Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese

If you love Buffalo chicken dip as much as I do then I have a new mac and cheese recipe for you. This Buffalo chicken mac and cheese combines a Buffalo Cheddar cheese sauce with rotisserie chicken then gets topped with crushed pretzels!

You know the phrase ‘you are what you eat’? Well if that were literally true there’s no doubt in my mind I’ll turn into Buffalo chicken dip. It truly is that obsession meal for me that I can eat every day and not get sick of. So it’s no surprise that I wanted to create a mac and cheese recipe that combines all the classic comfort of mac and cheese with my personal love of Buffalo chicken dip.

INGREDIENTS AND SUPPLIES

Here’s what you need to get this epic mac and cheese on the table this week!

INGREDIENTS

• Macaroni noodles.
• Rotisserie chicken. You could cook and shred chicken breasts if you want, but rotisserie chicken is just so much easier.
• Shredded Cheddar cheese. I know it takes a bit of work, but it’s really best to buy blocks of Cheddar and shred it yourself. Packaged shredded cheese has anti-caking agents that can interfere with the best saucy consistency.
• Light cream. I like using light cream and not heavy cream in my mac and cheese recipes. I find the heavy cream and be a bit too…heavy.
• Hot sauce. Use your favorite brand!
• Cream cheese.
• Butter + flour. To make the roux. I like starting my mac and cheeses with a roux, I like the extra thickness it gives to the sauce without having to load it up with more cream.
• Seasonings: Salt and garlic powder.
• Crushed pretzels. You can buy whatever thin pretzels you want then crush them up. It doesn’t have to be a fine powder, it’s ok to have a few bigger pieces for the crunchy texture! I actually used these cute mini pretzels.

SUPPLIES

• 9×13 casserole dish
• Bowls, pot, large frying pan
• Box grater to shred the cheese

HOW TO MAKE THE BUFFALO CHEESE SAUCE

Step 1. I like to start my mac and cheese recipes with a roux. Melt the 3 tablespoons of butter then whisk in the flour and cook for 30 seconds.

Step 2. Add in the light cream and cook for about 5 minutes. Whisk to make sure the roux blends smoothly into the cream and it will begin to thicken a bit.

Step 3. Cut the 4 ounces of cream cheese into chunks then add to the cream sauce and whisk until it’s blended smooth. Season with the salt and garlic powder.

Step 4. Add hot sauce and Cheddar cheese.

Step 5. Almost done! Last step is mixing in the shredded chicken.

To finish it up, add the cooked noodles to a prepared baking dish then pour the sauce overtop. Top with more cheese and the crushed pretzels and bake! I then like to pop it under the broiler for a few minutes to get the cheese browned and bubbly.

MAKE AHEAD INSTRUCTIONS AND REHEATING

If you want to prep this ahead of time for a party you can add the prepared mac and cheese to your casserole dish but don’t top with the crushed pretzels yet so they don’t get soggy. Store in the fridge until you’re ready to bake it. When you’re ready to cook, allow it to come to room temperate so you’re not throwing a cold glass dish in a hot oven. Add the pretzels then bake.

If you have leftovers you want to enjoy later, I take the quick route and just throw it in the microwave for a super fast lunch. Remove from the microwave then add with some extra crushed pretzels to bring that crunchy bite back!

For more Buffalo inspired recipes try some of these blog favorites!

Buffalo drumsticks
Buffalo chicken phyllo cups
Buffalo chicken pasta salad
Buffalo chicken burgers

Or checkout this full collection of Buffalo chicken recipes.

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