This Skinny One Pot Chili Mac and Cheese is a skinny version of a classic Chili Mac recipe-which combines two great comfort foods-Chili and Mac and Cheese. This is a quick and easy dish the entire family will love!
THIS POST IS SPONSORED BY LAURAS LEAN, ALL OPINIONS ARE 100% MY OWN.
I’ve teamed up with Carusele to participate in the LaurasLean campaign, to make this Skinny One Pot Chili Mac and Cheese using Laura’s 96% Lean Ground Beef.
What makes Laura’s Lean Beef different than other brands of beef?
Unlike most other “natural” beef, Laura’s Lean product is a “Never Ever” offering, meaning their protein is sourced from suppliers that raise their cattle without ever using added hormones or antibiotics and are always vegetarian fed.
Laura’s 96% Lean Beef is certified through the American Heart Association heart check program and meets USDA standards for “Extra Lean?” That means each 4 oz. serving of Laura’s Lean contains less than 10 grams of fat, 4.5 grams or less of saturated fat, and less than 95 mg of cholesterol per 100 grams serving.
Where can I find Laura’s Lean ground beef, patties or plant-based burgers?
Find Laura’s Lean ground beef or plant-based products near you using the Store Locator HERE.
How do I make this Skinny One Pot Chili Mac and Cheese?
Fill a large Dutch oven or stockpot with water and cook 8 oz. of macaroni according to package directions. Drain and set pasta aside.
Return pot to stove on medium-high heat. Spray the Dutch oven or stockpot with non stick cooking spray.
Add the ground beef and cook for about 5 minutes, breaking up the meat with a spatula. Once meat is cooked, drain excessive liquid, if needed.
Add onion and garlic. Cook onions and garlic until onions are soft.
Add tomato sauce, green chilies, kidney beans, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer, occasionally stirring. Cook for about 15 minutes.
Combine the cooked pasta and cheese to the meat and beans.
Cook for another minute or until well combined and the cheese is melted.
Serve with your favorite toppings such as: fat free sour cream, sliced onions, or additional cheese.
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs. Laura’s Lean 96% ground beef
- 8 oz. dry elbow macaroni (I use Barilla Plus elbows or whole wheat)
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves or 1 Tbsp, minced
- 2 (15 oz.) cans tomato sauce
- 1 can (16 oz.) dark red kidney beans, drained
- 1 can (4 oz.) diced fire roasted green chilies
- 1 can (14.5 oz.) diced petite tomatoes, undrained
- 1 and 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup shredded reduced fat cheese ( I use Velveeta shreds)
- Green onions, fat free sour cream or plain yogurt, or additional cheese for garnish
Directions:
- Fill a large 5-quart Dutch oven or stockpot with water and cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain and set pasta aside.
- Return pot to stove on medium-high heat. Spray the Dutch oven or stockpot with non stick cooking spray. Add the ground beef and cook for about 5 minutes, breaking up the meat with a spatula. Once meat is cooked, drain excessive liquid, if needed.
- Add onion and garlic. Cook onions and garlic until onions are soft.
- Add tomato sauce, green chilies, kidney beans, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer, occasionally stirring. Cook for about 15 minutes.
- Combine the cooked pasta and cheese to the meat and beans. Cook for another minute or until well combined and the cheese is melted.
- Serve with your favorite toppings such as: fat free sour cream, sliced onions, or additional cheese for additional points.
Servings: Makes 8 ( 1 and 1/4 cup) servings
myWW Green: 7 SmartPoints per serving
myWW Blue: 6 SmartPoints per servings
myWW Purple: 4 SmartPoints per serving if using whole wheat elbow noodles or 6 Smartpoints per serving if using regular elbow noodles
Skinny One Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

This Skinny One Pot Chili Mac and Cheese is a skinny version of a classic Chili Mac recipe-which combines two great comfort foods-Chili and Mac N' Cheese. This is a quick and easy dish that the entire family will love!
Author: thepounddropper.com
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. Laura’s Lean 96% ground beef
- 8 oz. dry elbow macaroni (I use Barilla Plus elbows or whole wheat)
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves or 1 Tbsp, minced
- 2 (15 oz.) cans tomato sauce
- 1 can (16 oz.) dark red kidney beans, drained
- 1 can (4 oz.) diced fire roasted green chilies
- 1 can (14.5 oz.) diced petite tomatoes, undrained
- 1 and 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup shredded reduced fat cheese ( I use Velveeta shreds)
- Green onions, fat free sour cream or plain yogurt, or additional cheese for garnish
Instructions
- Fill a large 5-quart Dutch oven or stockpot with water and cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain and set pasta aside.
- Return pot to stove on medium-high heat. Spray the Dutch oven or stockpot with non stick cooking spray. Add the ground beef and cook for about 5 minutes, breaking up the meat with a spatula. Once meat is cooked, drain excessive liquid, if needed.
- Add onion and garlic. Cook onions and garlic until onions are soft.
- Add tomato sauce, green chilies, kidney beans, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer, occasionally stirring. Cook for about 15 minutes.
- Combine the cooked pasta and cheese to the meat and beans. Cook for another minute or until well combined and the cheese is melted.
- Serve with your favorite toppings such as: fat free sour cream, sliced onions, or additional cheese.
Servings: Makes 8 ( 1 and 1/4 cup) servings
myWW Green: 7 SmartPoints per serving
myWW Blue: 6 SmartPoints per servings
myWW Purple: 4 SmartPoints per serving if using whole wheat elbow noodles or 6 Smartpoints per serving if using regualr elbows
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
-
(Pack of 12) Contadina Canned Roma Tomato Sauce with Natural Sea Salt, 12x15oz. Cans
-
Ortega Diced Green Chiles, Mild, 4 oz (Pack of 12)
-
Hunt's 100% Natural Diced Tomatoes
-
Bush's Best Dark Red Kidney Beans (3 pack)
-
Barilla Whole Grain Pasta, Elbows, 16 Ounce (Pack of 8)
-
McCormick Ground Cumin, 4.5 oz
-
Tasty 5Qt Dutch Oven with Lid - Diamond Non-Stick, Copper
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Amount Per Serving: Calories: 347Total Fat: 6gCholesterol: 60mgSodium: 785mgCarbohydrates: 48gNet Carbohydrates: 40gFiber: 8gSugar: 3gProtein: 36g
I used just the store brand 96% lean 4% fat beef. Our family loved this! It was so flavorful (I did add a little more chili seasoning) and so filling! Super easy to prep and I loved how quickish it was to make. We definitely will be adding this to our rotation. We have a good amount leftover and I would love to see if we could freeze some of this. Great recipe!
I found this recipe on your site yesterday and gave it a try! It’s a hit! The only thing I did differently was I used one pound of 96/4 ground beef and instead of green chilies, I used a can of Rotel mild chilies and diced tomatoes. It’s a keeper! Thanks so much!
Spectacular dish… we absolutely will make it again and again.
its been a while i’ve been through this site and i love learing from your site every recipe has it own taste and this right here is a master piece really love that i used to make these going to try it out again thanks for such great recipe 🙂
I finally tried your chili Mac recipe and it was awesome. I used the ingredients listed but added some of Daks taco seasoning. Loved it. Thanks for this delicious WW meal
I’m newer to Weight Watchers. If I only have 99% ground turkey on hand, could I sub that in? Would that affect the points?
I used 93% fat free turkey and ended up with 8SP per serving.
This recipe is SO yummy. I will be making it for the 2nd time this week. It totally fools you— totally feels like it should be unhealthy but its not. Its so filling. I usually make it for dinner and then have the leftovers for lunch the next couple of days.