(UPDATED 2025) Butter Chicken Mac + Cheese

This Butter Chicken Mac + Cheese will probably be one of the most flavorful mac and cheeses you will ever make. And I'm telling you, it will go TOE to TOE with any Thanksgiving dish. The combination of making a cheese sauce and incorporating it into a butter chicken sauce blends so perfectly. A guaranteed Thanksgiving staple. Trust me, you are going to love it! 

Overview: 

There are 3 main steps in this recipe

1. Make the butter chicken 
2. Make the cheese sauce 
3. Combine butter chicken and cheese sauce 

Useful Tips: 

1. Shred your cheese. This helps with the flavor. Don’t skip this. Half our cheese will be for our sauce and the other half will be for layering the mac and cheese. 
2. I used a 9x13 deep baking dish. 
3. Marinate your chicken for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour. Preferably a few hours over night if you have the time but 30 minutes will do and work wonders. 
4. You can prepare the butter chicken sauce and cheese sauce the day before. When reheating the sauce on the stove, add a little bit of water or heavy cream to get it back to the needed consistency. 
5. When making the cheese sauce, only work on a very low to no flame when adding in the cheese. If your flame is too high, your cheese will curd and your sauce will turn very grainy. We want to avoid this. 
6. When adding cheese to the sauce, start with very small handfuls (especially if you’re a beginner) and fully melt each addition before adding more. Trust me, I've messed up more cheese sauces than I want to admit. This helps. Small amounts and no flame. Incresee the handlfuls as you get more comfortable. 
7. If the cheese sauce is too thick, add in a splash of cream or milk. 
8. If the cheese sauce is not melting the cheese, you may just need a little heat. Turn the flame on at the lowest possible temperature and whisk until melted. 

 

Chicken Marinade: 

1. 4 chicken thighs
2. 8–10 garlic cloves, smashed
3. 1 inch ginger, smashed
4. 1 small green chili, smashed (or 1 habanero or long hot)
5. ¾ cup whole-fat Greek yogurt
6. 1.5 tbsp melted butter
7. ½ tbsp salt
8. 1 tsp turmeric
9. 2 tbsp Kashmiri chili powder
10. 1 tbsp garam masala
11. ½ lime, juiced

Butter Chicken Sauce: 

1. 4 tbsp ghee or butter
2. 5 garlic cloves, minced
3. 1 small onion, diced
4. 1.5 tsp garam masala
5. 1.5 tsp Kashmiri chili powder
6. ½ tsp cumin
7. ¼ tsp turmeric
8. 1 tbsp tomato paste
9. 1 (28 oz) can tomato puree
10. 2 tbsp cashews + ½ cup water (blended)
11. ½ tbsp honey
12. ½ lime, juiced
13. ⅓ cup heavy cream (up to 1 cup if needed)
14. 2 tbsp kasoori methi (fenugreek leaves)
15. ½ head cilantro, finely chopped
16. Salt to taste

Cheese Sauce:

1. 1 lb mozzarella
2. 1 lb Gouda
3. 1 lb cheddar
4. ¼ lb Parmesan
5. 1 tsp garlic powder
6. 1 tsp onion powder
7. ½ tsp Kashmiri chili powder
8. ½ tsp salt
9. 5 tbsp butter
10. 5 tbsp flour
11. 2 cups heavy cream
12. 3 cups milk
13. ½ lime, juiced 

Mac + Cheese: 

1. 1 lb cavatelli pasta 
2. 2 cup Panko Breadcrumbs 
3. 4 tbsp Butter
4. Cilantro for finish

 

Directions

1. Butter Chicken Marinade

1. In a mortar and peste, smash garlic, ginger and pepper to create a paste. 
2. Combine paste and the rest of marinade ingredients in a bowl and marinate at least 30 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 400°F.
4. Place chicken and all leftover marinade on a baking tray. Bake 20–25 minutes or until chicken reaches 165°F.
5. Let cool, then shred into stringy pieces. Mix in all pan juices — key flavor.

 

2. Butter Chicken Sauce

1. Blend cashews with ½ cup water until smooth. Set aside.
2. In a pan over medium heat, melt the ghee.
3. Add onions and sauté 2–3 minutes until translucent. Add garlic and sauté 1 minute.
4. Turn heat to low. Add garam masala, Kashmiri chili powder, and turmeric and cook 1–2 minutes until fragrant.
5. Add tomato paste and cook 3 minutes until the raw smell is gone.
6. Increase heat to medium-low. Add tomato puree and a pinch of salt and simmer 5 minutes, until slightly reduced.
7. Add the cashew puree, heavy cream, and honey and mix until smooth.
8. Add kasoori methi, cilantro, and lime juice.
9. Salt to taste and set aside.

 

3. Cheese Sauce

1. Shred all cheese, mix together, and divide into two bowls (half for sauce, half for layering).
2. In a pan over medium-low heat, melt butter. Add garlic powder, onion powder, Kashmiri chili powder, and salt and cook 2 minutes to bloom the spices.
3. Add flour and whisk constantly for 3–4 minutes until the roux is smooth and turns a light brown color.
4. Add half the heavy cream and whisk until smooth. Add the remaining cream and mix until fully incorporated and smooth.
5. Add half the milk and whisk until smooth. Add the remaining milk and whisk again until smooth. Simmer 2–3 minutes until slightly thickened (just thicker than milk).
6. Turn the heat off and whisk for 1 minute to cool the base slightly.
7. Slowly add cheese from Bowl 1, in very small handfuls, whisking until each addition fully melts before adding more.
8. Sauce should be silky, smooth, and slightly runny.

 

4. Assemble the Mac + Cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Melt 4 tbsp butter and toss with panko until lightly toasted. Set aside.
3. Cook pasta until al dente; drain and reserve some pasta water.
4. Add the pasta into the butter chicken cheese sauce and mix until fully combined.
5. If the mixture is too thick, add splashes of pasta water until creamy.
6. Taste and adjust salt; add juice of ½ lime.
7. In a 9x13 baking dish:
   1. Add half the mac and cheese
   2. Add a layer of shredded cheese
   3. Add in the other half of mac and cheese
   4. add in the rest of the shredded cheese 
8. Top with breadcrumbs
9. Bake 20–25 minutes until golden brown ontop and cheese has melted.
10. Garnish with cilantro and ENJOY!!