Chicken Spaghetti Casserole

Chicken spaghetti casserole is an easy, cheesy, crowd-pleasing meal! Chicken, pasta, Rotel, and a creamy sauce come together for a comforting weeknight meal. 

Casseroles are the ultimate comfort food. Whether it’s a make-ahead breakfast casserole for breakfast or brunch, hash brown casserole as a side dish, or chicken pot pie casserole for dinner, they always make me happy.

And they’re almost always easy to prep ahead of time and feed a crowd. What could be better than that?

This chicken spaghetti casserole is definitely one of those recipes. Super delicious, comforting, and perfect for feeding your family any day of the week.

WHAT IS CHICKEN SPAGHETTI CASSEROLE?

It seems like you either grew up eating chicken spaghetti or you have never had it. For those who have never tried it, you might be wondering what it even is.

Chicken spaghetti is a baked casserole. Cooked spaghetti is tossed with chicken and a creamy, cheesy, slightly zesty sauce and baked until the top is golden.

Chicken spaghetti casserole is perfect for feeding a crowd – after all, who doesn’t like chicken, pasta, and cheese? It can also be prepped ahead of time and divided into smaller baking dishes, making it great for taking to friends and neighbors who need a home-cooked meal.

HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN SPAGHETTI

Chicken spaghetti casserole is pretty easy to make. You can have it put together and in the oven in less than 30 minutes, so it’s a good option for a weeknight family dinner.

Casserole ingredients

This recipe has a pretty simple list of ingredients. Even picky eaters will love this one!

To make my chicken spaghetti casserole, you will need:

• 1 pound spaghetti noodles
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided use
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 red or green bell pepper, diced
• 2 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green chilies (AKA Rotel)
• 1 (10.5 ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 (10.5 ounce) can cream of chicken soup
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 4 ounces Velveeta, cut into cubes
• 2 heaping cups cooked diced or shredded chicken
• Salt and pepper to taste

If your family does not like cream of mushroom soup, you can substitute a second can of cream of chicken soup. 

I like to use a small amount of Velveeta in the sauce to make it extra creamy, just like I do in my broccoli and cheese soup.

I usually use shredded rotisserie chicken in this recipe, but you could use any cooked chicken that you like or have on hand. 

Making this recipe

The first step to making chicken spaghetti casserole is to start cooking the pasta.

Bring a pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Once it’s at a rolling boil, add the spaghetti and cook for about 10 minutes. You want the noodles to be just shy of al dente, since they will cook a bit more when we bake the casserole.

Before draining the pasta, reserve about ½ cup of the pasta water. Then you can drain the pasta and toss it with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.

While the spaghetti is cooking, you can start on the sauce. Cook the onion and bell pepper with the rest of the olive oil in a dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add a pinch of salt and pepper and cook for about 5 minutes, until the onion is translucent and soft.

Add the Rotel and cook for another 5 minutes, until most of the liquid has cooked off. Then add the soups and the chicken stock and bring the mixture to a simmer.

Once the sauce is simmering, add both of the cheeses and stir until they are melted and the sauce is creamy. Add the chicken and taste for seasoning, adding more salt and pepper as desired.

Add the cooked spaghetti and stir to combine. If you need, you can thin out the sauce with some of the reserved pasta water. 

Once everything is well combined, transfer it to a greased 13×9-inch pan and bake for 30-40 minutes, until the sauce is bubbly around the edges and the top is golden brown.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS

This is one of those meals that you can serve with just about any side dish you like. It’s perfect alongside your favorite dinner rolls or easy garlic knots and a green salad topped with homemade ranch dressing.

You could also throw together some air fryer green beans or honey glazed carrots. Even a simple cucumber salad would be lovely during the summer.

MAKE-AHEAD TIPS

If you’re meal planning, this chicken spaghetti casserole is definitely a recipe to add to your prep-ahead list.

You can dice the onion and bell pepper, shred the cheddar cheese, and shred or dice the cooked chicken early in the week. Store each in an airtight container or zip-top bag so they’re easy to reach for when you start cooking.

If you want to make the entire casserole ahead of time, prep it through adding it to the baking dish. Cover and store in the fridge for up to 2 days. When ready to bake, baking according to the recipe directions, adding a few extra minutes if needed when baking from cold.

You could even separate the casserole into two 9×9-inch baking pans instead of one 13×9-inch pan. Keep one pan for yourself and give the second one to a friend or neighbor. 

If you want to freeze this chicken spaghetti casserole, I recommend doing so before baking it. Freeze it tightly wrapped with heavy-duty foil for up to a month. Let thaw in the refrigerator before baking.

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Chicken Spaghetti Casserole

By: Jamie

4.71 from 58 ratings

Prep: 20 minutes mins

Cook: 40 minutes mins

Servings: 8

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Chicken spaghetti casserole is an easy, cheesy, crowd-pleasing meal! Chicken, pasta, Rotel, and a creamy sauce come together for a comforting weeknight meal.

Equipment

• 6-quart Dutch Oven
• Ceramic 9×13-inch Baking Dish

Ingredients

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 pound spaghetti noodles
• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil divided use
• ▢ 1 yellow onion diced
• ▢ 1 red or green bell pepper diced
• ▢ 2 10-ounce cans diced tomatoes with green chilies Rotel
• ▢ 1 10.5-ounce can cream of mushroom soup
• ▢ 1 10.5-ounce can cream of chicken soup
• ▢ 2 cups chicken stock
• ▢ 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• ▢ 4 ounces Velveeta cut into cubes
• ▢ 2 heaping cups cooked diced or shredded chicken
• ▢ Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions 

• Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Add the spaghetti and cook, about 10 minutes, until just shy of al dente. Reserve about ½ cup of the pasta water. Drain, toss with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 13×9-inch baking dish with nonstick spray. Set aside.
• Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion and bell pepper along with a pinch of salt and pepper. Saute for about 5 minutes, until the onion is translucent and soft.
• Add the diced tomatoes with chilies and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 5 minutes.
• Add the mushroom and chicken soup and chicken stock. Bring to a simmer.
• Add the cheeses and stir in until melted and the sauce is creamy. Add the chicken. Taste and season with salt and pepper as desired.
• Stir the cooked spaghetti into the sauce. If needed, use some of the reserved pasta water to thin the sauce and bring the mixture together.
• Transfer to the prepared baking pan.
• Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the sauce is bubbly and the top is golden. Serve hot.

Video

Notes

If you want to make the casserole ahead of time, prep it through adding it to the baking dish. Cover and store in the fridge for up to 2 days. When ready to bake, baking according to the recipe directions, adding a few extra minutes if needed when baking from cold.

Nutrition

Calories: 548kcal, Carbohydrates: 56g, Protein: 27g, Fat: 24g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 8g, Trans Fat: 0.03g, Cholesterol: 62mg, Sodium: 1052mg, Potassium: 563mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 1080IU, Vitamin C: 27mg, Calcium: 331mg, Iron: 3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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