Easy Slow Cooker Chili Mac (One Pot Meal)
This easy Slow Cooker Chili Mac recipe is a perfect for busy weeknights. Simply toss in the ingredients and let it cook away all day, toss in the macaroni 30-minutes before serving. Super easy!
This is a proper comfort food recipe! Flavor packed chili con carne, with pasta cooked into the sauce, super delicious loaded with grated Cheddar cheese!
WHY YOU'LL LOVE OUR SLOW COOKER CHILI MAC RECIPE
⭐️ Our Slow Cooker Chili Mac is just so simple to make! Add the ingredients (except the macaroni), mix and cook! Then when you get home, toss in the macaroni, stir and leave to cook for 30-minutes. That's literally it!
⭐️ It's a low cost recipe to make, and totally cosy on an autumn or winter night.
⭐️ The pasta cooks in the chili in the slow cooker so it's super easy and one-pan and we just love that for weeknights!
EQUIPMENT NEEDED
- Slow Cooker (crock pot)
- Cooking Spoon
- Cheese Grater
- Teaspoon
SLOW COOKER CHILI MAC INGREDIENTS
- Ground Beef (beef mince) - I use lean ground beef for this recipe
- Onion - diced
- Bell Pepper - diced
- Passata - be sure to use passata it gives a richer sauce, diced tomatoes can be too watery
- Canned Kidney Beans (you can swap these for black beans if you prefer)
- Easy Garlic
- Chili Powder - we use a chipotle smoky chili powder
- Ground Cumin
- Macaroni Pasta - feel free to use elbow macaroni if you prefer
To Serve
- Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- Any extra toppings you like on your pasta or chili - it's nice with a dollop of sour cream and some fresh coriander (cilantro)
For full quantities see recipe card below
HOW TO MAKE SLOW COOKER CHILI MAC RECIPE
- Add the ground beef, passata, diced onions and bell peppers, kidney beans, garlic, chilli powder and ground cumin to the slow cooker pan.
- Add two cups of water - we just use a mug
- Cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours.
- Then tip in the dried macaroni, give it a good stir and then put the lid back on and leave it for around 30 minutes - check after 15 minutes that it's not drying out, if it is add some extra boiling water.
- After about 25 minutes, sprinkle over a couple of handfuls of grated Cheddar cheese and pop the lid back on until it's melted and delicious.
lt's also worth remembering that all slow cookers cook at slightly different temperatures and food can be cooked more quickly or slowly than we've stated.
For full step by step instructions see recipe card below
RECIPE TIPS AND INGREDIENT SWAPS
Use Ground Turkey - you can make this recipe with ground turkey breast or thighs if you prefer for a lighter option.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH SLOW COOKER CHILI MAC
The Slow Cooker Chili Mac recipe is delicious with buttery garlic bread, side salad with avocado, corn cobs or coleslaw.
We love our crock pot chili mac served with soured cream, chopped cilantro and extra shredded cheese.
MORE EASY SLOW COOKER DINNER RECIPES TO TRY
NEED SOME FAMILY MEAL IDEAS?
Check out our meal planning here – it’s filled with recipes, meal planning tips and pre-filled printable meal plans weekly or seasonally. We’ve got hundreds of the BEST family recipes your whole family will LOVE! You can also join our proper easy meals Facebook group here.
Slow Cooker Chili Mac Recipe
A super easy one-pot pasta recipe - a delicious fusion of chili con carne and macaroni!
Ingredients
- 500g (1lb) beef mince (ground beef)
- 1 onion - diced
- 1 bell pepper - diced
- 500g (18oz) passata
- 400g ( 14oz) can kidney beans
- 4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 2-3 teaspoon chili powder (adjust to your own tastes)
- 1 teaspoon garlic paste
- pinch salt
- pinch black pepper
- 2 cups water
- 300g (10oz) dried macaroni
- 2 cups grated Cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Add the beef mince, passata, diced onions and bell pepper, kidney beans, garlic, cumin, chilli powder, salt and pepper to the slow cooker. Mix well.
- Pour in 2 cups of water, stir. Then cook on low for 8 hours or high for 3 ½.
- 30 minutes before the end of cooking time, stir in the dried macaroni, and put the lid back on - check after 15 minutes to see if it needs any extra water.
- 5 minutes before cooking end of cooking time, sprinkle over 2 cups of grated cheese and place the lid back on so it melts.
- Then serve.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 453Total Fat: 26gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 81mgSodium: 597mgCarbohydrates: 29gFiber: 6gSugar: 3gProtein: 28g
Nutritional content will vary depending on the exact ingredients you use and how careful you are with measuring - this nutritional information is given as a general guide only and may not be accurate - you should always calculate your own nutritional information especially if you have specific dietary requirements.
Wendy is the creator of Daisies & Pie, a UK food blog sharing easy meals and home lifestyle tips since 2012
