teaspoon. To increase the chilli and spice too I added a 2 -3 teaspoons of Masterfoods Mexican chilli ( a mix of chilli, cumin etc.) then it was amazing. Topped with lots of fresh coriander and a blob of sour cream. Superb.
Snowy day here in Michigan (U.S.). This was perfect “comfort food.” This is definitely a ‘keeper”.
What a perfect recipe for a chilly Friday night. I read the ingredients wrong and only got 15 oz canned tomatoes. This recipe is so forgiving, all I did was add a little extra water and spices, and it worked out just fine. Also used impossible meat. So grateful for you and your recipes Nagi! Xoxo
Can I make this with GF pasta? I was considering making the pasta separate so I can control the texture. GF pasta cooks differently than normal pasta and gets gross when mushy. I guess I would just either omit entirely the beef stock or cut it down to 1/4 the amount called for. Not sure though. Thoughts?
Excellent as written. No need to change one thing about it. It was delicious, could eat the whole pot in one sitting! Lol.