Scrumptious creamy and thick macaroni and cheese made with green chiles, two kinds of cheese and topped with crispy tortilla chips.

Green Chili Macaroni Cheese

This creamy macaroni and cheese made with two types of cheese is quick and easy to make, with no fuss added.

It’s made in a pan on the stove top rather than baked in the oven which reminds me of the boxed mac n cheese that I made all the time when I was in college.

I can even remember buying extra boxes of the macaroni and cheese back then when it was on sale.

I liked to mix things in the mac n cheese like hamburger or veggies.

Not a very elegant looking dish but it was so good at the time.

About the Ingredients

Since I just can’t help myself from adding just a little something to my macaroni and cheese, this version has diced green chiles in it to jazz it up just a bit.

The chiles add a mild green chili flavor that tastes wonderful along with the creamy cheese and pasta mixture.

The small cans of diced green chiles are a great pantry item to have on hand for all kinds of things like omelets, quesadillas, hamburgers, or nachos.

Or even macaroni and cheese for goodness sake.

For a crunchy topping, crumbled tortilla or corn chips can be added just before serving.

This dish is best when served warm right after making it.

And it’s okay for the chef to do taste tests. Lots of them.

Let’s check out the ingredients.

Macaroni and Cheese with Green Chiles ingredients

Green Chili Macaroni and Cheese – elbow macaroni, canned (cooked) diced green chiles, extra sharp cheddar cheese, hot pepper jack cheese, butter, ground cumin, granulated garlic, salt, pepper, and half & half

Garnish and an Added Crunch – crumbled tortilla or corn chips (the chips used in the recipe were made by frying thin slices of corn tortillas in canola oil)

HOW TO MAKE THIS RECIPE

A printable recipe with the measurements and instructions is located at the bottom of this post.

For the Cheese:

Shredded cheese on cutting board

Shred the cheese…

Shredded jalapeno cheese on cutting board

…and set aside.

For the Pasta:

Add Salt to Boiling Water

In a medium to large size pot, bring water to a boil and add salt.

Add pasta to boiling water

Add the pasta and stir.

Cook the pasta until its al-dente according to package instructions.

Add drained pasta back to pot

Drain the pasta and set aside (but don’t rinse it or the starch on the pasta will rinse off; the starch helps the cheese sauce stick nicely to the pasta).

For the Green Chili Macaroni and Cheese:

Add butter to pasta in pot

To a medium to large size pot, add the cooked macaroni.

Heat the pan on low heat and add the butter,

Add granulated garlic to pasta on pot

granulated garlic and salt,

Add pepper to pasta in pot

pepper,

Add ground cumin to pasta in pot

and cumin.

Green chiles with pasta in pot

Next add the green chiles (including the juice from the can),

Stir pasta and green chiles in pot

and gently stir.

Add the half & half…

Stir shredded cheese with pasta in pot

…cheddar cheese, and

Stir cheese and pasta in pot

the hot pepper jack cheese.

Stir macaroni and cheese in pot

Carefully do a quick taste test and add more salt if needed.

Turn the heat up slightly and stir until the desired consistency is reached.

Serve warm and top with crumbled tortilla or corn chips.

Macaroni and Cheese with Green Chiles in Iron Dish

Or top with crispy thin chips made by frying thin slices of corn tortillas in canola oil.

Macaroni and Cheese with Green Chiles in Iron Dish

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Green Chili Macaroni and Cheese

Macaroni and Cheese with Green Chiles

Scrumptious creamy and thick macaroni and cheese made with green chiles, two kinds of cheese and topped with crispy tortilla chips.
5 from 2 votes

Ingredients

For the Macaroni:

  • 1 cup dry (uncooked) elbow macaroni
  • Water for boiling pasta
  • 2 teaspoons salt

For the Green Chili Macaroni and Cheese:

  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 3/4 cup half & half
  • 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
  • 1 cup shredded hot pepper jack cheese
  • 1 can (4 ounces) cooked diced green chiles
  • 1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt or salt to taste
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 3 dashes ground cumin
  • 1/2 cup thin tortilla strips crumbled tortilla chips, or crumbled corn chips (for garnish)

Instructions

For the Macaroni:

  • In a medium to large size pot, bring water to a boil and add salt.  
  • Add the pasta and stir.  Cook the pasta until its al-dente according to package instructions. 
  • Drain the pasta (but don't rinse it or the starch on the pasta will rinse off; the starch helps the cheese sauce stick nicely to the pasta).

For the Green Chili Macaroni and Cheese:

  • To a medium to large size pot, add the macaroni.  Heat pot on low heat and add butter, granulated garlic, salt, pepper, cumin and green chiles (including the juice from the can).  Gently stir together.
  • To the pan, add half & half, shredded cheddar cheese, and shredded hot pepper jack cheese.  Stir together.
  • Carefully do a quick taste test and add more salt if needed.  Turn the heat up slightly and gently stir until the desired consistency is reached. 
  • Top with thin tortilla chips, crumbled tortilla chips or corn chips. 
  • Serve warm.

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