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Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese is an easy one-pot recipe with tender bites of chicken and macaroni pasta in a slightly spicy cheese sauce. Perfect for an easy weeknight dinner!

buffalo chicken mac and cheese on a serving spoon.

Easy Buffalo Chicken Pasta Recipe

Enjoy the ultimate comfort food with this spicy twist on classic mac and cheese. Creamy, cheesy pasta combined with buffalo chicken creates the perfect balance of flavors for a truly satisfying meal.

This Buffalo chicken macaroni and cheese recipe is a true one-pan meal with minimal prep. You don’t have to drain the pasta, there’s no flour and no roux. Best of all, there’s only one pot to clean!

I love whipping up this easy recipe on busy weeknights or Friday nights when we have our “movie and mac” and I let the family eat in front of the TV. It also is perfect for game days during Football season! Serve with celery sticks, carrots and ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing on the side.

If you love homemade macaroni and cheese recipes, try my stove top mac and cheese or mac and cheese with ham.

cubed chicken, Buffalo wing sauce, elbow macaroni, cheese, cream cheese, heavy cream, butter, spices.

Ingredients

You only need a few simple ingredients from the grocery store for this one pot pasta. Full ingredient amounts and directions are in the printable recipe card below.

  • Boneless skinless chicken breasts — cut into bite sized pieces
  • Butter — for cooking the chicken and in the sauce
  • Sea salt and black pepper — to season the chicken
  • Buffalo sauce — I like Frank’s Red Hot. We use the milder wing sauce, but you can use regular or your favorite brand of hot sauce.
  • Pasta — elbow macaroni noodles or any short pasta shape, like shells
  • Water — to cook the pasta. I usually like using chicken broth in homemade mac, but there is a lot of flavor from the sauce.
  • Heavy cream — for the creamy sauce
  • Cream cheese — makes the sauce thick and cream without using a roux. Use room temperature cream cheese, cut into cubes so it blends easily
  • Cheese — a combination of shredded cheddar cheese and Colby Jack cheese and American cheese

How to Make Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese

First, cook the chicken in a little melted butter and some of the Buffalo sauce over medium-high heat, and season with salt and pepper. Then, remove the cooked chicken to a clean plate or bowl, and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.

cook chicken pieces in buffalo sauce.

Next, add water to the same pot you cooked the chicken in, and bring to a boil. There will be some leftover sauce, but that just ads flavor to the pasta. When the pasta is nearly al dente, stir in the heavy cream and remaining Buffalo sauce on medium heat. The pasta will finish cooking in a few minutes.

pour cream and sauce into macaroni noodles.

Then, stir in the cream cheese, remaining butter and cheese, one cup at a time. Finally, stir the cooked chicken and any leftover sauce from the chicken into the cheesy sauce.

stir cheese into pasta.

Give the pasta a quick taste before serving. You can stir in a little more wing sauce if you want spicier pasta. Or serve with additional sauce on the side, so folks can help themselves.

plate of Buffalo chicken mac and cheese with parsley.

Storage

Store leftover Buffalo macaroni n cheese in an airtight container in your refrigerator for 3-5 days. We usually reheat smaller portions in the microwave, but you can do this on the stove, as well. You can freeze leftovers for up to 3 months in a freezer safe container.

Recipe Tip

Grate your own cheese for best results.

Use rotisserie chicken to make this recipe even easier!

Add a little more wing sauce at the end for spicer pasta.

More Buffalo Chicken Recipes

Try my Buffalo chicken casserole or Instant Pot Buffalo chicken pasta or Instant Pot Buffalo chicken dip and crockpot Buffalo chicken sandwiches next!

5 from 1 vote

Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese

By: Dee
Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese is an easy one-pot recipe with tender bites of chicken and macaroni pasta in a slightly spicy cheese sauce. Perfect for an easy weeknight dinner!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 8

Ingredients  

  • 3 tablespoons butter divided
  • 1 pound boneless chicken breast cut into bite-size pieces
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • tsp ground black pepper
  • ½ cup Buffalo Sauce divided
  • 4 cups water
  • 16 oz elbow macaroni
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • 4 oz cream cheese cubed, at room temperature
  • 2 cups shredded mild cheddar cheese shredded
  • 1 cup shredded Colby Jack Cheese
  • 4 oz American Cheese about 4 slices
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Instructions 

  • In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt 2 tablespoons butter on medium heat
  • Add chicken and ¼ cup Buffalo sauce. Season with salt and pepper, and cook over medium high heat
  • Turn off heat, and remove chicken to a clean plate or bowl, and cover with aluminum foil
  • In the same pot, add water, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat
  • Add the macaroni, and cook until just before al dente, about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally
  • Reduce heat to medium and stir in the heavy cream and remaining 1/4 cup Buffalo sauce. Allow to simmer on medium heat until pasta is done, about 3 minutes more
  • Add the remaining tablespoon butter and cream cheese, and stir until melted
  • Reduce heat to low or medium low, and stir in 1 cup of cheese at a time until cheese melts and cheese sauce is creamy
  • Stir the chicken back into the pot until well blended with the creamy sauce

Notes

For best results, shred your own cheese.
I use sliced American cheese from the deli, which is about 4 slices or 4 ounces. You can use all cheddar, if you prefer.
You can sub broth for the water, but there is a lot of flavor from the addition of the Buffalo sauce.
Add additional Buffalo sauce for more heat.
I like to let the cream sit out at room temperature while I prep the ingredients so it’s not to cold going into the sauce. This prevents the sauce from becoming grainy.

Nutrition

Calories: 632kcal, Carbohydrates: 46g, Protein: 22g, Fat: 40g, Saturated Fat: 23g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 10g, Trans Fat: 0.3g, Cholesterol: 118mg, Sodium: 1185mg, Potassium: 252mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 1361IU, Vitamin C: 0.2mg, Calcium: 500mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
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Recipe Rating




2 Comments

  1. Jeff says:

    I could mac n cheese every day of my life! Changed it up with this recipe! It was a great hit with the family! A new choice for mac n cheese!5 stars

    1. Dee says:

      So glad you liked the recipe, Jeff. Thanks!