I concocted this No-Bake Buffalo Chicken Mac ‘n Cheese recipe after hubby proclaimed he’d like me to try making a Buffalo chicken mac ‘n cheese. Boy did he scarf it down, and he went back for seconds. It really did turn out yummy! And it was easy to make, which makes it all the better.
You may ask, jarred cheese salsa? Yes! I opted for Tostito’s Salsa con Queso because I know it’ll stay creamy. The jarred version makes the dish come together faster, and it’s got a little bit of heat to it that works really well with this dish.
And the beauty of this No-bake Buffalo Chicken Mac ‘n Cheese recipe is, well, no oven!
I used two pans for making this dish – one skillet for frying the chicken and one large saucepan for boiling the macaroni. You can even have two pans going at once, one for frying chicken and one for boiling pasta. Don’t worry, it’s manageable, but if you want, you can fry the chicken first and then do the rest afterward. That way you get a little wine break, too 😉 I used the macaroni saucepan to finish off the dish, which is just a matter of mixing the chicken, cheeses, and pasta. Then serve it up topped with some bleu cheese crumbles and chopped green onion. So simple.
No-bake Buffalo Chicken Mac ‘n Cheese Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 oz elbow macaroni
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut to bite-size pieces
- 2 cups vegetable oil
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp fresh-cracked black pepper
- ¼ cup Frank's RedHot Buffalo Wings Hot Sauce
- 4 oz Tostito's Salsa con Queso (I used Medium)
- 2-3 oz bleu cheese crumbled, 2/3 for the sauce and 1/3 for garnish
- ⅓ cup sliced chopped green onions or scallions for garnish
Instructions
- You'll have two pans going at once, one for frying chicken and one for boiling pasta. Don't worry, it's manageable; but if you want, you can fry the chicken first and then do the rest afterward. That way you get a little wine break, too.
- In a wide saucepan, start the water for boiling the pasta. Don't forget to salt the water. If you've got a non-stick wide saucepan, whoever is doing clean-up will thank you for using it, since the cheese is going into this pan.
- At the same time, in a large skillet (again, non-stick makes for easier clean-up), start heating up the cooking oil to about 350°.
- Place the cut-up chicken in a large storage bag with a zip closure. Add the salt and pepper, close the bag and shake until the chicken is coated well.
- Add the macaroni to the boiling water.
- While the pasta is boiling (about 8 minutes or so), use a slotted spoon or wire spider/skimmer to remove the chicken from the bag and shake off excess flour. Carefully add it to the hot oil. Break up any pieces that have stuck together, and fry for about 5 minutes, turning as needed to cook evenly. Turn off the flame on the oil.
- Remove the cooked chicken pieces from the pan with the slotted spoon or spider and place them on paper towels to drain and cool briefly, then toss the chicken into a clean zip-bag. Add the Frank's sauce to the bag, zip it closed, then shake and toss the chicken until it's coated well with the sauce.
- When the pasta is done, turn off the flame and drain it, shaking out any excess water. Place it back into the pan, off heat.
- Add the Tostito's Salsa con Queso and about 2/3 of the crumbled bleu cheese, and toss until the pasta is well-coated with the Tostito's. It's important not to overdo the bleu cheese, because since it's a strong-tasting cheese it could easily overpower the dish.
- Add the chicken to the pan and mix until the chicken is covered with cheese and mixed evenly throughout.
- Serve up garnished with the extra bleu cheese crumbles and green onion.
