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Chili Mac (One Skillet Meal!)

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Pasta recipes like chili mac are perfect when you need a satisfying meal without a lot of fuss. Our chili mac fits the bill every time. A hearty variation on mac and cheese, chili mac uses pantry ingredients to spice up a beloved, classic meal. Once your family tries our chili mac recipe, you’ll be making it on repeat!

Oh, and it’s quick to make so it’s fabulous for a weeknight meal. This recipe for One-Skillet Cheesy Chili Mac recipe is really a dream come true!

Let’s get started!

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Why It’s Great!
Recipe Notes
Recipe Variations
Similar Recipes

A spoonful of Chili Mac

What I Love About This Recipe

Loaded with pasta, meat and cheese, this recipe will satisfy every appetite. Here are just a few of the things that make our chili mac recipe a keeper:

  • Rich, savory flavor
  • Cooks in under an hour
  • Kid-friendly
  • Budget-conscious
  • One skillet for easy cleanup

Chili Mac and Cheese Recipe Notes

Chili mac recipe is full of flavor in every bite, thanks to a rich chili sauce that comes together in well under an hour. Chili mac is an easy one-pot meal that you’ll appreciate on busy evenings.

Stovetop Mac and Cheese Ingredient Notes

Stovetop mac and cheese is a favorite in so many homes because it’s easy and delicious. Here are some tips to help you make the best chili mac recipe.

Noodles: We use elbow macaroni because the hollow shape allows the sauce to nestle inside each noodle. Any short pasta with ridges will work, though. Be sure to keep the same ratio of noodles to the sauce if you’re adjusting the recipe. You want to be sure the pasta has enough liquid to cook properly.

Tomato Sauce: When choosing a tomato sauce for chili mac recipe, be sure to check the label. Many varieties have added salt, so you may want to decrease the amount of salt you add. Adjust the seasoning after you’ve tasted it.

Some types of tomato sauce also have added herbs like basil. We recommend the plain sauce so you can control which flavors go into the dish.

Cheese: If you don’t have a Mexican cheese blend on hand, shredded cheddar or Colby are great substitutes. If your family likes spicier chili, pepper jack cheese would be a fun addition too.

Meat: Because chili mac is so flavorful, ground turkey or a plant-based substitute will be just as delicious as ground beef.

Onion: Yellow onions have a mild flavor that most kids don’t mind. If you like a more pronounced onion flavor, red or white varieties will work nicely here.

Chili Powder: Most pre-mixed chili powders have added salt as one of the first ingredients. However, there are a few brands on the market that don’t contain any salt. Be sure to check the label so you can adjust your added salt accordingly.

Toasting the Spices: Don’t forget to add the spices while you’re cooking the onion. Doing it at this point reduces the harshness of the chili powder.

Generally, when you’re making a big pot of chili, you don’t need to do this because you cook the chili for quite a bit longer than this dish is cooked. The longer cooking process does the same thing.

Chili Mac on a plate

Storing Tips

As with most leftover food, be sure to cover the chili mac tightly so it doesn’t dry out in the fridge. A plastic or glass container with a tightly-fitting lid works best here.

Can You Freeze This?

Most chefs agree that freezing pasta can lead to soggy noodles when they’re reheated. You can avoid this by undercooking the elbow macaroni if you plan to freeze the whole batch.

Try cooking the noodles for just 5 minutes. They will finish cooking when you thaw the chili mac recipe.

Another option is to freeze the meat sauce by itself and add the noodles and cheese after you’ve defrosted it. If you’re making this recipe as part of your meal prep, either method will work to ensure that your chili mac comes out delicious every time.

One Pot Mac And Cheese Make Ahead Tips

If you’re short on time and would like to make one pot mac and cheese in advance, you can brown the meat and make the sauce ahead of time. Cook the noodles in the sauce right before you’re ready to serve your chili mac recipe.

Cooking the noodles too far in advance could lead to them getting mushy when you reheat them. Don’t forget to add the cheese – it brings the dish together.

How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge?

According to USDA guidelines, dishes such as noodle casseroles (like chili mac recipe) can safely last in the refrigerator for 3-5 days once cooked.

Chili Mac on a plate

Recipe Variations

Chili mac is a great dish because it’s so adaptable. Try one of our suggested variations, or make it your own by substituting ingredients your family loves.

Can I Make It Into A Chili Mac Casserole?

To convert chili mac to a tasty baked dish, try our mac and cheese casserole recipe.

What Other Ways Can I Cook This Recipe?

If you need dinner right away, check out instant pot mac and cheese. It’s ready in a snap using your instant pot or pressure cooker. Try our crock pot mac and cheese if you have more time until dinner and need a more hands-off cooking method.

Can I Make This Recipe Cheesier?

You can’t go wrong with more cheese! Our 3 cheese mac and cheese recipe is sure to hit the spot. For the ultimate cheese lover, try this incredible 5 cheese mac and cheese.

What Other Types of Cheeses I Can Use For This Recipe?

For a creamy treat, mac and cheese with cream cheese is a great choice. Do you have picky eaters in the family? Smooth Velveeta mac and cheese will be a hit with everyone.

Can I Add Other Ingredients To This Recipe?

Mac and cheese is perfect for trying different add-ins. Lobster mac and cheese is a decadent alternative to this traditional favorite. If you’re feeling adventurous and like some heat in your meals, try jalapeno mac and cheese.

 

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A spoonful of Chili Mac
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Chili Mac

A variation on mac and cheese, chili mac adds pantry ingredients to a classic meal. Once your family tries chili mac, you'll be making it on repeat!
Prep Time20 mins
Cook Time25 mins
Total Time45 mins
Servings: 4 Servings
Author: Kathleen

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon cumin
  • salt
  • 4 large cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar, packed
  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
  • 8 ounces about 2 cups elbow macaroni
  • 1-8 ounce package shredded Mexican cheese blend
  • black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped

Instructions

  •  In a 12 inch nonstick skillet, add oil and heat until it's shimmering.  Add onion, chili powder, cumin and 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Cook over medium heat until onion is soft, stirring often so spices don't burn, about 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and brown sugar and cook, continuing to stir, so garlic doesn't burn, for about 30 seconds.  Add the ground beef and brown lightly, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon as it cooks, until there is no pink in the meat.
  • Add the water, 3/4 teaspoon salt and tomato sauce to the skillet and stir to mix.  Stir in the pasta and cover, increasing the heat to medium-high.  Cook the mixture, stirring often and adjusting the heat to maintain a vigorous simmer. Continue to cook until the pasta is tender, about 9-12 minutes.
  •  Take the skillet off the heat and add 1 cup of the cheese mixture.  Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste.  Top the skillet with remaining cheese and rest the mixture off the heat a few minutes or until cheese melts.  Sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serve.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/4 of the recipe | Calories: 495kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 77mg | Sodium: 890mg | Potassium: 928mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 825IU | Vitamin C: 5.6mg | Calcium: 108mg | Iron: 5mg
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More Mac and Cheese Recipes

One of the best things about mac and cheese is that there are countless variations. For more delicious mac and cheese ideas, try:

Conclusion

Chili mac is tasty and so satisfying. This savory, spicy variation on stovetop mac and cheese is easy to make and doesn’t leave you with a sink full of dirty dishes. Our chili mac recipe is sure to be popular with your whole family.

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Comments

  1. Fantastic and full of flavor. The only thing I changed was I used Ancho Chili Powder instead of regular. This is a keeper.

    Reply

  2. Absolutely delicious! I knew I was going to like this recipe when I saw your requirement for a tablespoon each of chili powder and cumin. When I see recipes that call for a teaspoon of these spices, I always bump it up to a tablespoon automatically. I modified slightly with some cayenne pepper and dried chili flakes. Also used pepper jack cheese as that’s what I had. Fabulous recipe, and this will definitely be in the rotation.

    Reply

  3. Amazing! The only modification I made was that I used gluten free elbow macaroni and it was perfect. My husband loves these types of concoctions so it was right up our alley!

    Reply

  4. Kathleen,
    I would love to try this recipe. How much is considered as serving? I am doing weight watchers program.
    And the measurements for the pasta in the ingredients, is that dried or after it’s been cooked? Thank you very much

    Reply

    • Cindy, when we do the nutrition calculations, we do them based on how many servings each recipe has. I’m sorry! I think weight watchers has a proprietary program if you’re a member that you can plug in a recipe and it calculates for WW point and serving sizes <3

      Reply

  7. My family and I are VERY excited to try this tonight! If we love it, I’ll be sure to share your recipe link on our blog’s page! 😉 Pretty sure it’s going to be a WIN!
    BTW, I’m wondering what plugin you use for printing your recipes? It appears super simple, and I’m looking for that for my own recipes on the blog.
    THANKS for solving my dinner dilemma tonight! 🙂

    Reply

  8. We made this tonight, and it was DELICIOUS! My husband rarely comments on meals, even when he likes them. He must have complimented this dish three or four times! Thanks for sharing it!

    Reply

  9. Made this for supper tonight and it was really good! I used Colby jack cheese and added some taco seasoning in addition to the chili powder and cumin. Thought it was interesting to cook the onion with the spices and it did have a nice flavor. Love that it was a one pot recipe!

    Reply

  11. Made this tonight – yum! I was out of lettuce to make a salad to go with it, so I just threw some frozen corn in with it while the pasta was cooking and it turned out great. Didn’t realize I was out of macaroni noodles until I was making it, so subbed with rotini. Will definitely be making again. Thanks for posting!

    Reply

  12. Wow! Phenomenal! I’ve been collecting recipes for chili-mac for a couple months now since I’ve been really, really craving chili-mac lately (why, I have no idea since I’ve NOT eaten it since my school cafeteria days 50 years ago!). Threw out those recipes. This recipe is very forgiving: I don’t like the taste of a chili powder blend – I used pure ground ancho chili peppers with a couple of shakes of cayenne instead. I thought I had enough leftover frozen tomato sauce – wrong – only six ounces, but I substituted three ounces of (gasp!) ketchup with enough water to make 15 ounces. I forgot to deduct the additional water from the recipe’s 2 cups but took the lid off for the final five minutes. Also, I only had 75%/25% hamburger on hand and, in the future, I’ll just semi-brown the meat in a separate skillet. But, can you believe – it still came out perfect!! Thank you, Kathleen – this one’s a keeper!! It sure didn’t taste like cafeteria slop. 🙂

    Reply

    • Hi Marilyn. So glad you liked the recipe. Yes, I find it’s very forgiving and easily customized. Love the ancho chili powder.

      Reply

  13. The plan was to make this for the family since I don’t eat cheese. Before I added the cheese, I took a taste and oh my goodness….. had to have a second bowl. It’s delicious without the cheese. I can only imagine how it is with the cheese. Awesome recipe!

    Reply

  14. I ran out of ideas as to what to do with ground turkey and thanks to pinterest found this website. Dinner was amazing! I added some sour cream to help balance the spice and it to make it super creamy. I love one pot/pan recipes so thank you!!!!

    Reply

  15. This is a favorite dish of my husband and since I’m a lazy cook, i’ll tackle it. Going to use buffalo for the meat. Think he will notice :-). Looks yummy!

    Reply

  16. This was super tasty! We also modified a bit, using an above commenter’s suggestion of adding a can of black beans, then also added a small can of diced green chiles. Next time, I plan to chop up some fresh tomatoes and throw that in, too. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  17. Excellent! My boy has celiac disease so I made it with gluten free corn macaroni noodles (and had ground turkey only on hand so was a little worried) but it was amazing! Thank you so much for this quick and delicious recipe!

    Reply

  18. Hey there! Made this tonight with the meat from half of a left over rotissare chicken we had for dinner yeaterday! We loved it!!!!

    Reply

  19. Just finished making this for my family and they LOVED it. My 2 yr old ate 2 bowls. I doubled the recipe due to having a lot of mouths to feed. Turned out awesome. I will definitely be making this again.

    Reply

  20. I made this tonight and both my husband and I loved it. I have been searching for one skillet meals for both lunches and dinners during the work week and this is definitely a keeper we will be coming back to often. The only change I made was to use ground turkey – other than that I followed the recipe exactly. My next try will be your goulash and can’t wait!!

    Reply

    • Hey Valerie. So glad you enjoyed! I love skillet meals. They make dinner enjoyable rather than a chore!

      Reply

  21. Thanks for this recipe! This was quick and easy and I’m pretty sure my bf is gonna love it! I added some smoked paprika to it (we have been OBSESSED!) and since I didn’t have enough tomato sauce, I used diced tomatoes and its juices with it. Also, I just used cheddar since that’s what he had! Turned out great in my opinion 🙂

    Reply

  22. Hi Kathleen!
    This is my second time making this chili Mac. My family loves it, especially my 4 children. I didn’t use the Mexican mix of cheese. I have used cheddar, and Monterey Jack both times, and because of the spices, it comes out tasty! Thanks again, and keep up the good work. Your blog is one that I come to for recipes.

    Reply

  23. Hi Kathleen, my husband and I are non-onion eaters. Do you have any recommendations for cooking this recipe without the onions?

    Reply

    • Hi Joelle. Great question! Onions are such a foundational flavor ingredient that honestly omitting them is tough for me! Do you eat shallots or leeks? I know they’re from the same family as onions, so they may be out for you as well, but if you do eat them, they would be perfect to add instead of the onions.

      Reply

  24. This was really good! I’ve actually never had chili Mac but I was looking for a ground beef recipe and found this. I was worried at first that the water was too much but in the end it all came together perfect. I followed the recipe exactly

    Reply

  25. I made this tonight and it was excellent! Since I used my stainless skillet my noodles stuck a little but other than that, I followed your recipe and it was delish. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  26. Just wondering if you have any ideas on calorie and cal from fat estimate? The dish was fabulous! I used gluten free pasta (12 oz was the size of the box) so I increased the water to 3 cups

    Reply

    • Hey Marnee. I’m sorry I don’t have that info. I’m really glad you enjoyed the recipe. The gluten free pasta is a great idea 😉

      Reply

  27. This looks so good! My husband and I are not spending any money this month (besides gas for our cars and bills), so I actually think I can make this with things I already have in my pantry and freezer. Although, we usually like to have leftovers for work, etc., do you know if it would be too much pasta if I were to add a 16 oz. box to the skillet? Thanks for any help you can provide!

    Reply

    • Hi Michelle. Yes I think it would definitely be too much pasta. I think it would throw off the sauce to pasta ratio and be dry and not very flavorful. Sorry! Hope that helps!

      Reply

  28. Made this on a whim tonight b/c I had some ground turkey to use and it was delish! The flavors work very well together!

    Reply

  29. Wow, this is so good! I used ground lean turkey and whole wheat noodles..added a little extra cumin and chili powder. My entire family loved it. I cannot believe how easy and delicious this was. My new favorite recipe.

    Reply

  30. Thank you so much for sharing such a delicious recipe. We had it for dinner tonight and I couldn’t get enough of it! I love using cumin and its a great anti-inflammatory spice too.

    Reply

  31. Your dish looks amazing but I’m always sad to see bloggers who encourage the use of pre-shredded cheeses. If you look in a bag of shredded cheese you can see the powdery white stuff clinging to the cheese itself and gathered at the bottom of the bag. This is cellulose. MOST of them contain cellulose, which comes from wood pulp and is used to keep the product from clumping together, repels moisture and lowers fat content as it will naturally absorb some from the cheese. I don’t know about you but that’s just not appealing. A 2 cup bag of pre-shredded is actually MORE expensive versus an 8 ounce bar of cheese. (unless you’re doing coupons or they have a sale) A bar of cheese also will last longer in your fridge since it has less surface exposed to the air to encourage mold. So yeah, you’re doing some grating but you’re not eating wood fibers either.

    Reply

    • Hey Jill. Ironically, out of the almost 300 recipes I’ve posted on this blog, I think this is the only one that calls for using pre-shredded cheese. Interesting info thanks for sharing 😉

      Reply

  32. Yum! I’m a new mother and I love these kinds of meals! So easy. =) But if I were to use Italian seasoning instead of the cumin, would that change the flavor? And how much would I use? Thanks! =)

    Reply

    • Hey Charissa. Yes that would change the flavor significantly. I’m not sure I’d like the Italian seasoning combined with the
      chili powder.

      Reply

  33. I just tried this and it was amazing! All the ingredients were perfect. Definitely going to be my go-to quick meal

    Reply

  35. made this last night for dinner and it was delicious! I added 1 can of black beans and used turkey meat. thanks for the recipe!

    Reply

  36. I tried this last night for dinner and you are right, my son (who is 3) ate seconds. He even wanted a 3rd, but I had to cut him off. 🙂 I initially was worried about the Tablespoon of cumin and chili powder, but it was the perfect amount of spice. Thank you for the recipe.

    Reply

  37. Wonderful recipe — so much flavor! Perfect work week meal. I got home at 6:30pm and by 7:30pm we sat down to eat. Thank you so much for sharing! I look forward to trying other recipes in the future.

    Reply

  38. This looks delicious and I’m ready to try it but I’m confused about your pasta measurement. You ask for 8 ounces or 2 cups of pasta. 8 ounces is one cup so is it 1 cup or 2 cups of pasta? Thanks.

    Reply

    • When I measured out 8 ounces of dried elbow pasta it measured out as about 2 cups(dry measuring cup not liquid cups) of pasta. Because of the shape and volume its different than something liquid or solid.

      Reply

      • It has to do with 8 oz of weight vs. 8 oz volume. Somewhere, with some substance (probably water), I’m sure they are the same, but not all things are the same density so usually they don’t match. For instance, 8 fluid oz (in a wet cup) of water would weigh less on a scale than the same cup full of sugar (or salt…or rocks). Pasta is measured by weight on the package so 8 scale ounces of noodles fills about 2 cups.

        Reply

    • Hey Ada. Well, it will definitely freeze but the pasta texture will change quite a bit. It gets mushy. Honestly, a lot of people object to the texture. I happen to not mind it at all and freeze recipes like this all the time and thoroughly enjoy them. So……it’s up to your preferences!

      Reply

  41. I used ground turkey instead of beef in this recipe tonight. It was absolutely delicious! My husband and son (both picky eaters) devoured their servings. I loved how the ground turkey felt like it melted in my mouth from simmering so long. Thanks for the recipe!

    Reply

  42. Kathleen, made it tonight. It was delicious, added a little cayenne cause being from Louisiana we like the spices!
    Thanks again

    Reply

  43. Going to try this tonight! What about the grease from browning the meat, do you not drain it? You put it in with the onions and spices so I don’t know

    Reply

    • Hey Cathi, no this recipe doesn’t call to drain the pan after the meat is browned. If you’d like you can use a low fat content ground beef. Honestly, I generally use 80/20 and have never felt it was greasy at all. Hope that helps 😉

      Reply

  44. I loved your goulash so I thought I’d try this. I had some reservations about serving it to my husband, who claims not to like anything “Mexican”, and thinks cumin smells like….well I won’t tell you what he thinks it smells like because I’m a lady LOL. So I was amazed when he said it was “very good – not too spicy” and to “make it again”. Whoohoo! That’s 2 for 2 – next on my list is your Pasta e Fagioli soup – as soon as the weather cools down.

    Reply

    • Hi there Marianne! So glad both you and your hubby are pleased! I’m excited your going to try the Pasta e Fagioli soup. We really love it. Just make sure you use a low sodium broth because so many of the ingredients in the soup already contain salt that soup could be too salty otherwise! Hope you enjoy and thanks so much for your comment!

      Reply

  47. It looks yummy but are you sure that it is supposed to be Tablespoons, teaspoons on the chili powder and cumin? That seems like a lot for 1 lb of meat.

    Reply

    • Hi Laura. Yes I’m sure it’s 1 tablespoon of each. I think that because it’s cooked in the oil with the onion they mellows significantly. I’ve made this recipe quite a few times and really love how it’s seasoned. Hope you give it a try 😉

      Reply

  49. Oh my goodness Kathleen. This is just the kind of dish I love. And you don’t even have to buy a taco kit or one of those “helpers” to make it. Love your blog.

    Reply

    • Bacillary pasta product of USA, my Doctor tells me if I have to eat pasta to buy a pasta made in Itally since domestic flour is no good for health reasons. I always use DeCecco, it’s made in Italy. Braille is Italy’s best selling pasta made in USA.

      Reply

    • This recipe was originally adapted from Cook’s Illustrated Best Skillet Recipe cookbook, and is a favorite go to for a quick meal especially on ski trips. I like to use leftovers the next morning and hash it up with eggs. Tastes even better!

      Reply

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