Are you craving that ooey, gooey, cheesy comfort food that hits the spot every time? Look no further than stovetop chicken spaghetti! I’ve been making this dish for years, and let me tell you – it’s a game-changer for busy weeknights when you want something that tastes like you spent hours in the kitchen (but actually only took 30 minutes!).
Traditional chicken spaghetti often gets baked in the oven, but the stovetop version is quicker, easier to monitor, and just as delicious. Plus, you don’t have to heat up your whole kitchen with the oven. Win-win!
What Makes Stovetop Chicken Spaghetti So Special?
Today, before we get to the recipe, let’s talk about why you should make this dish often:
- Quick and easy – perfect for busy weeknights
- Uses simple ingredients you probably already have
- Incredibly versatile – can be customized with different veggies, cheeses, or pasta shapes
- Kid-friendly comfort food that adults love too
- Great for leftovers – sometimes tastes even better the next day!
Southern Bite’s Stacey says, “This dish is great for busy weeknights when you want some comfort food that sticks to your ribs.” It’s ooey, gooey cheesy perfection!”.
Ingredients You’ll Need
For my go-to stovetop chicken spaghetti recipe, you’ll need:
- 1 (16-ounce) box of pasta (penne, rotini, or spaghetti work great)
- 3-4 cups shredded, cooked chicken (rotisserie chicken is perfect here!)
- 1 (10-ounce) can Ro*Tel tomatoes (or diced tomatoes with green chilies)
- 2 (10.5-ounce) cans cream of mushroom soup
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 (16-ounce) block Velveeta cheese, cut into cubes
- Chicken broth (optional, for thinning the sauce)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Fresh parsley for garnish (optional)
Step-by-Step Instructions
Now let’s get cooking! Here’s how to make the perfect chicken spaghetti on your stovetop:
1. Prep Your Ingredients
First, get everything ready. Once you start this recipe, it goes pretty quickly, so having everything ready makes it a lot easier.
- Shred your chicken if not already done
- Dice your onion and bell pepper
- Cut the Velveeta into cubes for easier melting
- Measure out your spices
2. Cook the Pasta
A big pot should be filled with water. Add a lot of salt and bring it to a boil. Follow the directions on the package to cook the pasta until it’s al dente. This should take about 7 to 9 minutes. It should be a little firm because it will cook some more in the sauce.
Pro tip Don’t overcook your pasta! Nobody likes mushy pasta, and it’ll continue to soften slightly as it sits in the hot sauce
3. Build Your Flavor Base
While the pasta cooks, it’s time to start building flavors:
- Heat olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat
- Add diced onion and bell pepper
- Sauté until softened, about 5-7 minutes
- Season with salt and pepper to taste
4. Create the Creamy Sauce
Now for the magic part – the sauce that brings everything together:
- Add the cream of mushroom soup and undrained Ro*Tel tomatoes to your sautéed veggies
- Stir in garlic powder and onion powder
- Add the Velveeta cheese cubes
- Reduce heat to medium-low and stir frequently until the cheese melts completely
Important tip: Be super careful here! Velveeta can scorch easily, so keep the heat low and stir frequently. If it starts to stick to the bottom, lower your heat right away.
5. Combine Everything Together
Now it’s time to bring it all together:
- Add your shredded chicken to the sauce and stir to combine
- Drain your pasta and add it to the sauce mixture
- Gently fold everything together until the pasta is evenly coated
- If the sauce seems too thick, add a little chicken broth to thin it out to your desired consistency
6. Serve and Enjoy!
Your stovetop chicken spaghetti is ready to serve! I like to garnish with a little fresh parsley for color and freshness, but that’s totally optional.
Variations to Try
One of the best things about chicken spaghetti is how easily you can switch things up. Here are some of my favorite variations:
Spice It Up
Add cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, or hot sauce for some heat. Lauren from Delish suggests adding chili powder to the chicken for a nice smoky flavor with just a touch of spice.
Cheese Options
While Velveeta is classic for its melting properties, you can experiment with:
- Cheddar cheese
- Monterey Jack
- Pepper Jack (for extra spice)
- A blend of Italian cheeses
Add More Veggies
Bulk up the nutritional value with:
- Mushrooms
- Spinach
- Broccoli
- Peas
- Zucchini
Soup Substitutions
Not a fan of cream of mushroom? Try:
- Cream of chicken soup
- Cream of celery soup
- A homemade cream sauce
Tips for Perfect Stovetop Chicken Spaghetti
After making this dish about a million times (okay, slight exaggeration), I’ve picked up some helpful tips:
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Use rotisserie chicken for convenience and flavor. It’s a huge time-saver!
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Don’t rinse your pasta after cooking. The starch helps the sauce stick better.
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Watch your heat level when melting the cheese. Too high and it’ll scorch; too low and it’ll take forever.
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Make it ahead – the sauce can be prepared ahead of time and stored in the fridge for up to 2 days.
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Thin as needed – the sauce will thicken as it sits, so have some extra chicken broth on hand to thin it out, especially when reheating leftovers.
Frequently Asked Questions
I get asked a lot of questions about this recipe, so let me answer some common ones:
Can I use a different pasta shape?
Absolutely! While it’s called chicken “spaghetti,” you can use any pasta shape you like. Penne, rotini, or bow ties work great and sometimes hold the sauce even better than spaghetti.
How do I store leftovers?
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. The sauce will thicken considerably when cold, so add a splash of milk or chicken broth when reheating.
Can I freeze chicken spaghetti?
Yes! Freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating. The texture might change slightly, but it’ll still be delicious.
What can I serve with chicken spaghetti?
A simple green salad, steamed broccoli, or garlic bread makes the perfect accompaniment. Keep it simple – the chicken spaghetti is rich enough on its own!
Can I use canned chicken?
In a pinch, yes, but fresh or rotisserie chicken will give you much better flavor and texture.
The Velveeta Debate
I know, I know – Velveeta isn’t exactly a gourmet ingredient. But here’s what Stacey from Southern Bite says about it: “There’s just nothing quite like this processed cheese. It melts beautifully and has a tangy flavor that’s hard to replicate.”
Should you make it a regular part of your diet? Probably not. But neither should chocolate cake, and we all still eat that! Everything in moderation, right?
My Personal Chicken Spaghetti Story
I’ll never forget the first time I made this for my family. My kids were going through a picky phase where they wouldn’t eat ANYTHING. I was at my wit’s end and decided to try chicken spaghetti as a last resort. Not only did they clean their plates, but they asked for seconds! It’s been in our regular rotation ever since.
What I love most is how I can sneak extra veggies in, and they don’t even notice because everything is coated in that delicious cheesy sauce. Mom win!
Final Thoughts
Stovetop chicken spaghetti might not be the fanciest meal, but it’s definitely one of the most satisfying. It’s the kind of dish that brings everyone to the table with smiles on their faces. Plus, it’s so easy to make that you’ll have plenty of time to actually sit down and enjoy dinner with your family instead of spending hours in the kitchen.
So next time you’re wondering what to make for dinner, give this stovetop chicken spaghetti a try. I bet it’ll become a regular in your meal rotation too!
Do you have any special additions or tweaks you make to your chicken spaghetti? I’d love to hear them! Drop a comment below with your favorite variation.
How To Make Chicken Spaghetti
- Since the dish is called “chicken spaghetti,” spaghetti is the best type of noodle to use. The long, thin noodles are great for soaking up the creamy sauce while still having some body. This is different from angel hair pasta, which goes better with a lighter sauce.
- Yellow onion: The onion gives the casserole its smell and taste, and after sautéing and baking, it turns clear and melts in your mouth.
- Red Bell Pepper: Bell peppers taste nice, almost bitter, like plants. They’re also sweet, like a red tomato, and they give food a nice bite whether they’re raw or cooked. They go really well with this dish because it’s mostly creamy and salty.
- Chicken Breasts: This recipe is great because it can be used in a lot of different ways. Even though I chose chicken breasts, you could use chicken thighs instead, or you could use mushrooms or other vegetables instead of the chicken breasts. Also, if you do decide to use chicken, boneless, skinless chicken works best for me.
- Chili Powder: I really don’t use a lot of chili powder in this recipe, but the little bit I do adds a nice smokey flavor and a hint of spice that makes it great. This is another thing that could be changed for a different spice, like cayenne or red pepper flakes.
- Butter This simple mix of butter and flour makes the base of our sauce, and it’s easy to change by adding more flour or liquid. Be careful not to burn the mix before adding the liquid.
- Whole Milk: When it comes to this, whole milk is the best deal. Instead of skim milk, we want something with enough fat to hold the sauce together. Though heavy cream could be used instead, I think that would make the sauce a bit too heavy.
- Chicken Broth: If you wanted to make this dinner vegetarian, you could use vegetable broth instead of this and leave out the chicken, but I think the nice savory flavor of classic chicken broth brings out even more chicken flavor while also adding the right amount of moisture.
- Cheddar: The shredded cheddar cheese is sharp enough to stand out from the other flavors. It also melts very well when baked, making the popular gooey top that looks like a crust.
Start off by preheating your oven to 350° and bringing a large pot of salted water to boil. Once the water has come to a rolling boil, add in the spaghetti and cook, stirring occasionally to ensure the pasta doesn’t stick together and cooks evenly, until al dente. This should take about 7 minutes.
Then, heat olive oil over medium heat in another large pot. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook them. Stir the mixture occasionally as it cooks until the onions have turned somewhat translucent and the whole mixture has softened considerably. This should take around another 7 minutes. Once cooked, transfer the onion and pepper mixture to a plate.
Season the chicken breasts all over with salt, pepper, and chili powder. Then, in the pot that you cooked the onion and bell pepper, cook the chicken, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes until the chicken has a nice golden brown color to it, then remove the chicken from the heat and similarly set aside.
In the same pot, add the butter again. When it melts, whisk in the flour. Keep whisking for about one minute while it cooks. Then add in the whole milk and chicken broth and stir to combine. Cook this mixture, stirring occasionally, for another 5 minutes until the sauce has thickened but is still pourable. If your mixture is too dry add in a little bit more liquid. Too wet, sprinkle in some more flour.
To this sauce, add in the spaghetti, vegetables, chicken, and the cheddar cheese and stir to combine. Then transfer this mixture to a baking dish and top with more cheese.
Carefully put the dish in the oven that has been prepared. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until the chicken spaghetti is hot and bubbly. Once cooked, remove the casserole from the oven and top with fresh parsley for a green, herbaceous bite.
The full list of ingredients and instructions can be found in the recipe below.
- What is chicken spaghetti? If you didn’t eat it as a kid, it’s kind of like mac n cheese, but with more chicken and spaghetti. This baked casserole is very flexible because it has chicken breasts, red bell peppers, onion, chicken broth, and a creamy, cheesy sauce. You can use chicken thighs or rotisserie chicken instead of chicken breasts, add more vegetables, or change the shape of the noodles to be a little thicker. You can play around with this one like you can with most of our casseroles.