-
1
Place the chicken thighs and 1 cup stock in a baking dish (if you use a 9x13 dish you can save some dishes later).
-
2
Turn oven to 400 F. Salt the thighs, and place 1/2 tablespoon butter on top of each piece of chicken.
-
3
Roast until cooked through, for roughly 50 minutes.
-
4
Remove to a plate to cool, reserving the juices.
-
5
Set the dish aside as well.
-
6
Increase oven temperature to 450 F.
-
7
While the thighs are cooking, cook the pasta 2 minutes less than the package instructions for al dente.
-
8
Drain and set aside.
-
9
Process the Cheez-Its in a food processor or crush in a plastic bag until coarse crumbs form.
-
10
When the chicken thighs and pasta are cooling, make the sauce: Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter to a large pot (the same one you used to cook the pasta is good) over medium heat.
-
11
When the butter is melted, add the flour and whisk for 1 minute to create a thin roux.
-
12
Add the beer, drippings from the chicken pan, and the half-and-half.
-
13
Whisk, and increase the heat on the pot to medium-high.
-
14
Let the mixture come to a bubble, and add more stock as needed to make about 3 cups total (3 cups including the beer, stock and half-and-half).
-
15
Add the paprika, garlic, nutmeg and 2/3 of the grated cheeses to the pot.
-
16
Stir until the cheese is melted, then turn off the heat.
-
17
Shred the chicken with your fingers or two forks, so that its in bite-sized pieces.
-
18
Into the cheese sauce, add the pasta, chicken and remaining cheese.
-
19
Stir to combine, then taste.
-
20
Add salt to your preference.
-
21
Pour into the baking dish (again, I used the same one I used to braise the chicken).
-
22
Top with the Cheez-it crumbs, then bake at 450 F until bubbly and slightly browned on top.
-
23
This should take about 15 minutes if you cook the mac right away.
-
24
Enjoy!
-
25
Notes: For boneless, skinless thighs, reduce cooking time by 10 minutes.
-
26
For bone-in, skin-on thighs, add 10 minutes to cooking time.
-
27
This can be made in advance and kept in the fridge for 3 days or in the freezer for several months.
-
28
To reheat from the fridge, place in a cold oven and turn to 425 F. Cook for 30-45 minutes until bubbly and slightly browned on top.
-
29
From frozen, thaw on counter for 3 hours, then follow instructions above.
