Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese
This spicy buffalo chicken mac and cheese recipe is easy to make and easily feeds a large family. It's delicious with spicy, cheesy, and creamy flavors with a golden breadcrumb crunch on top and ready to serve in just one hour.
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 692kcal
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta elbow shaped
- 6 tablespoon butter separated
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- 2 stalks celery roughly chopped
- ½ cup blue cheese crumbled
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon mustard powdered
- 4 cups milk whole
- ¾ cup buffalo wing sauce
- 1 cup jack cheese shredded pepper
- 3 cups chicken cooked and shredded
- 1 pound cheddar cheese cut into 1 sharp
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 375°F and grease a large casserole dish.
- Cook the pasta in boiling water to al dente - about 2 minutes less than package directions, then drain.
- Melt 2 tablespoon of the butter in a small bowl in the microwave, then stir in the bread crumbs. Mix in the celery, and blue cheese and set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, melt the remaining 4 tablespoon butter over medium-high heat. Stir in the flour and mustard and cook for about 1 minute, or until smooth and thick.
- Whisk in the milk and cook for about 6 - 7 minutes, until thick - stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in the hot sauce and jack cheese; add the chicken and mix well, then fold in the cheddar cheese and pasta.
- Pour this mixture into the prepared casserole dish and sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the top. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes, until bubbly.
Recipe Notes
Pasta al dente
This step is essential if you want to avoid overcooked, mushy pasta. The pasta needs to be cooked al dente (slightly crunchy in the middle) because it will continue to cook in the oven for another 40 minutes.
Making the roux
To avoid a lumpy cheese sauce, make sure to constantly whisk the milk into the roux bit by bit to form a smooth white sauce, and do not pour the milk all in at once, or it will become lumpy.
Warm the milk
A great tip for making the roux in double time is to heat the milk before adding it, and It will thicken much quicker also.