Baked macaroni and cheese that’s gorgeously creamy but made with no cream! Loaded up with chicken and broccoli so it’s a complete meal. In one pot. On the table in 30 minutes. What more can you ask for? Oh – maybe just a cooking video to see how EASY this is to make? 😉
There’s a whole giant head of broccoli in this. And you don’t even need to steam it separately, it gets cooked right in the same pot with the mac and cheese. 🙂 Plus chicken + pasta + cheese = complete meal. At least, in my books!
I adore Mac and Cheese. If I see it on a menu, especially at posh restaurants, I have to have it on the side. Any Sydney-siders tried Neil Perry’s Mac and Cheese at his Rockpool Bar & Grill restaurant? It’s utterly incredible.
It’s also so rich that I can’t have more than a couple of (generously heaped) spoons of it.
So the Mac and Cheese I make at home that’s suitable for serving as a meal is made without cream by using a roux as a base. Sounds fancy (it’s French!), but it’s just melted butter + flour whisked into milk to create a creamy sauce.
I make this in the oven so that way you can make it all in one pot, rather than cooking the macaroni separately and mixing it into the sauce. Making it this way requires an exact amount of liquid to macaroni ratio, specific water + milk combo (too much milk = takes far too long for pasta to rehydrate) and following the cook times specified in the recipe.
Oh – the other very specific steps I do are:
a) Stirring the cheese in just before grilling/broiling to brown the top (if you add it beforehand, it takes forever for the pasta to cook); and
b) Sprinkling the panko and parmesan on at the end, then broiling/grilling it to brown. This serves 2 purposes: browning the crunchy topping while the pasta finishes cooking using the residual heat, and the sauce thickens. You’ll be surprised how much the sauce thickens during the broiling phase. 🙂
Here’s the video so you can see for yourself the magic of how you can make Mac and Cheese in one pot! With no cream!!
Regular readers have probably noticed that cast iron cookware appears often in my recipes. It’s because I love recipes that start off on the stove then finish in the oven – one of my favourite techniques. And cast iron cookware is so fantastic for even distribution and retention of heat on both the stove and in the oven.
It’s also the #1 culprit for the curses and screeches of pain that occurs more regularly than I care to admit.
I just forget HOW GOOD they are with heat retention, and how hot they stay even after a decent period of time out of the oven. I underestimate how long it takes for the dutch ovens to cool down (ages and ages!) and go to grab the pot with my bare hands. Other times, I can’t find my oven mitts so I try to take it out of the oven using a flimsy dishcloth instead (ouch ouch ouch!).
So it’s with many thanks to Burnaid that I’ve created a guide for what to do if you burn yourself. I really hope you never yourself, but this is important information that everyone should know so please take a minute to read it. 2 easy important steps. Do you know what they are?
And know that you can always easily find it on my site because I’ve created a page especially for it now so you can find it under About on my menu bar.🙂
OK! So back to this Mac N Cheese….hmmmm. Not sure what else to say about this!
√ One pot
√ Easy
√ Creamy and cheesy
√ Complete meal
√ No cream
Errrm….ticked all my boxes for an easy, scrumptious midweek meal! 😉 – Nagi x
THE MAC & CHEESE COLLECTION
- Chicken and Broccoli Mac & Cheese – this recipe
- Baked Mac and Cheese – huge reader favourite!
-
Shrimp Mac and Cheese – outrageously delicious!
-
Stovetop Mac and Cheese – one pot, 20 minutes
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Baked Macaroni Cheese with Chicken & BROCCOLI
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb / 500g skinless chicken breast or thigh fillets , cut into bite size pieces
Mac N Cheese
- 3 tbsp butter
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 small onion , finely chopped
- 4 tbsp plain flour
- 2 1/2 cups milk , low fat
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp salt
- Black pepper
- 2 cups macaroni / elbow pasta (Note 1)
- 1 large head of broccoli , broken into florets (or 1 1/2 smaller ones)
- 1 1/2 - 2 cups grated cheese (cheddar, tasty or gruyere)
Topping
- 1/4 cup panko (or ordinary breadcrumbs)
- 2 tbsp parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- Heat oil in a deep heavy based skillet or dutch oven over high heat. Add chicken and cook until just cooked - it's fine if it's still raw inside. Remove chicken into a bowl. (Note 2)
- Reduce heat to medium and melt butter. Add garlic and onion and saute for 5 minutes until onion is translucent. Add flour and cook for 1 minute.
- Pour in half the milk and whisk it in so the flour butter mixture melts. It should thicken quite quickly - around 30 seconds. Pour the remaining milk in, whisking constantly, then add the water, salt and pepper.
- Turn the heat up to medium high and cook, whisking occasionally, for around 3 to 5 minutes until you start seeing steam rising from the white sauce when you whisk it.
- Add the macaroni and chicken, stir, then top with broccoli.
- Place the lid on and bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, switch oven to broiler/grill on high.
- Remove lid (Note 3), stir through cheese, then sprinkle over panko and parmesan. (Will still look bit watery at this stage).
- Place pot under the broiler/grill for 5 minutes, or until top is golden.
- Remove, then let it stand for 5 minutes before serving (sauce thickens quickly).
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
This was delicious but took an hour not 30 mins. Just the baking grilling and standing process alone is 30 mins.
A bit disappointing as dinner was a 30 mins behind schedule.
I’m sorry this took longer than you expected Laura but I’m pleased you enjoyed it!
You did it again Nagi! I was a bit sceptical because I wondered if the ratio of 2.5 cups water to 2 cups pasta would be correct, but you’re right, it’s PERFECT! I generally Thermomix my recipes, so I chucked in the cheese when making the roux and it made no difference (if anyone out there is worried). Delish! And so easy! Oh, I used half wine, half water and it was bloody brilliant. You are FABULOUS! XXXX
So pleased you enjoyed it Eileen! Thanks for letting me know! N xx❤️
What exactly is “tasty” cheese? Never heard of it.
Hi Gayle! It’s a common type of cheese here in Australia, it’s like Cheddar and Monterey Jack 🙂
Hi Nagi,
I made this tonight for dinner. My 13yr old daughter said ” Don’t put broccoli in it. I don’t like it!” I put it in anyway.. hehehe.. She absolutely scoffed it down. She loved it! Thank you soo much for such a yummy recipe.
I’m so pleased to hear that Sharmane, thank you for letting me know! N xx
Hello,
I was wondering, would it be possible to double this recipe in the same dish? I have a larger family and usually have to double any recipe I find, but I see you mention the measurements of water/milk and ingredients are very important to follow precisely. So I wonder if doubling it would cause any trouble in that way? I’m a bit new to cooking so I apologize if this is a beginner question. Would cooking time be effected by doubling the dish as well?
Hi Pol! That’s not a beginner question at all, it’s a very good one! Doubling it should work fine but I just wonder about a pot that is large enough! It will mean it is very deep so there is less crunchy topping to creamy mac, if that makes sense? It will probably take 5 minutes or so longer to cook too 🙂 Hope you love it!
Another amazing recipe ? I switched chicken for tinned tuna as that’s all I had, and added some sliced mushrooms – yum!! 5 stars
Fantastic to hear Liz! I’m so thrilled that you enjoyed this, thank you for letting me know! N xx
Could you use frozen brocoli in this? I don’t have any fresh at the moment and this looks delish!
Absolutely! Works a treat!
You are a brilliant woman!! Made this tonight. My family loved it. I can’t believe how fast, easy and delicious it was. I’m so glad I’ve found your blog and can’t wait to try more recipes. Thank you!
YES!!!! I’m so glad you enjoyed this Michele, thanks for letting me know! N xx
My 12 yr old made this for us tonight (with little assistance). It was amazing! My husband is lactose intolerant so we rarely it creamy things. Luckily we live where there are dairy items that are lactose free. We live on an island in the Pacific Northwest and made no adjustments to the measurements (American compared to Australian measurements). My daughter only had a complaint about the onion… She still hasn’t grasped the beauty and simplicity of the onion yet. I would highly recommend this recipe, what a great comfort food. Thank you so much!
Your 12yo made this??? That’s INCREDIBLE Darby! What a champion!
Omg you’ve done it again. I watched the video, read the recipe and all the comments and had a good feel for what I was doing. But I was still a bit scared when I put it away in the oven, worried I had too much liquid or that the pasta wouldn’t cook. I worried maybe the chicken would be overlooked or my brocolli undercooked. But now I know you are a genius because this turned out wonderfully! Thank you again for a perfect recipe!
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it Annie-Rose! Thank you for coming back to let me know! N x
Nagi, this dish was wonderful! I substituted the broccoli with mushrooms because Bruce doesn’t like brocci. I just popped the chopped mushies over the top at the stage of adding broccoli – it was wonderful! We’ll be fighting over the left overs! Thank you! Much better than Woolies chicken schnitzels 🙂 See you at the dog park with Joanie and Chino xxxx Jo
Doesn’t like Broccoli?? How OLD is he??? It’s like being married to a child! 😉 (OK don’t tell him I teased him, I don’t want him to be cross with me!!) I’m so glad you enjoyed this Jo!!! Did Joanie and Chino do any taste testing?? See you at the park soon! I skipped the weekend….unsurprisingly! I am told the rest of the guys were down at the beach though – MADNESS!!!! N x
Hello Nagi
This is my second 1 pot recipe ive made from the many you have. I did the creamy orzo one too which turned out amazing. This one, tasted so good. I added mushrooms which i cooked down with the onions and garlic. Instead of water, i used chicken stock for added flavor. Everything thickened up extremely nicely which is main reason i love roux based thickening over cream. Will definitely be making this again. It was quite delightful!
P.S. Though i perfer self shredding, i got some pre shredded cheese, good quality and it was a triple cheddar and colby mix. turned out very tasty!
Thanks for trying my recipe Devon!!! I’m SO glad you enjoyed this – and thank you for taking the time to come back and let me know!! N x
Hi Nagi,
I made your recipe few times already. The last one I added cauliflower into the milk and blend it. And it’s yummy !!!!
Thank you Nagi.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Christina, thank you for letting me know! N x
Hi. How would I adjust this recipe to use wholemeal penne (San Remo – can only get penne and spaghetti in wholemeal here in Sydney). Thanks.
Hi Louise! I’m in Sydney too 🙂 I get the San Remo macaroni which is labelled “elbow pasta”. Or do you mean you can only eat wholemeal??
thank you
I love this great recipe
You’re most welcome! So glad you enjoyed it Maya! 🙂
Are these the same measurements we use in North America? For some reason I am thinking Australian measurements are slightly different-ie is a cup the same here as where you are?
Hi M! You are right, measurements differ slightly in American vs Australia. But the difference is minor and for this recipe (and in fact all my savoury recipes) the difference is not enough to affect the recipe! 🙂
This looks like such a good idea, turning mac and cheese into a full meal with the chicken and broccoli!
This is how I get my Mac N Cheese fix midweek! ?
After stumbling on this blog a few weeks ago (I have no idea what Google-spiral lead me here) and receiving your e-newsletters, this is the first recipe I’ve tried. SO GOOD! I used a stove-top safe covered roasting pan (Pampered Chef, I think…) instead of a Dutch oven, but followed the recipe exactly after that. SO GOOD – did I already say that? My 2 year old, who’s on a broccoli kick right now, and my husband agreed. Now instead of working I’m looking through your archives to see what to make tonight.
-Laura from New Hampshire, USA
Fantastic! I’m so glad to hear that Laura, thank you so much for coming back to let me know! N x PS I’m so glad you found me!! 🙂
I don’t have a dutch oven yet 🙁 What about a ceramic baking dish using foil to cover?
I really, really really want to try this but don’t have all the equipment yet booooo
Hi Martina!! Don’t worry! Do you have an ovenproof skillet? I sometimes use a skillet instead and just use a large pot lid or even foil to cover. Otherwise, pop the baking dish in the oven to heat up while you do the stovetop cooking part, then pour it all into the hot baking dish to bake. 🙂 It will work just fine!
I would so devour this, a healthier Mac n Cheese with veggies and chicken! great recipe Nagi.
Thank you kindly Evelyne!!!