# Mac & cheese with hot honey chicken bites

A delicious mac & cheese dish topped with crispy hot honey chicken bites, perfect for a flavorful meal.

- Total time: 30 min
- Cuisine: American
- Category: Dinner
- Language: en

## Ingredients

- 3 chicken breasts
- garlic powder
- onion powder
- lemon pepper
- Nature's Seasoning
- Mrs. Dash
- paprika
- ground mustard
- buttermilk
- 16 ounces sharp cheddar cheese
- 16 ounces Colby Jack cheese
- 16 ounces pepper jack cheese
- butter
- 0.25 cup flour
- 1 can evaporated milk
- 2 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup sour cream
- Cajun seasoning
- 2 tablespoons buffalo sauce
- 1 packet chicken bouillon
- 16 ounces large elbow noodles
- flour for dredging
- corn starch
- oil for frying
- 2 tablespoons butter for hot honey sauce
- 6 ounces Frank's Buffalo sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- chives for garnish

## Instructions

1. Clean and cut three chicken breasts into 1-inch pieces.
2. Season the chicken with garlic powder, onion powder, lemon pepper, Nature's Seasoning, Mrs. Dash, paprika, and ground mustard.
3. Add enough buttermilk to cover the chicken pieces and mix well. Let marinate.
4. Shred 16 ounces each of sharp cheddar, Colby Jack, and pepper jack cheese.
5. Add some butter and 1/4 cup of flour to a hot skillet and whisk until it forms a golden brown roux.
6. Slowly mix in one can of evaporated milk, one cup of heavy cream, and one cup of sour cream to the roux.
7. Season the cheese sauce with garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and Cajun seasoning.
8. Add two tablespoons of buffalo sauce to the cheese sauce.
9. Whisk in half of each shredded cheese into the sauce. If too thick, add one more cup of heavy cream.
10. To a large pot of water, add a packet of chicken bouillon.
11. Once the water boils, add 16 ounces of large elbow noodles and cook.
12. Drain the water from the pasta once cooked.
13. Mix the cooked pasta with the cheese sauce.
14. Add half of the mac and cheese to a cast-iron skillet, layer with some cheese, then add the remaining mac and cheese and top with the rest of the cheese.
15. Top the mac and cheese with a little Cajun seasoning.
16. Bake the mac and cheese in the oven at 350°F (175°C) for 30 minutes, then broil for 2 minutes at the end.
17. In a large bowl, add flour, corn starch, garlic powder, onion powder, Nature's Seasoning, and paprika and whisk to combine.
18. Drop the marinated chicken into the flour mixture and shake it up until it's nicely coated.
19. Fry the coated chicken in hot oil until golden brown and cooked through.
20. For the hot honey sauce, add two tablespoons of butter, about 6 ounces of Frank's Buffalo sauce, and two tablespoons of honey to a saucepan. Bring to a boil.
21. Toss the fried chicken bites in the hot honey sauce.
22. Top the baked mac and cheese with the hot honey chicken bites.
23. Garnish with chives.

## Equipment

- cutting board
- knife
- large bowl
- tongs
- cheese grater
- skillet
- whisk
- large pot with strainer lid
- oven
- plate

## Tips

- Use a pot with a strainer lid for easy pasta draining.
- The cheese sauce can double as a dip.

## Source

- Original video: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTMjYY9wy/
- Recipe page: https://www.cliprecipe.com/recipe/a26c79b6-b9ae-4ac1-98df-8bfab805d9de
- Extracted: 2025-09-30

Extracted from the video by Clip Recipe (https://www.cliprecipe.com). Quantities and steps are as stated or shown in the video. Site guide for agents: https://www.cliprecipe.com/llms.txt