Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese combines buffalo chicken and the cheesiness of Macaroni and Cheese to create a perfect and satisfying meal. If you love buffalo chicken, be sure to check out my 10 Fun Twists on Buffalo Chicken for even more recipes!
Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese
Macaroni and cheese is no longer just for kids. In fact, I even have a Beer Mac and Cheese with Steak Bites! After trying some of my homemade macaroni and cheese recipe (I even have one with bacon), you will never buy a box of it again!
Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese Ingredients
There are three main parts to the Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese Recipe. You need to prepare the chicken, make the macaroni and cheese, and add the topping.
Buffalo Chicken Ingredients
- Shredded Chicken: I am a huge fan of rotisserie chicken, but sometimes I don’t want to shred it myself. I may be the last person to find out that rotisserie chicken is sometimes prepared, already shredded, in the deli! Bonus!
- Buffalo Sauce: Be sure to buy buffalo sauce, not simply hot sauce for this recipe. If you want to make your own buffalo sauce, I have the perfect recipe for you! The nice thing about my Buffalo Sauce is it can be made a little hotter or not as hot, depending on your tolerance.
- Ranch Dressing: I used ranch dressing for this recipe, and I just happen to have a homemade ranch dressing recipe you could try! Although I used ranch dressing with this recipe, blue cheese dressing is another dressing that pairs well with buffalo sauce.
All you need to do at this point is to combine the chicken, buffalo sauce, and ranch dressing in a medium bowl. Set it aside while you make the macaroni and cheese.
Macaroni and Cheese Recipe
Macaroni and cheese recipes have been around a lot longer than the 1937 Kraft boxed variety that every kid grew up on. In fact, there are recipes dating back to the late thirteenth century from southern Italy. This macaroni and cheese recipe will be the foundation to the Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese
How to Get Creamy Macaroni and Cheese
I am on a mission to make sure no one has grainy homemade mac n cheese ever again… and in my research discovered this awesome tip. Do NOT put the pan back over the heat to melt the cheese. The ingredients in the pan are already hot enough to do the job of melting the cheeses. If you get cheese too hot that is when you will end up with a grainy texture. After you have stirred in the cheese, pour the mixture over the cooked noodles and serve.
Topping off the Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese
For the topping of the Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese, add the mozzarella and cheddar cheeses to the top of your chicken and noodles mixture. Bake at 350°F for about 5 minutes, just to melt the cheese topping. Remove the dish and drizzle on the buffalo sauce and ranch dressing. Add salt and pepper to taste. Garnish the dish with parsley, and be ready to wow your family and friends with this ‘winner, winner, Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese dinner’!
More Macaroni & Cheese
Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1 cup (140 g) shredded cooked rotisserie chicken
- 2 tablespoons buffalo sauce
- 2 tablespoons ranch dressing
Macaroni and Cheese
- 8 ounces cavatappi noodles, cooked al dente and drained
- ¼ cup (½ stick / 57 g) unsalted butter
- ¼ cup (31 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 cups (490) whole milk, warmed
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground mustard powder
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
- ½ cup (56.5 g) sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated
- ¼ cup (28 g) mozzarella cheese, freshly grated
Topping
- ¼ cup (28 g) mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup (28 g) cheddar cheese
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon buffalo sauce
- 1 tablespoon ranch dressing
- parsley, chopped (for garnish)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
Chicken
- Mix chicken, buffalo sauce, ranch dressing in a medium bowl, set aside.
Mac and Cheese
- In a skillet over medium heat, melt the butter.
- Add the flour and whisk constantly for 1-2 minutes (or until the mixture turns light brown).
- Remove from heat and gradually pour in the warm milk, whisking constantly.
- Return the pan to the heat, whisk another 3-5 minutes or until thickened.
- Add the salt, garlic powder, ground mustard, and cayenne pepper and stir to combine.
- Add the cheeses and chicken, stirring to melt.
- Add the noodles. Stir to combine.
Topping
- Top with the mozzarella and cheddar cheese and bake, uncovered, for 5 minutes.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Drizzle with ranch and buffalo sauce.
- Garnish with parsley before serving.
Did you make this recipe?
Thank you for making my recipe! You took pictures, right? Well go ahead and post them on Instagram! Be sure to mention me @iambaker and use the hashtag #YouAreBaker.
Should tell people to boil the noodles. Figured the noodles would soak the stuff up, but no. Specification would have been nice,
The direction indicate that you should cook the noodles al dente, then there is further direction in the post on how to do that. 🙂
However, very few people halen to have cooked pasta on hand. Giving a dry weight would be external helpful
8 ounces is the dry weight.
*extra helpful
It says “Al Dente” right in the recipe.
Great recipe! I love it when people make a snippy rude reply to a recipe that they obviously didn’t read all the way through..
keep the great recipes coming!
Thank you, Robert! Appreciate it!
Perfect!!! Loved it!!
Hi Amanda I made the Macaroni and cheese Buffalo chicken ahead of time and refrigerated it a few hours…how long do you think I should warm it and what temp? Can hardly wait to taste it! Bonnie
Made this for dinner beforehand and refrigerated it. Warmed in 350 oven for about 30 min. 45 min would have been better…family loved it!
MAKE THIS RECIPE. DO IT! So delicious. I doubled it and topped it with homemade bacon bits and green onions. My husbands fav Mac and cheese to date. This will be in the dinner rotation!
Can shredded cheese be substituted for freshly grated cheese?
Hi, Jennifer! I work with iambaker and am happy to help with questions. Yes, shredded cheese works just fine in this recipe. Have a great day!
I’ve never made a rue before and this recipe made it totally attainable for a newbie cook like myself without getting too complicated. The flavor combinations are great! I ended up cooking my own chicken instead of buying the rotisserie.
I put my own twist on the recipe by adding half a block of cream cheese to the cheese sauce and I added fried onions for a crunch on the top with 10 mins left on bake time. Then I sprinkled fresh green onions on top. 😋
Can use heaving whipping cream or half n half instead of milk? If so which would you recommend and how much?