Easy Homemade One Pot Weeknight Chili Mac

During these busy fall weeknights, we are always on the hunt for an easy one-pot meal the whole family will love. And believe me, that can be a tricky task! But this easy one pot chili mac is a perfect weeknight meal that has something everyone will love! It has become one of my favorite go-to recipes when we are on a time crunch and because its a one pot dinner, its become one of my favorite meals to cook because its also an easy clean up!

A one-pot chili mac is such a warm, comforting meal to come home to at the end of a long day! As the weather changes cooler and our schedules pick up, ending the busy day with this healthy meal is the perfect way to put a smile on your families faces! The rich, warm spices add a depth of flavor that is classic for fall recipes!

You can customize this easy meal with a variety of toppings! My family loves a large dollop of sour cream, cheddar cheese, and crumpled up salted tortilla chips! But you could add green onion, avocado, guacamole, oyster crackers, pepper jack or monterey jack cheese. If you have a spicey food lover in your house you could spice up this one pot chili mac recipe with your favorite hot sauce as well or salsa! So many ways to customize this family favorite so that there is something for everyone!

Can I customize?

We love using ground beef in our one pot chili mac but you could easily mac this a vegetarian chili mac by adding in more kidney beans and omitting the ground beef or you could swap the ground beef with ground chicken for a leaner version! The best part, you can prep part of this easy weeknight dinner in advance or make the entire meal ahead and freeze it for a later time. It reheats well for a next day lunch, too. All prep instructions are toward the end!

If you have any allergies, here are a few swaps you can make. Use any gluten free pasta in place of regular pasta. Try and use a rice based if you can for gluten free as it tends to hold up better than a corn or chick pea version. If you are avoiding dairy, you can omit the cheese on the top and see the list above for other toppings to customize with!

With all the variations this will quickly become a go-to, easy weeknight meal any time of year!

Here are the ingredients you’ll need:

Ingredients

8oz of your favorite noodles ( I use a gluten-free penne but you could use elbow pasta or homemade noodles)

28oz crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce

onion, chopped

fresh garlic, chopped

ground beef, ground chicken, or ground turkey ( or make it a vegetarian chili mac with an extra can of beans)

can dark red kidney beans (or you could use pinto beans or black beans or chili beans)

tomato paste

ground cumin

chili powder

ground paprika

garlic powder

oregano

cayenne pepper (can omit if you don’t want it to be spicey)

honey

32oz beef broth or vegetable broth

Freshly grated cheddar cheese or Monterey jack cheese

Directions

Use large Dutch oven or stock pot and place over medium high heat. Add a bit of olive oil and sauté the onion and garlic together for just a few minutes until they get nice and tender. Then add in your ground beef or meat of choice (if omitting meat skip this step). Brown the meat until it’s cooked through then add in all the ground, dried seasonings and mix well.

Next, add in the crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce, kidney beans (or whatever beans you picked), tomato paste, beef broth or vegetable broth. Mix well and bring the mixture back to a boil. Add in the noodles at this point and once boiling, turn off heat and cover with lid. Allow the noodles to cook about 10 min or until al dente. While you are waiting for the pasta to finish cooking, grate the cheddar cheese or monterey cheese and set aside.

Once the pasta is finished cooking sprinkle the cheese on top of the pasta and place the lid back on for a few minutes to allow it to melt and become super creamy and cheesy!

You can serve now if making fresh! I love to add a big dollop of sour cream on top and/or even crinkle some tortilla chips on top for an added salty crunch! This reheats well for a delicious lunch the next day lunch! You can store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

​Here are two ways you could prep this easy dinner recipe!

1. You could pre chop the onion and garlic in advance and even cook the ground beef or ground chicken. You can freeze them at this point and on the day of just toss in the hot large dutch oven or large pot. Will save you some time on the day of for those busy weeknights!

2. The second prep tip is to make the recipe all the way through and you can freeze! You can freeze this recipe in multiple ways.  First, you could use one large airtight container if you are wanting to reheat it at the same time. Mason jars (just leave room at the top) are great to freeze and grab and go for easy lunches. Or you could freeze in silicone squares and only reheat for dinner the portion size you will need! My favorite brand of silicone squares can be found here.

Swap Tips: If you are wanting to make it a little different you could add in some green chilis or some other veggies like red bell pepper. Use your favorite bean to change up the flavors and you can play around with the pasta shape as well! A ditalini pasta would also be a great addition! If you like texture in your sauce you could swap tomato sauce for diced tomatoes. Even with swapping out items this recipe still consists of very simple ingredients! This is the perfect, simple weeknight meal!

Hope you enjoy!