Let me start by saying my husband requested that I make this recipe over my usual chicken pasta recipe that I’ve been making for 10 years!! I was appalled. But honestly I can’t even blame him. This creamy Chicken Spaghetti recipe is a pasta lover’s dream. Tender chicken breast and spaghetti pasta are coated with a luscious cream sauce, then baked to perfection with extra cheese on top! And this casserole is made with simple pantry and refrigerated ingredients. I don’t know about you but I always seem to have a box of spaghetti noodles hanging out in my cabinet. If you do need to make a quick store run, make sure you grab two of whatever item you need, because trust me you’ll want to add this one to your weekly dinner rotation!
What Is Chicken Spaghetti?
When you read the words “Chicken Spaghetti” I’m sure you were thinking how on earth do those two foods go together? Well friend, let me ease your mind. This is not the traditional spaghetti sauce recipe that you’re probably familiar with. Chicken spaghetti is made with a creamy, cheesy, super flavorful cream sauce that coats tender chicken and spaghetti noodles. Tangy Rotel tomatoes are also added to give it an extra pop of flavor and to balance the creaminess of the dish. The mixture is then placed in a casserole dish and baked until it’s gooey and bubbly around the sides. Great, now I’m sitting here drooling just thinking about it again!
Ingredients For Chicken Spaghetti
Whenever it’s possible I like to keep things pretty simple, so you may already have everything you need to make this chicken spaghetti recipe. Here’s a list of ingredients you’ll need:
- Chicken: I opted for two boneless skinless chicken breasts. But if your budget is tight, you can certainly use boneless skinless chicken thighs instead.
- Aromatics: Onion and garlic are sautéed in butter to give the casserole a wonderful base layer of flavor.
- Butter & Flour: Butter is used to sauté the onion and garlic. All-purpose flour then mixes with the butter to create a simple roux, which thickens the creamy sauce.
- Chicken Broth: Chicken broth combines with the roux to create a rich and thick sauce. And we always recommend using a good quality chicken broth because it adds a lot of flavor to your dish. We use Better than Bouillon to make our broth.
- Seasoning: A simple mix of Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper is all you’ll need!
- Cheddar & Mozzarella Cheese: A combination of cheddar cheese and mozzarella cheese adds depth of flavor to the casserole and makes it extra rich and cheesy! And yes I do recommend using both types of cheeses. We first tested this recipe using just cheddar cheese, but adding some mozzarella cheese with it really boosted the level of flavor!
- Heavy Cream: Heavy cream adds even more richness to the dish and gives the sauce a wonderful creamy texture.
- Rotel: A can of Rotel tomatoes with green chiles adds a LOT of flavor to the cream sauce and makes this chicken casserole absolutely delish! So don’t skip it!
Serving Suggestions
Serve this chicken casserole with some crusty bread or try our Homemade Garlic Bread. It would also pair well with a simple side salad to keep dinner simple and easy. With that being said, me and my family totally enjoyed this dish by itself…no extra sides needed for us!😉
Chicken Spaghetti
Servings 6Ingredients
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1.5 lb total) ($4.70)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.12)
- 1/2 Tbsp salt (for the pasta water) ($0.04)
- 8 oz spaghetti ($0.62)
- 1/4 cup salted butter ($0.52)
- 1 onion, diced ($0.32)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour ($0.06)
- 2 cups chicken broth ($0.34)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning ($0.05)
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided ($1.24)
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided ($1.24)
- 1 cup heavy cream ($1.36)
- 1 10oz. can diced tomatoes with green chiles, drained (Rotel) ($1.00)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Using a sharp knife, carefully fillet each chicken breast into two thinner cutlets. Heat a large deep skillet over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the four chicken cutlets to the skillet and cook on each side until golden brown and cooked through (about 7-10 minutes total). Remove the chicken to a clean cutting board, and allow it to rest.
- While the chicken is cooking, bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add 1/2 Tbsp of salt to the water then add the spaghetti pasta and boil until the pasta is tender (or al dente). Drain the pasta in a colander.
- While the pasta is cooking, start making the sauce. In the same skillet that the chicken was cooked in, heat the butter over medium-high heat. Add the diced onion and minced garlic. Sauté for 3-4 minutes or until onion is translucent.
- Sprinkle the flour into the skillet and stir with the onion and garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until flour starts to turn golden brown.
- Slowly pour the chicken broth into the skillet and stir to fully dissolve the flour from the bottom of the skillet. The flour will start to thicken the sauce when it returns to a simmer. Add 1/2 tsp of salt, black pepper, Italian seasoning, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, and the heavy cream to the skillet. Stir until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth.
- After the chicken breasts have rested, chop them into smaller ½ inch pieces.
- Turn the heat off the skillet and add the drained diced tomatoes with green chiles, the chopped chicken, and the cooked spaghetti to the pan. Mix until combined.
- Add the chicken spaghetti mixture to a 9×13” casserole dish. Top with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese.
- Bake the casserole in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until bubbly around the edges and cheese is melted.
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Nutrition
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How to Make Chicken Spaghetti – Step by Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Using a sharp knife, carefully fillet each chicken breast into two thinner cutlets. Here is a great tutorial on How to Cut Chicken Breasts Into Cutlets by Serious Eats. Heat a large deep skillet over medium heat and add 1 Tbsp olive oil. Add the four chicken cutlets to the skillet and cook on each side until golden brown and cooked through (about 7-10 minutes total). Remove the chicken to a clean cutting board, and allow it to rest.
While the chicken is cooking, bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add 1/2 Tbsp of salt to the water, then add 8 oz. of spaghetti pasta, and boil until the pasta is tender (or al dente). Drain the pasta in a colander.
While the pasta is cooking, start making the sauce. In the same skillet that the chicken was cooked in, heat 1/4 cup salted butter over medium-high heat. Add 1 diced onion and 2 minced garlic cloves. Sauté for 3-4 minutes or until onion is translucent.
Sprinkle 1/4 cup of flour into the skillet and stir with the onion and garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until flour starts to turn golden brown. Slowly pour 2 cups of chicken broth into the skillet and stir to fully dissolve the flour from the bottom of the skillet. The flour will start to thicken the sauce when it returns to a simmer.
Add 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper, 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, and 1 cup of heavy cream to the skillet. Stir until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth.
Now chop the cooked chicken breasts into smaller ½ inch pieces.
Turn the heat off the skillet and add 1 can of drained diced tomatoes with green chiles, the chopped chicken, and the cooked spaghetti to the pan. Mix until combined.
Add the chicken spaghetti mixture to a 9×13” casserole dish. Top with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese.
Bake the casserole in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until bubbly around the edges and the cheese is melted on top.
This Chicken Spaghetti casserole is so creamy and delicious, it’ll soon become one of your favorite recipes! Enjoy!
This recipe was shockingly good! I couldn’t believe how delicious it turned out. Absolutely will make again, and am already planning a second batch to bring to my family.
Has anyone tried making this recipe with gluten-free pasta? This sounds delicious, but I’m wondering if the pasta would to be undercooked when boiling to avoid it becoming mush in the oven.
Just made this with Jovial GF brand (only had farfalle on hand, but will try spaghetti next time) and it turned out very well. Used the entire 12oz box of farfalle. Also used Bob’s Red Mill GF 1 to 1 baking flour as substitute for AP flour. I can find both Jovial and Bob’s at Wal-Mart. Followed everything else exactly in recipe and it turned out delicious! Will definitely be making this again. Hope this helps!
I made this recipe last night, and it will go into my regular rotation. My husband and I are retired seniors living on a fixed income and therefore we make do with what we have on hand. I thought the recipe was very forgiving. I cut back on the chicken, using two small chicken breasts and dicing them into 1/2-inch pieces. I also did not have heavy cream, and so I used sour cream. I put the leftover 2/3 of the casserole into the freezer. It made a wonderful dinner.
Just made this tonight for my mom and sister exactly as written except I souped up the chicken a litte. So delicious! So easy. So worth the messy dishes.
Seasoned the chicken with salt, pepper, and Sazon!! So incredible in the pasta dish.
What can you sub for the Rotel? We don’t like chilis :(
I would do plain diced tomatoes. :)
Any suggestions for Italian Seasoning. I don’t have that but I have a pretty well stocked spice rack
Here’s a quick recipe so you can make your own. :) https://www.gimmesomeoven.com/italian-seasoning-recipe/
Oh I bet this would work really well with leftover rotisserie chicken!
Is there a possible way to substitute the chicken with frozen uncooked shrimp?
Shrimp can overcook pretty quickly, so we’d need to test this to figure out the best way to go about it before offering a suggestion. :)
Tried it last night with chicken. Delicious!
Can this be frozen?
We haven’t tested freezing this one, but dishes with creamy sauces like this don’t often freeze well.
I just defrosted mine and it worked perfectly :) Froze in single servings and reheated in microwave, sauce didn’t split. I’d give it a shot!
I renamed it Queso Spaghetti and my picky kid not only ate it but declared it her second favorite food ever.
It’s picky husband approved too.
What can be used in place of the flour? We are gluten free and I will use gluten free spaghetti but not sure if I can forego the flour.
Flour helps thicken the sauce, so it’s fairly important. There are other thickeners, like cornstarch, but they’d need to be added to the sauce in a different way than the flour and the will produce a slightly different texture in the sauce. Unfortunately, we’d really need to test them in the recipe before saying for sure how it would turn out.
We’re gluten free too, and I plan to try this recipe using Barilla gluten free spaghetti (in my experience, that brand works best as a sub for regular pasta in recipes), skipping the flour, and adding a corn starch slurry (1-2 Tbs corn starch mixed with about 1/4 cup water) right *after* adding the chicken broth. Corn starch doesn’t add the same flavor that a roux does, but it usually works ok enough, but it’s even more important to use a really high quality broth if you’re skipping the roux. I’ll try and remember to post back here after we try this.
Arrowroot powder can be substituted for flour and makes a nicer thickener.
You had me at RoTel! Really delicious–halved the recipe, which means that the proportions weren’t quite right, but that rarely makes a lot of difference in casseroles. We watch the carbs due to DH’s diabetes, so I made this with shirataki spaghetti type noodles (which need no precooking), and, of course, a whole can of drained original flavor RoTel. I do think that next time, I’ll measure the liquid from the can and reduce the broth by that amount so I can use the tomato liquid.
Kudos to your husband, Marsha, and thanks for sharing this yummy casserole.
Made this last night and it was so good! I packed the leftovers for lunch today and I’m counting down until I get to eat it. Thank you for a great recipe that I’m adding to our rotation :)
Do you think this would freeze well or do you think the sauce will separate?
It’s a tough call. Often times, flour-thickened sauces will separate, BUT the heavy cream in this one might keep it stable enough.
Is this the same recipe they use at Chickolini’s ?
I’m not familiar with Chickolinis, so I can’t say how similar it is to theirs, unfortunately!
I used to be a real POS too.
We were so confused about this exchange but then we Googled it. 😅