Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese

Course: Main Course, Main Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: buffalo chicken mac and cheese, buffalo mac and cheese, homemade mac and cheese recipe

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 20

Total Time: 35

Servings:

Calories: 492kcal

Author: Chef Jessica Anne

Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese is a quick and spicy baked mac and cheese recipe the whole family will love. Perfect as a potluck recipe or for a BBQ side dish!

Print Recipe

Equipment

Whisk

Ingredients

1 pound elbow macaroni
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon dried minced onion
½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground white pepper
¼ cup flour
1 1/2 cup milk (2% or whole)
½ cup Buffalo Sauce (hot plain hot sauce)
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese , grated
2 cups cooked chicken , shredded or chopped
2 tablespoons seasoned bread crumbs
2 tablespoons blue cheese crumbles , optional
1 tablespoon parsley , minced, optional
Celery and Carrot Sticks

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 9X9 baking dish with cooking spray.
Cook elbow pasta according to package directions for “al dente”. Drain and set aside.
In the same large pot, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the dried minced onion, kosher salt and white pepper. Stir until the butter is melted.
Whisk in the flour until a paste forms. Slowly add the milk to form a thick cream, then add a little more until all milk is added and there are no flour lumps.
Add the buffalo sauce, whisking until combined, then whisk in the cheese and mayonnaise, whisking until combined.
Fold in cooked pasta and chicken.
Transfer the contents to the prepared baking dish and top with seasoned bread crumbs.
Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Change to low broil to brown the bread crumbs.
Remove, top with blue cheese crumbles and parsley, if desired.
Serve hot with celery and carrot sticks.
If you've tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comments or ratings.

Notes

*For easy shredded chicken, use a store-bought rotisserie chicken or canned chicken, drained. Variations: Substitute chicken for cut up hot dogs or ground beef (cooked and drained) ½ teaspoon smoked paprika ½ cup sun dried tomatoes ½ cup bacon ½ cup peas ½ cup celery or carrots, chopped ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Nutrition