Delicious Crock Pot Chicken Pasta with an easy homemade marinara sauce that cooks the dry pasta and chicken while it simmers. You will love this cheesy Italian bake.
Frequently called baked chicken ziti, but the terms casserole or bake may be used.
🐓Ingredients
Chicken—raw or precooked
Pasta
Cheese—shredded mozzarella and grated Parmesan
Homemade marinara sauce—tomatoes(crushed or diced), basil, parsley, salt, black pepper, crushed red pepper (optional)
Jump To (scroll for more)
Everybody loves great Italian, and this crock pot chicken casserole is a perfect weeknight dinner. Create the marinara sauce with a few pantry ingredients and let it cook the chicken and pasta as it simmers.
This small crock pot recipe is perfect in our "for two" household, but you can make it smaller in a 2-quart mini crock pot or double in a full-size crock pot for more significant needs.
Check out these other Italian comfort food recipes, like Chicken Baked Ziti, Baked Ziti with Sausage, Baked Chicken Spaghetti, Crock Pot Pizza Casserole, and Crock Pot Chicken Cacciatore.
This is a variation of my favorite crock pot recipe, Crock Pot Baked Ziti, which uses ricotta cheese to make it lasagna-like ziti.
👨🍳How to Cook Crock Pot Chicken Pasta
- Trim chicken into bite-size pieces. Chop onion and crush or mince garlic.
- In a 3-4 quart crock pot, add crushed tomatoes, onion, garlic, spices, shredded mozzarella, grated Parmesan cheese, and chicken—mix well.
- Mix in uncooked pasta, smooth the top, and cover with mozzarella cheese and some grated Parmesan cheese.
- Cover and cook on low for 4 hours.
- The endpoint of cooking is tender pasta and chicken at 165° or more. Usually, the edge of the cheese topping will be browning.
This is a summary of the steps and ingredients. See the recipe card or the step-by-step photo instructions below for complete instructions.
Ingredient options
- Use raw chicken breasts or thighs.
- To use precooked chicken, like rotisserie chicken, stir the chicken into the casserole for the last hour. Don't top the casserole with cheese until you mix in the chicken. Use about 3 cups of shredded rotisserie chicken for each pound of raw chicken.
- You can use your own or premade marinara sauce but mine is better.
- Use a smaller pasta that is bite sized.
How to use precooked pasta
Cooking the dry pasta in a crock pot works well for most people and me, but there is variability in both pasta and crock pots.
If you feel your slow cooker may have temperature issues or are not using standard pasta, you should precook your pasta to al dente according to the package instructions.
The precooked pasta can be stirred into the casserole for the last hour. Don't top the casserole with cheese until you mix in the pasta.
↕️How to make this a "for two" or "family size " recipe
This recipe is easy to cut in half or double to fit your needs.
The full recipe makes about six servings. Perfect for our "for two" household since we love leftovers. But make it a crock pot for two recipe by cutting it in half or double for a larger family.
- Use the recipe card and adjust the number of servings to half or double.
- Use the amount of ingredients in the ingredient list, not the instructions—those do not adjust.
- The half recipe will fit in a 2-quart mini crock pot. For this "for two" recipe, watch the pasta closely—mini crock pots tend to have temperature control issues, and it may cook faster or slower.
- A double recipe fits in a 6-quart or larger crock pot.
- Cook until browning edge and tender pasta. The cooking time will probably be longer for double and less for mini crock pot size.
Storage of leftovers
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 days or frozen for 3-4 months. Thaw frozen pasta overnight in the refrigerator before reheating in the microwave or covered in the oven.
❓FAQs
No, you can substitute garlic powder and onion powder
You can add some cream cheese or heavy cream to the sauce.
This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.
Have you tried this recipe, or have a question? Join the community discussion in the comments.
Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
Trim and pat dry two skinless boneless chicken breasts, about 1 to 1 ½ pounds.
Cut the chicken into small bite-size pieces of about ¾ inch each.
Chop 1 or ½ medium onion and crush or mince 2 garlic cloves.
To a 3-4 quart crock pot, add 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 ½ teaspoons basil, ½ teaspoon parsley, ½ teaspoon black pepper, ⅛ - ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional), and 2 cloves crushed garlic. Add 1 cup shredded mozzarella, ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese, the prepared onion, and chicken—mix well.
Mix in 2 cups of uncooked pasta of your choice, like penna. Two cups is half a one-pound box of dry pasta.
Smooth the top, then cover with ½ cup of shredded mozzarella and sprinkle with ¼ cup of Parmesan cheese.
Cover and cook on low for 4 hours. The endpoint of cooking is tender pasta and chicken at 165° or more. Usually, the edge of the cheese topping will be browning.
📖 Recipe
Crock Pot Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts - 1 to 1 ½ pounds
- 2 cups ziti or penne pasta - ½ of a one pound box
- 1 ½ cups mozzarella shredded
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Marinara Sauce
- 1 small onion chopped - or ½ medium
- 2 cloves garlic - crushed or minced
- 28 oz crushed tomatoes
- 1 ½ teaspoons basil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅛ - ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper - optional
Instructions
- Trim and pat dry two skinless boneless chicken breasts, about 1 to 1 ½ pounds.
- Cut the chicken into small bite-size pieces of about ¾ inch each.
- Chop 1 or ½ medium onion and crush or mince 2 garlic cloves.
- To a 3-4 quart crock pot, add 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 ½ teaspoons basil, ½ teaspoon parsley, ½ teaspoon black pepper, ⅛ - ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional), and 2 cloves crushed garlic. Add 1 cup shredded mozzarella, ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese, the prepared onion, and chicken—mix well.
- Mix in 2 cups of uncooked pasta of your choice, like penna. Two cups is half a one-pound box of dry pasta.
- Smooth the top, then cover with ½ cup of shredded mozzarella and sprinkle with ¼ cup of Parmesan cheese.
- Cover and cook on low for 4 hours. The endpoint of cooking is tender pasta and chicken at 165° or more. Usually, the edge of the cheese topping will be browning.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
- You need about 1 to 1 ½ pounds of chicken. I use skinless boneless chicken breast, but skinless boneless thighs would work well.
- This recipe uses a smaller 3-4 qt crock pot. Instructions for double or half recipes are in the post.
- You may use jarred sauce, but then you only use the chicken, cheese, pasta, and sauce. But you should use mine—so much better.
- This recipe may cook a bit faster if your crock pot runs hotter. So if it does, check at 3 hours for a temperature over 165° and tender pasta.
- Options for rotisserie chicken, precooking pasta, and more are covered in the post.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
© 101 Cooking for Two, LLC. All content and photographs are copyright protected by us or our vendors. While we appreciate your sharing our recipes, please realize copying, pasting, or duplicating full recipes to any social media, website, or electronic/printed media is strictly prohibited and a violation of our copyrights.
Originally published October 7, 2018. Now updated with expanded options and improved images.
Jan says
Stupid question.
I have a slow cooker. Would this work the same as a crock pot?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Jan,
Welcome to the blog. They are two terms for the same thing. And any question you worry about is worth asking.
Dan
Wendy says
How many servings is this? Trying to make enough for 6 people
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Wendy,
Welcome to the blog. This makes six servings of about 1 1/3 cups each. So not big servings.
Dan
Merri says
This was so easy to do and delicious. My picky family loved it. I did spray some Pam in the I side of the crockpot to prevent sticking/burning like another reviewer. I also added 1 TSP of EVOO to help keep the pasta from sticking...always done that, my Italian neighbor said that's how she has always made pasta...lol. The pasta is so tender as well as the chicken. I didn't have the crushed tomatoes, but had 2-14.5 oz cans of the diced tomatoes. So I threw the 2 can in my food processor along with the herbs, chopped onions and garlic....made a great sauce, but like another reviewer said, it needed a bit of sugar. So I literally added a + pinch which is my index and middle finger against my thumb, amount of sugar. Soooooo good. I made garlic bread and a salad for dinner tonight. I wish I could add a picture to show hiw awesome it turned out. Thank you so much!!!
Joy says
Dr. Dan,
This sounds delicious and I would love to make it. However, I have a large crockpot and I was wondering if I can put a baking dish in the crockpot to make it smaller? Do you think it would work? If so would I cook it longer?
Thanks for all of the great recipes. I have been using them for a couple of years now. It is always nice to try something new. I think many of us get in a rut of making the samething week after week. So you have put new life in my cooking.
Joy
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Joy,
Welcome to the blog.
While I have never done it, I remember seeing it on a cooking show years ago. I would say I wouldn't have a dish that touches the sides. Expansion of material with heat and all that could be a problem. I would think it might take a bit longer (not much) since there is more mass to heat. Obviously it would need to be oven safe.
About the recipe, If you cook in a larger crock pot without a baking dish, things cook a little faster, just watch for tender pasta and 165° chicken. In a baking dish, the same end point. The pasta cooking in the dish is kind of a wild card so you might consider the option to cook the pasta outside of the crock pot ( in the post).
Dan
Katie says
I really want to add ricotta to this recipe. Since not layering, at what point should I add the ricotta? I was thinking mix it all up and then drop dolaps off ricotta into/onto the mixture before topping w/ mozzarella?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Katie,
Welcome to the blog.
Yep, that sounds like it would be fine. I do use ricotta in the beef version at https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/crockpot-baked-ziti/
Dan
Cece says
I happen to have made my chicken yesterday in the crockpot. Can I still do it this way?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Cece,
Welcome to the blog.
Part of this recipe depends on the dry pasta cooking and absorbing fluid as it cooks. The chicken releases some of that fluid so I would not for that reason and the chicken would be way over cooked and probably poor texture.
You probably could use the oven baked ziti recipe since the pasta is already cooked. Just add the already cooked chicken after cooking the onion. https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/chicken-baked-ziti/
Dan
Terry Yarham says
Dr. Dan -
After adding the noodles, are you mixing them up in the sauce and then adding the cheese? I would think you would have to for them to cook well, but from the recipe I'm wondering if you layer the sauce then the noodles then the cheese.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Terry,
You're right, mix it all in then cover with the cheese. While this is similar the beef version, I don't layer it.
I'm changing the wording to be more clear.
Thanks for asking.
Dan