The Best Chicken Spaghetti (+Video)
The Best Chicken Spaghetti recipe calls for sliced grilled chicken, spaghetti noodles, cream of chicken, salsa, sour cream and cheese. No Rotel!
FAMILY FAVORITE EASY DINNER RECIPE
This recipe is one I’ve been meaning to share for a while but it needed some tweaking. The original recipe I had for it was, well, kinda bland. I kept thinking that it needed a little more kick of flavor but I still wanted it simple to make. This recipe makes enough to feed your family and still have enough for leftovers
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
I decided I would switch out the can of Rotel (which is basically tomatoes and green chiles that is in most recipes) and replace it with salsa. That really added some yummy flavors. I also think that bit of taco seasoning really creates a super flavorful dish!
Angel hair pasta does not have to be used. You can use thin spaghetti or regular spaghetti or even fettuccine noodles.
Save yourself some time by using precooked chicken. Whether it be rotisserie chicken or the cooked chicken that is sold in the deli department. This will make this meal come together easily!
Store them in a covered container in your fridge for up to 3 days.
Yep! It’s just important to cover it well to protect against freezer burn. It will freeze well for up to 3 months.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- angel hair pasta – I tend to like the thinner angel hair pasta for this but you can use your favorite pasta here like regular spaghetti or fettuccine or linguine.
- cooked chicken – a store-bought rotisserie chicken or the fully cooked grilled chicken you find in the refrigerator section all make this so easy to put together and adds flavor!
- cream of chicken soup – you can also use cream of mushroom or even make your own homemade cream of chicken soup.
- salsa – my absolute favorite salsa is mild Herdez – it has the perfect flavor for this recipe but you can also use Rotel if that is what you prefer. I think salsa brings much more flavor though.
- sour cream – this is really going to add a lot of creaminess here. You could use plain Greek yogurt as well.
- Mexican cheese blend – I just pick up the store-bought pre shredded cheese but you can shred your own or use a different flavor blend.
- taco seasoning – you can use store-bought or make your own taco seasoning.
HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN SPAGHETTI:
Preheat oven to 350f degrees. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Cook pasta according to package directions (remember, you are only using half the box of pasta.)
Once pasta is cooked, drain well. Place pasta back into the pot (with heat turned off). Add diced chicken, cream of chicken soups, salsa, sour cream, 1 cup of Mexican cheese blend and taco seasoning. Stir well to combine (this will take a few minutes.)
Pour combined mixture into your prepared baking dish. Top with remaining cheese and a sprinkling of dried parsley.
Cover with nonstick aluminum foil.
Cook in the oven for about 25 minutes. Then enjoy!
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Originally published: June 2016
Updated and republished: April 2019
The Best Chicken Spaghetti (+Video)
Ingredients
- 8 ounce angel hair pasta (half of a 16 ounce box)
- 2 cups chopped, cooked chicken
- 2 (10 ounce) cans cream of chicken soup
- 1 cup salsa
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 cup Mexican cheese blend, divided use
- 1 Tablespoon taco seasoning
- 1 cup Mexican cheese blend
- dried parsley for topping (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350f degrees. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Cook 8 ounce angel hair pasta according to package directions (remember, you are only using half a box of angel hair pasta here.) Once pasta is cooked, drain well.
- Place pasta back into the pot and add 2 cups chopped, cooked chicken, 2 (10 ounce) cans cream of chicken soup, 1 cup salsa, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1 cup Mexican cheese blend, and 1 Tablespoon taco seasoning.
- Stir well to combine (this will take a few minutes.)
- Pour combined mixture into your prepared baking dish.
- Top with 1 cup Mexican cheese blend and a sprinkling of dried parsley
- Cover with nonstick aluminum foil.
- Cook in the oven for about 25 minutes (until hot and bubbly.)
Video
Notes
- Please refer to my FAQ’s and ingredient list above for other substitutions or for the answers to the most common questions.
- You can purchase the pre-cooked or pre-grilled chicken in the refrigerated section and freezer sections of your grocery store to cut down on time.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Made this tonight and it was a hit! My husband and I are weird about peppers and onions, so I pureed chunky salsa with the taco seasoning and sour cream in my Ninja. He can be pretty picky, but he loved it! I plan on making it again!
Do you thaw that chicken or bake frozen?
I don’t think I have ever commented on a recipe before. For this, I must! This is so good! I scraped the sides of my pot and let me tell you, the mixture makes an EXCELLENT tortilla chip dip too!!
I have never found a chicken spaghetti that I liked until now. This spaghetti is delicious, even my pickiest eater loved it! Great flavor and so easy, perfect for a weeknight.
Love it Christine! Thank you so much! Love hearing that!
It is a delight of spaghetti, my children and husband loved it, the taste of the sauce and that touch of taco seasoning makes it a delight to the palate, it is not an ordinary spaghetti, it is an extraordinary dish, I recommend you try it, no You will regret it, thank you Brandie,for sharing this recipe.
Thank you so very much Gisela!
This is a regular in our home. Everyone likes it which is rare. The only change I make it to use ground chicken and slightly more sour cream and noodles. Husband says it’s even better the next day.
Oh wow – thank you so much Cheri! Love hearing that!!
Can you substitute the sour cream for cream cheese?
Hi Casey, it will throw the texture off…
Love this recipe. I make it all the time. It’s the easiest, cheapest and the greatest meal to feed a family.
WAS DELISH
I made this and thought it was great, very creamy. It was a little spicy. What would the best way to cut out a little spice?
Hi Vickie, the spice will depend on the kind of salsa you are using. So make sure you purchase a very mild salsa. 🙂
I’m doubling my noodles, so do I double my other ingredients? I have a large family to feed and can’t wait to try this!
Hi Jamie, I would say yes. You don’t want to lose any of that other good flavor by adding more noodles. 🙂
Absolutely LOVE this recipe!!! My daughter and I make this regularly subbing out spaghetti squash for the pasta… we could literally eat this for breakfast, lunch and dinner!! Thank you so much for sharing!!
Hi Tamie! I am so happy you mentioned the spaghetti squash. I had a few people ask about that on social media and I honestly wasn’t sure since I hadn’t tried it. So thank you so much!!
I have made this several times and have been tweaking it each time. . My friend whom I give several portions to each time I make it says it is the best he has ever had and his family agrees with him. I use sliced mushrooms and a half pack of sun dried tomatoes browned in butter, (Since I make my chicken ahead of time using a pulled chicken crock pot recipe I found on line, then I vacuum pack 3 cups per package and freeze for when I need it) I thaw the package in the refrigerator and when I have browned the mushrooms and softened the dried tomatoes I add the chicken to that and heat the chicken then I set the covered pan aside till I am ready to add it to the noodles. I also break the noodles (I use either linguine or thin spaghetti) into 3rds, this makes it much easier to serve nice square individual portions and to eat. Other than that I follow your recipe. If I have enough I freeze and vacuum pack any left over squares and it makes a nice quick meal for me when I don’t want to cook. I just thaw and remove from package and heat it up in the microwave. Thanks again. By the way I have never had chicken spaghetti till this year (way past 70). It is great.
Thanks so much for taking the time to come back and leave such great feedback Tom!
This was so good I had to improv because I had different ingredients I used I can cream of mushroom 1 can cheddar, and picante medium sauce
Love hearing that!! Thanks so much Kate!
Has anyone froze any leftovers?
Can this be made ahead of time?
You sure can. 🙂
This truly is the BEST chicken spaghetti recipe!! A meal the entire family loves and raves over. Comfort food at its best. ❤️
Thank you so much Mary!!
As I said this really looks great and even my “SERVICE DOGGIE” will eat this, she loves chicken and a bit of pasta, and the rest of the ingredients that is in the recipe…
Thank you so very much Marie!
Can you leave the salsa out? Or substitute something without tomatoes?
I haven’t made this yet…I’m a new follower, making Brandie’s Pecan Pie today for our son’s birthday dinner…BUT…if it were me on this recipe, I would maybe sub out canned or jarred chilis or jalapeño peppers? The ones that are pickled but still spicy? I have a chicken/cheese enchilada recipe that uses them and it gives it a nice kick without being too hot for even kids..
~Kat
This is my favorite casserole recipe! I call it Mexican spaghetti because I use refrigerated salsa and plenty of Mexican blend cheese. We like it with sweet cornbread!
That sounds perfect Susan! Thanks so much for coming back to comment. Whenever someone asks which recipe I most enjoy on my website, I always put this one at the top – thank you!
Can you leave the sour cream out ?
My husband and I LOVE this recipe! It’s so easy and cheesy and delish!
Thank you so very much Kelley!!
My family loves this recipe and it is difficult to find something everyone likes! The salsa is a genius addition, giving it a little extra kick.
Yay! Thanks so much for coming back to comment and review Kendra!
Honestly didn’t take long to make and a really easy dish I subbed shredded pack cheese for velveeta and it turned out great everyone has had more than one helping
Will be making this again soon
Thank you so much Brittannie!!
Do you think velveeta cheese will work?
I make mine with Velveeta mixed in and its just as creamy and delicious. I add the shredded cheese on top to extra cheesiness! Great dish!
Thank you
I don’t see why not. Just make sure you shred it and not cut it up into chunks. It won’t distribute properly that way.
Thank you
Condensed soup or regular can of soup?
Can you make this in an crockpot
Hi Holly, I haven’t tested that out yet. I’m sorry!
Yes! I made it in crockpot today, cooking noodles separately. Turned out just fine, in my opinion.
I think any kind of noodle would work. Just make sure you don’t add much, as it could make it too dry.