Baked Chicken Spaghetti

Homemade chicken spaghetti casserole is a great, cheesy casserole that will become a family favorite. Tender chicken with tasty homemade marinara sauce mixed with spaghetti then baked until bubbly and golden brown.

I have tried other baked spaghetti recipes before, but the recipes always had too much pasta that was mushy. And most of them used a jar of sauce or cream sauce. They were just wrong.

I started with my wonderful chicken marinara with few changes. I then undercooked 8 oz of spaghetti a bit. Mixed in some grated Parmesan and topped with some mozzarella and more grated parmesan.

It is then baked until browned. It came out perfect in about 25 minutes.

My Rating

A very strong 4 with the potential of being somebody’s favorite recipe.

Pro Tips: Recipe Notes for Baked Chicken Spaghetti

The Chicken

The recipe as written has you cooking your own chicken using skinless boneless chicken breasts, but you can you other chicken. Pre-cooked shredded rotisserie chicken is fine. You need 2-3 cups.

The Pasta

I like my pasta to have a bit of “body.” read that as not overcooked and mushy. Even cooked to al denta, it can turn mushy when baked in sauce. I suggest cooking a little short of the al denta instructions for the pasta you use.

You don’t have to use spaghetti. Use the pasta you want. I do not suggest using whole wheat or gluten-free pasta since they tend to fall apart in recipes like this.

The Sauce

You need about 4 cups of marinara sauce for this recipe as written. If you have a jar or other sauce, feel free to use it, but you will love mine, and it is not that much work.

My normal garlic marinara has some crushed red pepper, but it is optional here.

I like to add some cheese to the sauce in casseroles so it will hold together better and add a bit of taste.

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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees convection or 375 conventional.

Trim, pat dry, and dice two medium chicken breast. About 1-1 1/2 pounds. You can use pre-cooked chicken, and you will need 2-3 cups.

Chop a medium onion.

When the oil is hot,  add 2-3 cloves of garlic, the chicken and the onion.  Cook until chicken is done and cuts easily with a wooden spoon. About 8 to 9 minutes. Break apart any large pieces of chicken. If using precooked chicken, then don’t add the chicken until the onion is translucent.

Add two 14 oz cans of diced tomatoes, and one 6 oz can tomato paste, 2 teaspoons dry basil (or 2 tablespoons fresh basil), 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional), 1/2 teaspoon oregano. Simmer over low heat while you cook the pasta.

Cook 8 oz of pasta according to instructions on the box for al denta or a bit less.

Add 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese to the sauce and mixed well. Mix the sauce into the pasta and move to the casserole dish.

This fits nicely in a 2 1/2 quart size, which is about 8X12 inches. Top with 1/2 cup each of mozzarella and grated Parmesan cheese. You may cover and refrigerate at this point.

Bake until sauce is bubbling and top brown. About 25 minutes for me. Longer if you had refrigerated the dish.

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4 from 42 votes

Baked Chicken Spaghetti

Homemade chicken spaghetti casserole is a great, cheesy casserole that will become a family favorite. Tender chicken with tasty homemade marinara sauce mixed with spaghetti then baked until bubbly and golden brown.

Prep Time25 mins

Cook Time25 mins

Total Time50 mins

Author: Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan

Course : Main Course

Cuisine : Italian

Servings/Adjust Amount: 8 servings

8

Ingredients

• 2 skinless boneless chicken breasts - medium cut into 1 inch cubes
• 8 oz spaghetti
• 2 teaspoons oil
• 2-4 cloves garlic - minced
• 1 onion - medium diced
• 28 oz diced tomatoes
• 6 oz tomato paste
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 2 teaspoons dry basil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoons crushed pepper - optional

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees convection or 375 degrees conventional.
• Pat dry, trim, and dice two medium chicken breast. About 1-1 1/2 pounds. You can use pre-cooked chicken, and you will need 2-3 cups.
• Chop a medium onion.
• When the oil is hot,  add 2-3 cloves of garlic, the chicken and the onion.  Cook until chicken is done and cuts easily with a wooden spoon. About 8 to 9 minutes. Break apart any large pieces of chicken. If using precooked chicken, then don't add the chicken until the onion is translucent.
• Add two 14 oz cans of diced tomatoes, and one 6 oz can tomato paste, 2 teaspoons dry basil (or 2 tablespoons fresh basil), 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional), 1/2 teaspoon oregano. Simmer over low heat while you cook the pasta.
• Cook 8 oz of pasta according to instructions on the box for al denta or a bit less.
• Add 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese to the sauce and mixed well. Mix the sauce into the pasta and move to the casserole dish.
• This fits nicely in a 2 1/2 quart size, which is about 8X12 inches. Top with 1/2 cup each of mozzarella and grated Parmesan cheese. You may cover and refrigerate at this point.
• Bake until sauce is bubbling and top brown. About 25 minutes for me. Longer if you had refrigerated the dish.

Recipe Notes

Pro Tips:

1. You can use pre-cooked chicken. You will need 2-3 cups and add it to the sauce when you add the tomatos.
2. You can decrease your work and use pre-made sauce. You need about 4 cups. But you will love my sauce.
3. Vary the cheese any way you want.
4. An easy recipe to cut in half and bake in a 1 1/2 quart dish.
5. You can refrigerate for a couple of days before cooking if you want. It will take a few minutes longer to cook since it is going in cold.
6. Good refrigerated for 3-4 days and can be frozen for 3-4 months.

 

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Calories: 216kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 465mg | Potassium: 494mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 250IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 2.2mg

 

Nutrition is generally for one serving. Number of servings is stated above and is my estimate of normal serving size for this recipe.

 

All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.

Originally Published September 29, 2019. Updated with expanded discussion and options along with refreshed photos.