My creamy buffalo chicken mac and cheese is topped off with a buttery toasted panko for next-level flavor. It’s quick to make in just over 30 minutes! Recipe includes a how-to video!
The Best Buffalo Mac and Cheese
Today’s buffalo chicken mac and cheese recipe started out as a just-for-fun experiment (so many of my recipes do!) but after taste testing I didn’t have a choice — I had to share it with you! With its irresistibly creamy texture and buffalo chicken dip-esque flavor, this one was just too good to keep to myself.
This recipe has everything you love about baked mac & cheese, plus an extra kick of flavor from the buffalo sauce. It’s cheesy, creamy, a little spicy, and so hearty with plenty of shredded chicken.
I top mine off with a buttery, crispy crown of toasted panko for some extra texture and flavor, and it’s truly the best mac and cheese I’ve had (my bacon mac and cheese is a close second though!). I just know you’re going to love it too!
What You Need
There are quite a lot of ingredients up there, so let’s go over some of the most important ones:
- Buffalo sauce. Make sure you’re using prepared buffalo sauce and not straight hot sauce (which would add more heat than intended).
- Pasta. You can use macaroni (a classic choice! I use this in my easy mac and cheese), but cavatappi/cellentani is a bit more fun.
- Cheese. Grab some mozzarella and cheddar blocks and shred them yourself–this is critical for the smoothest sauce and best melting. Pre-shredded cheeses may be more convenient, but they contain anti-caking agents that prevent them from melting smoothly.
- Sour cream + cream cheese. To make this buffalo mac and cheese extra creamy, we’ll go beyond your standard shredded cheeses and use cream cheese and sour cream too. These two ingredients are possibly the most critical in developing such a creamy and richly flavored dish!
- Chicken. Any cooked, shredded chicken will work. I like to use a rotisserie chicken or my slow cooker shredded chicken.
- Panko. We toast this panko in butter on the stovetop for wonderful, buttery flavor. Sometimes, instead of using panko I make breadcrumbs out of my sourdough bread and use those, instead!
SAM’S TIP: Since this dish is so creamy and rich, it makes a great party/potluck dish. It’s the kind of comfort food that you pile on your plate at a party, then find yourself going back for seconds…and thirds!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese
Mac and Cheese
- Cook your pasta to al dente according to package directions, then drain and keep warm.
- Melt the butter and stir in the flour until smooth.
- Stir in the spices and milk, then bring the mixture to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to a simmer and stir frequently until thickened. Once thickened, stir in the cheeses and sour cream until smooth.
- Stir in the hot sauce, then add the chicken and pasta.
- Pour into a buttered baking dish and prepare the panko topping.
Panko Topping
- Melt the butter and olive oil together over medium heat, then add the panko.
- Stir and toast the panko until it absorbs the butter and oil and begins to turn a light golden brown.
- Sprinkle the panko over your prepared mac and cheese.
- Bake at 350F for 15 minutes, then enjoy!
SAM’S TIP: Fresh chopped parsley makes a pretty, fresh garnish on this mac and cheese. This is optional, but I do like to add it if I have some on hand.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! If you’d like to make the recipe up until the baking step, you can cover it and refrigerate until ready to bake. When you’re ready, simply remove your covering and bake until warmed through.
My buffalo mac and cheese carries some heat, but it’s not overwhelmingly hot (though you heat-seekers out there can feel free to up the ante with a few extra tablespoons of buffalo sauce). The heat is nicely tempered by the cheeses, so I find the spice level to be mild or about as hot as a buffalo chicken dip would be.
Yes! This buffalo mac and cheese doubles nicely, especially for parties. You’ll want to bake it in a 9×13 if you do. Keep in mind the bake time might be a bit longer in a bigger pan.
Let me know in the comments if you’d like to see more spruced up mac and cheese recipes!
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 8 oz (230 g) dry macaroni noodles (I used Cellentani noodles)
- 3 Tablespoons (42 g) butter
- 3 Tablespoons (24 g) flour
- 2 cups (475 ml) milk
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon ground mustard
- 4 oz (115 g) cream cheese
- 1 ½ cup (170 g) shredded mozzarella cheese I use low-moisture part skim
- 1 cup (115 g) sharp shredded cheddar cheese
- ⅓ cup (80 g) sour cream
- ½ cup (120 ml) buffalo hot sauce
- 1 ½ cups (200 g) shredded chicken
For Panko Topping:
- 1 Tablespoon (14 g) butter
- ½ Tablespoon olive oil
- ½ cup (30 g) seasoned panko crumbs
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and lightly grease a 1.5qt round baking dish or 9×9 square baking dish with butter.
- Cook pasta al dente according to package instructions.8 oz (230 g) dry macaroni noodles (I used Cellentani noodles)
- Meanwhile, melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Once it has melted, add flour and stir until smooth.3 Tablespoons (42 g) butter, 3 Tablespoons (24 g) flour
- Add milk and spices, stir well and bring to a boil.2 cups (475 ml) milk, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon ground mustard
- Once mixture begins to boil, reduce heat, bring to a simmer, and stir frequently until it is slightly thickened.
- Reduce heat to low and add cream cheese, mozzarella cheese, cheddar cheese, and sour cream. Stir until cheeses are melted and mixture is smooth.4 oz (115 g) cream cheese, 1 ½ cup (170 g) shredded mozzarella cheese, 1 cup (115 g) sharp shredded cheddar cheese, ⅓ cup (80 g) sour cream
- Add hot sauce and stir.½ cup (120 ml) buffalo hot sauce
- Add shredded chicken and cooked, drained pasta noodles and stir until well coated by the sauce.1 ½ cups (200 g) shredded chicken
- Pour into prepared baking dish and prepare your Panko topping.
Panko Topping
- Combine butter and olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Heat, stirring occasionally, until melted.1 Tablespoon (14 g) butter, ½ Tablespoon olive oil
- Add panko and stir well until the butter and oil has been mostly absorbed. Continue to stir until panko is lightly toasted and turns a light-medium brown color½ cup (30 g) seasoned panko crumbs
- Use a spoon to sprinkle over prepared buffalo chicken mac and cheese
- Transfer to oven and bake on 350F (175C) for 15 minutes.
- Garnish with parsley, if desired, and serve.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Recipe originally published August 2017. Recipe remains the same but text has been updated to be more helpful.
Chrissy
Can the cheese be made ahead of time and frozen?
We love this meal so much but making it ahead of time would be so much easier on crazy nights.
Sam
Hi Chrissy! Sorry for the delayed response. You should be able to freeze it without issue. 🙂
Nicole
This recipe is absolutely amazing!! I made this for a girls night and everyone loved it. I’m having another get together with my friends this weekend and they all asked if I could make this again, it is SO good!! Hands down one of the best mac and cheese dishes I’ve ever had!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoys it, Nicole!:)
Lisa Powers
this is awesome the family loves it
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it Lisa! 🙂
Devon
I want to make a double portion of this to bring to a party, and think bringing in a crock pot would be best- do you think prepping the Mac n cheese and topping with the Panko in the crock pot will be fine, without baking in the oven?
Sam
Hi Devon. The panko may get soggy, but other than that it would work fine. 🙂
Sarah
I want to make this tonight l, but have no cream cheese. Can I sub something else in for it?!
Sam
Hi Sarah! I’m not sure of anything that would give this mac & cheese quite the same flavor/texture that cream cheese would.
Natalie
I want to make this recipe and I’m not a good cook at all and would need it to feed like 20 people and have no clue how to adjust the ingredients for that. Please help me
Sam
This recipe makes about 8 servings (obviously this is dependent on how much each person eats) To get enough for 20 people you would need to make 2.5 times the recipe here. For that many people, it may be best to just triple the recipe to make math easier and make sure there is enough. 🙂
Amy
Wow didn’t have cram cheese. Didn’t matter. Also did Greek yogurt instead of sour cream 10 out of 10
Sam
So glad you enjoyed, Amy!!
Nancy
Can you make ahead and freeze this?
Sam
Hi, Nancy. I have not tried it, but I think it will work just fine. 🙂
Jaime
Hi, Sam!
We love this dish so much, we probably eat it every other week, if not more. It is our ‘treat yourself’ dinner.
I was wondering if you had any advice on adding cauliflower to this dish? Do you think it would work well, and if so, how would you recommend going about doing so?
Thank you so much!
Sam
Hi Jaime! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe! Unfortunately I am probably the *worst* person to ask about adding cauliflower, I’ve never tried it myself 🙈If you have another recipe you like for cauliflower mac & cheese you could probably try substituting this sauce for that one and I think that would work, but it’s honestly hard for me to say having never made it this way myself.
I’m hoping someone else who might have tried this might chime in and have an answer for you! Sorry I can’t be more helpful!
Melodie Burlew
My son mentioned that he was craving Buffalo chicken and Mac and cheese. I made this recipe, and he is now devouring it! So very good!
Sam
I’m so glad to hear he enjoyed it! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out, Melodie!! 🙂
GingerB
My husband is too funny.. we’ve been eating dinner for a total of 5 mins and he’s complimented the mac and cheese 7 times, Told me to make sure I come on here to praise the person who posted this. LOL I followed the directions exactly, it was easy to follow and tastes amazing! Thank you for sharing this amazing dish!
Sam
😂I am so glad he enjoyed it! 🙂
Laura
it was a big hit at our Christmas Pot luck Dinner!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it, Laura! 🙂
Michael
I decided to make this for Thanksgiving. Added some extra hot sauce and cheese on top, but didn’t do the Panko. I have to say that first bite was heaven. So glad I came across this recipe, 11/10 would recommend.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it, Michael! My husband would definitely love adding more hot sauce. I’ll have to do that next time. 🙂
Tracy
Was very good. The second time I made it I made so.e substitutions though. I used ranch in place of the sour cream and topped with doritos. Very good that way too
Sam
That sounds delicious! I am glad you enjoyed it. ☺️
Quinton Butler
Awesomely creamy and seriously delish
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it! ☺️