This creamy pasta bake is great for busy weeknights. It can be assembled ahead of time and popped into the oven when you walk in the door.
Table of Contents
🗝️ Key takeaways
- This creamy recipe is not only a great way to use up leftover chicken but it combines everyone's favorite comfort foods: cheese and pasta!
- Rich and gooey, it's the perfect hearty casserole to warm up chilly days but is easy enough for busy weeknights.
- Stirring in some of the hot pasta water helps the sauce consistency as well as making the sauce cling to the noodles.
This delicious dinner recipe is easy, ultra-creamy, cheesy, hearty, filling, and a little spicy—in other words, it has all the good things. The only thing difficult about cream cheese chicken spaghetti bake is not loving it.
And definitely try this chicken casserole with Stovetop Stuffing. It's a quick and easy way to get that old fashioned Sunday dinner!
🧾 Ingredients
This is an overview of the ingredients. You'll find the full measurements and instructions for this cheesy spaghetti chicken casserole in the green recipe card (printable) at the bottom of the page.
📖 Variations
Make this easy chicken spaghetti recipe a family favorite with some swaps and variations:
- Feel free to boil chicken breasts to shred—boneless skinless chicken breasts are easiest. Or, pick up a rotisserie chicken from the store for use in this recipe.
- Try homemade chicken spaghetti with ground chicken or ground turkey.
- If you don't have any Rotel tomatoes, swap 'em for a can of diced tomatoes and add a small can of green chilies.
- I like the flavor combination of both cream of mushroom soup and cream of chicken soup. However, if you can't find one or the other, you can substitute it with a different cream-of variety.
- Instead of garlic powder and onion powder, mince the fresh version of both and stir them into the mix!
- Sharp cheddar cheese works great in place of the Colby-Jack.
- You can use whatever type of pasta you prefer, though it won't technically be chicken "spaghetti" casserole anymore!
- Give your creamy baked chicken spaghetti an Italian twist by adding herbs or dried Italian seasoning. Use diced tomatoes instead of Rotel.
- There are a lot of different things you can stir in to make the cream cheese chicken spaghetti stretch to feed a really large family. Try diced onion, chopped red peppers, green bell peppers, corn, or even green beans!
If you love creamy chicken dishes try this chicken cordon bleu casserole.
🔪 Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. Full instructions are in the green recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Cook your spaghetti noodles al dente, according to package directions.
- In a large pot, melt the canned soup, cheese, and cream cheese. Stir in the Rotel tomatoes, seasonings, and pasta water.
- Mix the cooked chicken, sauce mixture, and pasta together.
- Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and bake.
Casserole times and temps
Sometimes you need to bake two things at once - here's how to adjust the time and/or temperatures of your casserole! These times are only an estimate. Be sure to check your casserole often. It's done when an instant-read thermometer registers 165F when stuck in the middle of the casserole.
| Temperature | Time | Time From Frozen |
| 300F | not recommended | not recommended |
| 325F | 50 minutes | 1 ½ hours |
| 350F | 30 minutes | 1 hour |
| 375F | 25 minutes | 40 minutes |
| 400F | not recommended | not recommended |
🥫 How to store leftovers
Cream cheese chicken spaghetti will have the whole family competing for the leftovers—I always say the one who cooks gets first dibs!
Leftover pasta? Make this easy leftover spaghetti pie.
Refrigerate
Let the spaghetti cool to room temperature, then cover it completely with plastic wrap or aluminum foil. You can also portion it into a smaller airtight container.
Store leftovers in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Freeze
You can also freeze for up to 3 months. Chicken spaghetti bake is one of those guilty pleasure comfort foods that's awesome to just pull out of the freezer, microwave, and enjoy!
💭 Things to know
Expert Tip: Don't skip the pasta water step! The starchy water helps the creamy sauce coat and stick to the noodles much better.
- I like to place a bowl underneath my pasta strainer before I get started cooking. That way, in the heat of the moment, I won't forget to reserve some pasta water!
- You can boil your noodles in chicken broth to give them some more flavor. Don't forget to reserve some of the starchy chicken broth, just as you would the water.
- Make your cheesy chicken spaghetti a little easier to spoon out of the casserole dish by snapping the spaghetti noodles in half before boiling them.
- The best way to make extra tender chicken is to cook it in the crockpot on low for eight hours or high for four. It practically falls apart!
Not in the mood for chicken but still want creamy? We love this easy ham tetrazzini casserole. It has similar textures and flavors and it's so easy to put together.
👩🍳 FAQs
Nope, raw chicken most likely won't cook to a proper temperature inside the casserole. If you need to cook the chicken quickly, try putting it in your instant pot!
Sour cream will make the spaghetti casserole slightly less rich. It's also a little more watery than cream cheese. So, if you make the swap, I'd recommend reducing the amount of pasta water you add, too.
Sure! If you don't like using "cream-of-" soups, feel free to make your own. This basic white sauce recipe will give you the base for a cream sauce you can use in plenty of popular recipes! You'll want to season it well to match the flavor of the soups in this recipe.
📚 Related recipes
- The name speaks for itself in this casserole crossover dish. Million-Dollar Spaghetti is so scrumptious, it tastes like a million bucks!
- Sometimes you just want good pasta ready when you are—this tangy, creamy, cheesy Crock Pot Chicken Spaghetti delivers just that.
- Easy prep, hardly any clean-up, and flavors to make you stop mid-sentence for another bite—One-Pot Taco Spaghetti is the ultimate comfort food!
- Broccoli Stuffing Casserole
- Bourbon Sweet Potato Casserole
- Pineapple Sweet Potato Casserole
- Loaded Green Bean Casserole
🍽️ Serve with...
🫶 Restless Chipotle recommends
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📞 The last word
I love a good, creamy chicken recipe! This million dollar chicken casserole is another one of our favorites - so rich and creamy.
Thinking of taking this to a potluck? Here are my favorite ways of keeping casseroles warm at potlucks and parties.
If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need.
If you love this recipe please give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 Recipe
Cream Cheese Chicken Spaghetti
Print Pin Recipe Save Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
- 1 pound uncooked spaghetti
- 3 cups cooked chicken, chopped
- 21 ounces cream of chicken soup, 2 10.5 ounce cans
- 10.5 ounces cream of mushroom soup
- 10 ounces Rotel tomatoes and green chiles
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup reserved pasta water
- 1 cup Mozzarella, freshly grated
- 1-½ cups Colby Jack Cheese, divided
Instructions
- Cook spaghetti, for about 8 minutes and set aside. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta water.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a large pot add the cream soups, Rotel, cream cheese, pasta water and mozzarella and 1 cup of the Colby Jack cheese. Apply medium heat to heat up ingredients.
- Add garlic powder, onion powder and salt and pepper and mix.
- Add the spaghetti and the chopped chicken. Fold into the soup mixture evenly.
- Add this spaghetti mixture to a 9x13” lightly greased casserole dish.
- Sprinkle the remaining Colby Jack cheese over the top and bake for 25-30 minutes.
Notes
- Don't skip the pasta water step! The starchy water helps the creamy sauce coat and stick to the noodles much better.
- Make your cheesy chicken spaghetti a little easier to spoon out of the casserole dish by snapping the spaghetti noodles in half before boiling them.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
First published November 27, 2022. Last updated October 9, 2023, for editorial improvements and corrections.
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