One-Pot Chili Mac
Chili mac made in one pot with seasoned ground beef, kidney beans, and macaroni that cooks right in the chili. A cheesy 45-minute family dinner.
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Chili mac is the dinner that shows up on my stove every time the week gets away from me. Ground beef, chili powder, cumin, kidney beans, and elbow macaroni all end up in the same pot. The noodles cook right in the chili, and cheddar melts in at the end. One pot, one spoon, one sink to deal with afterward.
Cooking the macaroni in the chili instead of boiling it separately is what makes this work as one pot. It changes the dish. The pasta drinks up beef broth and tomato and chili powder while it softens. So every noodle tastes seasoned all the way through instead of like plain starch sitting in sauce. It also releases starch as it cooks, which thickens the chili into something that clings to the pasta.
The other thing worth doing is blooming the spices. Chili powder and cumin go into the hot pan with the tomato paste for a full minute before any liquid, which toasts the ground spices in fat and pulls out flavor that never comes through if you just dump them into broth. Sixty seconds, and it’s the difference between chili that tastes dusty and chili that tastes deep.
Why You’ll Love This Chili Mac Recipe
- Genuinely one pot. The macaroni cooks in the chili, so there’s no colander, no second pot, and no draining.
- Chili flavor, not just tomato. Chili powder, cumin, oregano, and kidney beans put this squarely in chili territory.
- Cheesy without being a cheese sauce. A cup and a half of sharp cheddar melts in at the end and stays in the background where it belongs.
- Cheap and filling. One pound of ground beef stretches to feed six people, with beans and pasta doing the heavy lifting.
Chili Mac Ingredients
Shred the cheddar off a block instead of buying the bag. Pre-shredded cheese is coated in potato starch or cellulose to keep it from clumping, and that coating makes it melt into stringy clumps here instead of disappearing smoothly into the chili.
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb ground beef (85/15)
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
- 3 1/2 cups beef broth
- 1 (15 oz) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 10 oz elbow macaroni, uncooked
- 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
- 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped, for garnish
Recipe Variations
- Swap the kidney beans for black beans or pinto beans, or use a can of each if you like more beans than beef.
- Use ground turkey in place of the beef; cook it to 165°F since it’s poultry, and add an extra tablespoon of olive oil since it’s much leaner.
- For a smokier, hotter version, stir in 1 minced chipotle pepper in adobo with the tomato paste and finish with pepper jack instead of cheddar.
How to Make Chili Mac
- Brown the beef: Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and onion and cook for 6 to 7 minutes, breaking up the meat as it goes, until no pink remains and the beef reaches 160°F. Drain off the excess grease.
- Soften the pepper: Stir in the diced bell pepper and cook for 2 minutes, until it just starts to soften at the edges.
- Bloom the spices: Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, smoked paprika, salt, black pepper, and tomato paste. Stir constantly for 1 minute, until the paste darkens and the whole pot smells like chili.
- Add the liquids: Pour in the diced tomatoes with their juice, the tomato sauce, and the beef broth. Scrape the bottom of the pot to lift anything stuck, then bring it up to a boil.
- Cook the macaroni in the pot: Stir in the kidney beans and the uncooked macaroni. Reduce the heat to a steady simmer, cover, and cook for 12 to 14 minutes, stirring every few minutes so nothing sticks, until the pasta is tender.
- Thicken it up: Uncover and simmer for 3 to 4 more minutes, stirring, until the chili clings to the noodles instead of pooling around them. Add a splash of broth if it tightens up more than you’d like.
- Melt in the cheese: Take the pot off the heat and stir in 1 cup of the cheddar until it disappears into the chili. Scatter the remaining 1/2 cup on top, cover for 2 minutes to melt, then finish with the cilantro and serve.
Recipe FAQs
What’s the Difference Between Chili Mac and Goulash?
Chili mac leans on chili powder, cumin, and beans, so it tastes like a bowl of chili with pasta in it. American goulash is built on a tomato and paprika base with Italian seasoning and usually skips the beans entirely.
Can I Use Leftover Chili Instead of Making It from Scratch?
Yes. Bring about 5 cups of leftover chili to a simmer with 2 cups of beef broth, stir in the uncooked macaroni, and cook covered for 12 to 14 minutes until tender, adding more broth if it gets too thick.
My Pasta Soaked up All the Liquid. Did I Do Something Wrong?
That’s normal, especially if you simmered a little hot. Stir in broth a quarter cup at a time until it loosens back up. It also thickens a lot as it sits, so leftovers always need extra liquid.
Can I Make This in a Slow Cooker?
Brown the beef and bloom the spices on the stove first, then transfer everything except the pasta and cheese to the slow cooker for 4 hours on low. Stir in the macaroni for the last 25 minutes, then the cheese at the very end.
Is This Too Spicy for Kids?
Chili powder is mostly mild ground chiles with cumin and garlic in the blend, so it’s warm rather than hot. Cut it to 1 tablespoon if your kids are sensitive, and a spoonful of sour cream on top cools it down further.
Cooking Tips
- Stir the pot every few minutes once the pasta goes in. Macaroni sinks and sticks to the bottom of a Dutch oven fast, and scorched chili flavors the whole batch.
- Pull the pot off the heat before the cheddar goes in. Cheese added over direct heat breaks and turns grainy, and residual heat is plenty to melt it.
- Undercook the pasta by a minute if you’re planning on leftovers. It keeps softening in the hot chili even after the burner is off, and again when you reheat it.
Storage and Freezing
To store: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. It thickens overnight as the pasta keeps drinking up liquid.
To freeze: Freeze for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe container. The pasta softens a bit after thawing, so slightly undercook the macaroni if you’re making a batch specifically to freeze.
To reheat: Warm on the stovetop over medium-low heat with a splash of beef broth or water, stirring until loose and hot, or microwave in 1-minute bursts, stirring between each.
How to Serve Chili Mac
Chili mac is a full meal in a bowl, so it just needs a few toppings and something on the side. Sour cream, sliced green onions, diced avocado, or crushed tortilla chips all go on top, and a wedge of cornbread or a simple green salad rounds it out. More easy one-pot dinners like this one are on the way.
Loved This Recipe?
Chili mac gives you chili night and mac night in a single pot, which is exactly the kind of math a Tuesday needs.
Leave a star rating in the comments below, it helps other people find this recipe. Made it? Tag @allwellfed on Instagram, I love seeing this one in other people’s kitchens.
One-Pot Chili Mac
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb ground beef 85/15
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes undrained
- 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
- 3 1/2 cups beef broth
- 1 (15 oz) can kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 10 oz elbow macaroni uncooked
- 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
- 2 tbsp fresh cilantro chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Brown the beef: Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and onion and cook for 6 to 7 minutes, breaking up the meat as it goes, until no pink remains and the beef reaches 160°F. Drain off the excess grease.
- Soften the pepper: Stir in the diced bell pepper and cook for 2 minutes, until it just starts to soften at the edges.
- Bloom the spices: Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, smoked paprika, salt, black pepper, and tomato paste. Stir constantly for 1 minute, until the paste darkens and the whole pot smells like chili.
- Add the liquids: Pour in the diced tomatoes with their juice, the tomato sauce, and the beef broth. Scrape the bottom of the pot to lift anything stuck, then bring it up to a boil.
- Cook the macaroni in the pot: Stir in the kidney beans and the uncooked macaroni. Reduce the heat to a steady simmer, cover, and cook for 12 to 14 minutes, stirring every few minutes so nothing sticks, until the pasta is tender.
- Thicken it up: Uncover and simmer for 3 to 4 more minutes, stirring, until the chili clings to the noodles instead of pooling around them. Add a splash of broth if it tightens up more than you’d like.
- Melt in the cheese: Take the pot off the heat and stir in 1 cup of the cheddar until it disappears into the chili. Scatter the remaining 1/2 cup on top, cover for 2 minutes to melt, then finish with the cilantro and serve.
Notes
If you made this, leave a star rating down in the comments. It takes about ten seconds, and it’s how other cooks decide whether a recipe is worth trying.
