One-pot chili mac
Macaroni cooked right in a smoky bean chili and blanketed in melted cheddar, one pot of pure comfort that happens to be meatless.
- 35 min total
- 15 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 4
- About $1.57 a serving
- 580 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegetarian
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 can diced tomatoes, 14.5 oz
- 1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 8 oz elbow macaroni
- 1½ cups cheddar cheese, grated, divided
- ½ cup sour cream (optional)
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced (optional)
From your pantry
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1½ tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- 3 cups water
- 1 tsp salt
Each serving has about 580 calories, 25 g protein, 69 g carbs and 23 g fat, and costs about $1.57 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No diced tomatoes? Crushed tomatoes work.
- No kidney beans? Pinto beans or black beans work.
- No elbow macaroni? Penne works.
- No cheddar cheese? Shredded cheddar or monterey jack cheese or mexican blend cheese works.
- No sour cream? Plain greek yogurt works.
- No green onions? Chives work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, 5 minutes, until soft.
Medium heatTimer: 5 min
Stir in the chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder and oregano and cook 30 seconds, .
Fragrant. Fragrant means cooking until you can clearly smell it, usually garlic or spices, often in about 30 seconds. That’s the moment the flavor is ready, just before it can burn.
How you’ll know: You can smell it from a step back, and garlic is pale gold, not brown.
Medium heat
Add the tomatoes with their juice, the beans, 3 cups water and the salt. Turn the heat to high and .
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
Stir in the macaroni, turn the heat to medium, and , stirring every couple of minutes, 10 to 12 minutes, until the pasta is tender and most of the liquid is gone.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Medium heatTimer: 11 min
Dolly’s tip: Scrape the bottom when you stir. Pasta cooked in sauce likes to stick.Take the pot off the heat, stir in half the cheddar, then scatter the rest over the top and cover for 2 minutes to .
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Timer: 2 min
Serve with sour cream and green onions on top.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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