Chili Macaroni
Add some elbow macaroni noodles to your traditional chili to make a fun mashup called Chili Macaroni. Your favorite hearty meal is even more filling with extra noodles in the beans, meat, and veggies.
Add a little twist to your favorite chili recipe! Chili Macaroni is easy to make and is a comfort food your family will love. It never lasts long in my house.
When the weather’s getting colder, and you’re craving hot and hearty meals, this easy chili mac really hits the spot.
It’s basically adding some cooked macaroni to your pot of chili. If you want to make a Mac N Cheese version, add some cheddar cheese before you serve it. I left it out, and it still tasted delicious.
This easy chili mac tastes even better the next day. It makes a big batch, so we often have leftovers. Just heat a bowl in the microwave. If you’re craving comfort food, this is the recipe for you!
If you’re a chili lover like me, you’ll also enjoy this One-Pot Chili Rigatoni or my Quick White Bean & Turkey Chili.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s a quick meal perfect for a busy weeknight — this easy dinner is ready in less than 30 minutes!
- It’s not too spicy, so the whole family (even the kids) loves it.
- It’s a great way to stretch a meal if you’re on a budget. One batch is eight servings!
- It makes yummy leftovers that taste even better the next day.
- It’s a family favorite made with simple ingredients in your pantry and fridge. Nothing fussy here.
Ingredients
The full printable recipe card with measurements and instructions is found at the bottom of the post.
- Ground Beef: Lean ground beef is best, but regular ground beef and ground turkey are acceptable options.
- Macaroni: I used elbow macaroni, but another pasta shape works fine, such as shells or penne pasta.
- Canned Diced Tomatoes: While I prefer diced chunks of tomato in my chili mac, you can swap them out for crushed tomatoes. It may make the chili macaroni a bit soupier, though.
- Canned Kidney Beans: If you’re not a fan of kidney beans, swap them out for a can of black beans or pinto beans. Choose reduced-sodium options if you’re watching your salt intake.
- Tomato Soup: Go with a quality soup here since it’s one of the primary flavors of the dish.
- Chili Powder: Store-bought chili powder or homemade chili powder works in this recipe.
- Onion: Diced yellow or sweet onions are my top choices, though you can use a white onion.
- Garlic: Minced garlic adds tons of flavor to this chili mac. If you don’t have any fresh garlic cloves on hand, substitute ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder for each clove.
- Green Pepper: A red bell pepper works, too, but the green bell pepper adds more color to a dish of red ingredients.
- Salt and Pepper: Add salt and pepper to taste once all the ingredients are in the same pot.
How to Make Chili Macaroni
Follow along to learn how to make chili macaroni.
- Step One: Cook the elbow macaroni according to package directions. Drain it, and set it aside.
- Step Two: While the macaroni is cooking, add the lean ground beef to a large skillet over medium heat, stirring often to break it up. Cook the ground meat for about 4 minutes, then add the green bell pepper and onions. Cook until softened, or about 5 minutes. If you didn’t use leaner ground beef and have excess grease in the skillet, now is the time to drain it.
- Step Three: Add minced garlic and chili powder and stir until combined. Make sure to stir frequently after the garlic is added to keep it from burning.
- Step Four: In the pan with the cooked noodles, add diced tomatoes, tomato soup, water, and kidney beans. Add seasoned ground beef and stir to combine—season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Step Five: Heat the chili macaroni over medium heat until the macaroni is heated through. Serve hot, and sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese, if desired.
What to Serve with It
This easy chili mac is practically a meal all by itself. But if you want to fill it out a little more, I’d suggest adding some veggies like Chili Buttered Green Beans or Parmesan Roasted Carrots. My Corn Salad is another yummy choice.
If you want to start with one meal and turn it into another the next day instead of eating leftovers, I recommend starting with my BEST Chili Recipe. Enjoy chili the first day, and then stretch your leftovers by adding cooked macaroni the next day. Corn muffins are a great side for the chili and the macaroni.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- Adjust the spiciness by adding more or less chili powder. Start with just a tablespoon if your family doesn’t like a lot of spice, and go up from there.
- Make an even easier version by adding cooked macaroni to your favorite leftover chili recipe.
- Make it gluten-free by using gluten-free tomato soup and gluten-free pasta.
- If you know you’ll have a lot of leftover chili macaroni, cook the pasta al dente so it won’t get too mushy while stored in the fridge.
Variations and Substitutions
- Add ground cumin (in addition to the chili powder) to give this hearty chili mac recipe even more flavor.
- Increase the heat with a pinch of cayenne pepper.
- Try it with shredded cheddar cheese on top or stirred into the chili mac before serving.
- Serve with a dollop of sour cream on top, just like you do with your favorite chili!
- Green onions are delicious sprinkled over the pasta right before serving.
- Swap out half of the canned diced tomatoes with a can of Rotel (tomatoes and green chiles).
Storage Instructions
Keep leftover chili macaroni in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Can I Freeze It?
Yes, you can freeze Chili Mac. Let it cool completely, and place it in an airtight container. It’ll keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator overnight, and reheat in the microwave until heated.
Macaroni Recipes
Macaroni is the ultimate comfort food. If you love it as much as I do, try these yummy macaroni recipes:
- Salsa Macaroni and Cheese
- Stovetop Mac and Cheese
- Pumpkin Macaroni and Cheese
- Mom’s Macaroni
- Chili Cheese Stuffed Shells
You’ll also like Impossible Cheeseburger Pie and Frito Chili Pie.
Follow me on Instagram @simplystacieblog, Facebook at Simply Stacie, TikTok @simplystacierecipes or Pinterest at @simplystacie and let me know how you liked this recipe and my other recipes.
Chili Macaroni
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lb lean ground beef
- 1 box macaroni 16oz/454g box, uncooked
- 1 can diced tomatoes 28oz can
- 1 can kidney beans 15.5oz/540ml can, drained
- 1 can tomato soup with ½ can water 10.5oz/284ml can
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 1 sweet onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 green pepper chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the macaroni according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- In a skillet, add in ground beef and stir often to break it up. Cook for about 4 minutes and then add onions and green pepper. Continue to cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add in garlic and chili powder and stir to combine.
- In the saucepan with the macaroni, stir in diced tomatoes, tomato soup, water and kidney beans. Add in ground beef mixture and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Heat over medium-low heat until macaroni is heated and serve hot.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Stacie, just fixed this for dinner and it was a big hit!
I can’t wait to try this. I love pasta!
Probably going to make this soon, I love it!
Will definitely have to give this a try since we eat chili about once a month.
This recipe looks so delicious and I love making Chili Macaroni. It is fun to make and my kids love it!
This looks so delicious and hearty! The perfect dinner with fall coming up. Thanks for the delicious recipe!
WOW! this looks like the ultimate comfort food! I’ll be trying this soon!
I love a great bowl of Chili Mac and this recipe looks so good. Hope you have a fantastic weekend and thanks so much for sharing your awesome post with us here at Full Plate Thursday. We hope to see you again real soon.
Miz Helen
Oh, this is perfecting timing where I live! The days are starting to get cooler and I am craving warmer foods of late. This chili macaroni recipe looks absolutely delicious – best of all, it is easy to make a gluten-free version for me 😉 Thanks for sharing!
I need simple meal idea like this at this time of the year. Looks mighty tasty.
Thanks for sharing on #TastyTuesdays
We make something very similar! Your’s sounds great! 🙂
I would love for you to share this with my Facebook Group for recipes, crafts, tips, and tricks: https://www.facebook.com/groups/pluckyrecipescraftstips/
Thanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!
Ooh, this looks good. I am going to try it with a ground soy substitute. Thank you!
Thanks for the recipe,this looks like a dish the whole family would enjoy !
Looks delicious! I’ve been looking for a chili macaroni recipe. But where do I get the conversions for the recipes?
This site does ml to oz: http://www.convertunits.com/from/ml/to/oz
That looks DELICIOUS!!!
This seams to be a dish corresponding my taste.
Thanks for sharing the recipe.
xx from Bavaria/Germany, Rena
http://www.dressedwithsoul.com