Slow Cooker
When planning meals, I am always thinking of chicken recipes. We eat A LOT of chicken. So if there is any way I can throw some chicken into a meal, I will do it. And if I can make it all in a slow cooker – even better!
So when I was in Walmart this week, I saw the new Hidden Valley® Ranch dressings. I use ranch dressing for nearly everything; salads, pasta salads and even in many of my dinner dishes. There are four new flavors; Cilantro Lime, Honey BBQ, Sriracha and Buffalo. They all have that famous Hidden Valley® Ranch Dressing taste but with the extra kick of flavor. Because saving money is almost as awesome as this recipe right here.
Crock Pot Salsa Ranch Chicken Pasta
The Cilantro Lime flavor really got my attention. I have an amazing Crock Pot Salsa Chicken recipe that I absolutely love. I could eat that chicken every night of the week – it is *that* good. So I thought, ‘How awesome would that chicken be with this Cilantro Lime Ranch dressing added and some pasta?’ Turns out the answer to that question is: ‘Pretty daggone awesome!’
It is super flavorful, creamy and my son (the pickiest of my eaters) gave a it two thumbs up. He ate an entire bowl and wanted seconds. So that is always a sign of a winner winner chicken dinner.
Ingredients:
5-6 frozen chicken breasts
1 (10 oz.) can cream of chicken soup
1 cup salsa
1 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup Hidden Valley® Ranch Cilantro Lime dressing
1 (1 lb.) box rotini pasta, prepared
Note: This is also a very budget-friendly meal. I purchased almost all Great Value items (Walmart’s store brand) and this entire meal could easily feed 6-8 people for about $1.75 per person (with Hidden Valley® Ranch coupon)Directions:
Place frozen chicken breasts into the bottom of a 6-quart (or larger) slow cooker.
In a medium bowl, mix together cream of chicken soup, salsa and minced garlic.
Pour this mixture over frozen chicken breasts.
Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours. About 30 minutes or so before this is finished cooking, begin preparing the rotini pasta according to package directions.
Once chicken is cooked, remove chicken breasts and shred them or cut into chunks.
Whisk in sour cream and Hidden Valley® Ranch Cilantro lime dressing into cream of chicken/salsa mixture in the slow cooker.
Add chicken back into the slow cooker and stir in prepared rotini pasta.
Stir well
And serve with a yummy, green salad!
Cook’s Notes: You could definitely make this with the original Hidden Valley® Ranch Dressing. You could also substitute the prepared dressing with a packet of Hidden Valley® Ranch dressing mix. Just add that in at the beginning of the recipe (sprinkle on top of frozen chicken before cooking.) Then continue with the rest of the recipe (just not adding the prepared dressing at the end.)
Enjoy!
Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Pasta
Crock Pot Salsa Ranch Chicken Pasta
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
6 hrs
Total Time
6 hrs 10 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6
Calories: 535 kcal
Ingredients
- 5 frozen chicken breasts
- 1 10.5 oz can cream of chicken soup
- 1 cup salsa
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup Hidden Valley® Ranch dressing
- 1 16 oz box rotini pasta prepared
Instructions
- Place frozen chicken breasts into the bottom of a 6-quart (or larger) slow cooker.
- In a medium bowl, mix together cream of chicken soup, salsa and minced garlic.
- Pour this mixture over frozen chicken breasts.
- Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
- About 30 minutes or so before this is finished cooking, begin preparing the rotini pasta according to package directions.
- Once chicken is cooked, remove chicken breasts and shred them or cut into chunks.
- Whisk in sour cream and Hidden Valley® Ranch dressing into cream of chicken/salsa mixture in the slow cooker.
- Add chicken back into the slow cooker and stir in prepared rotini pasta.
- Stir well.
Recipe Notes
Serve with a green salad.
Nutrition Facts
Crock Pot Salsa Ranch Chicken Pasta
Amount Per Serving
Calories 535 Calories from Fat 153
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 17g 26%
Saturated Fat 4g 20%
Cholesterol 76mg 25%
Sodium 654mg 27%
Potassium 679mg 19%
Total Carbohydrates 61g 20%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Sugars 4g
Protein 31g 62%
Vitamin A 7.1%
Vitamin C 3.6%
Calcium 6.1%
Iron 9.2%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Hidden Valley Ranch. The opinions and text are all mine.
I have just made this for the third time & I like everything about it. There are no weird ingredients…I don’t have to saute anything in advance…the flavor is amazing. This one is definitely a keeper! Thanks!
My friend and I saw this recipe and both tried it the same day – then we compared. I followed the recipe as it was written and she made some changes: she used regular ranch dressing and put in some shredded mozzarella at the end as well. She also thinks she used a litttle more than half a cup of ranch. While I thought my prep was tasty, hers was DELICIOUS!! Definitely changing it up a bit next time I make this!
How much ranch was put in?
How much extra ranch did your friend put in?
If the chicken is thawed already, how long would you suggest cook time to be?
I’m a horrible cook, so crockpot meals are my friend! And this was delicious! I used thin sliced chicken breasts, black bean and corn salsa, added a little extra garlic, and cooked for about half the time(since the breasts were thin) … thanks for the recipe!
This was delicious!!!! I only used three chicken breasts as two of them were very large. I also used about 2/3 cup of regular Hidden Valley Ranch and about 1 cup of shredded cheese -italian blend (mozzarella, provolone, Parmesan, and Asiago). This was amazing! The chicken was so tender! We will be making this again!!
I have found that when I start with frozen chicken breasts they come out a bit tough. Am I doing something wrong? This is a must try recipe. sounds delicious!
We loved this pasta! Super easy but really good! We also tried the tater tot casserole and it was one of the best we’ve ever had! Love your recipes!
Oh wow – thank you so much Jennifer!! Thank you for taking the time to let me know!
Hi,what could be used in place of the sour cream? I’ve heard cream cheese is a good replacement for sour cream also plain Greek yogurt. Thank you
Can you forgot the cream of chicken? Thought I had some on hand but I’m out and can’t get to the store today. I don’t have any other cream of anything soups.
So I mixed the dressing in with the salsa and soup in the beginning. I misread the directions. Do you think it will still come out ok? I’ll let you know how it turns out.
Can I use thawed chicken? If so what does the cook time change to?
Thanks!
This is a good base recipe. Next time I will cook again as directed but will pop everything into a casserole dish with some grated mozzarella cheese on top and will bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Also, my chicken breasts were smaller so they were perfect after 4 hours on low. Thanks for the recipe.