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Chicken spaghetti with Rotel is a creamy, comforting casserole that is perfect for chilly nights. Serve with a big green salad on the side for a complete meal.
The first time I encountered cheesy chicken spaghetti I was legit confused.
Like, wait.
Spaghetti is made with ground beef and tomato sauce, always and forever. My mama told me so. (Have you tried my one pot spaghetti yet?)
But, then I took a bite of that creamy, dreamy, oh so cheesy chicken spaghetti bake and now I’m HOOKED.
This chicken spaghetti recipe is total comfort food, you guys.
If you’ve never given it a try, I hope you do. It’s surprisingly delicious, so cheesy and creamy, and just basically perfect if you ask me.
The Ro*tel adds a tiny little kick, but nothing that you need to worry about if you don’t like spicy food. My wimpy daughter ate this just fine. 😉
How to make easy chicken spaghetti:
A lot of chicken spaghetti recipes are made with Velveeta, which I am not opposed to, but I do prefer this with a homemade cheese sauce. Don’t panic though – this is EASY.
You’re just going to melt some butter in a sauce pan and whisk in some flour. Let that cook for a minute or so.
Whisk in some milk and keep stirring and cooking until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes.
Remove that from the heat and stir in your grated cheddar and cream cheese until it’s a smooth, creamy sauce. I whisk in my spices here as well.
Told you the cheese sauce was easy!
Next, you’ll want to dump some cooked spaghetti into a large bowl, along with some cooked, shredded chicken, Ro*Tel, and the cheese sauce.
Stir it all together and pour the mixture into a 9×13 casserole.
Top the dish off with a little extra cheddar – extra cheddar never hurts, right?!
Bake this up until it’s hot, bubbly, and oh so cheesy.
Who wants to dig in?
Serve this up with a big old salad topped with ranch dressing and you have a fantastic dinner. I wish I had another plate of this in front of me right now. 🙂
More family favorite recipes you’ll love:
Turkey Meatloaf: This twist on classic meatloaf is lightened up a bit with ground turkey.
Crockpot Ribs: The easiest way to make ribs ever!
Alfredo Sauce: Whether you’re drizzling this over chicken, pasta, or broccoli it’s always good!
Potato Soup: Loaded with cheese, bacon, and lots of creamy potatoes!
Homemade Chicken Pot Pie: Total comfort food!
Chicken Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 16 ounces spaghetti noodles
- 2 cups cooked shredded chicken
- 3 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 2 cups milk
- 16 ounces grated cheddar divided
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 10.5 ounces canned diced tomatoes with green chiles drained
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the spaghetti. Cook for 2 minutes less than the package directions state. Drain pasta and add to a large mixing bowl with the chicken.
- While pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute.
- Whisk the milk into the flour and cook until thickened, whisking constantly, about 3 minutes.
- Remove the milk mixture from the heat and whisk in 10 ounces of grated cheddar along with the cream cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Whisk until mixture is smooth and creamy and the cheese has fully melted.
- Pour the cheese sauce over the spaghetti and chicken and add the canned tomatoes and chiles.
- Stir well to combine and spread mixture into a greased 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheddar over the top.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the casserole is hot and bubbly.
- Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.
bri guy says
looks really good am person who just likes to make things the way they are or the way they come but my girlfriend is one who likes to look at different recipes or she sits back and thinks how she can doctor things up so it is not always the same so when but when i should make dinner and just make something out of a box she is like you couldn’t do something to make it taste better she is there is recipes to help you so when i looked at some of the recipes she has i came across your recipe so i figure i will try this it seems easy enough and sounds good i saw that she put notes on there that it might be good with peas mushrooms peppers instead of rotel just petite tomatoes so when i make this i will decided how i will do this and let you know what i did and how good it was
Karly says
Hope you enjoy! Can’t wait to see what you come up with! 🙂
Mimi says
Such a cheesy, gooey, mashup of deliciousness! I’ve made this a couple times already, but with petite diced tomatoes instead of Rotel. Next time I’ll probably double the seasonings – just a personal preference. The homemade cheese sauce is a must ?
Karly says
Thanks, Mimi!
Mimi says
Wanted something different than the regular pasta. This was delicious. I doubled the cheese sauce (we LOVE cheese) and used sharp cheddar since that’s what I had. Next time, will add a bit more salt & pepper.
Heidi says
This was really good. I used macaroni noodles as that’s all I had and added left over grilled chicken to shred into it. I think the cream cheese adds a nice creaminess. Thank you for a keeper????
Kristina Anthony says
AT LAST! A Chicken spaghetti recipe without canned soups! I used to have a recipe that I found online, but somehow lost it and have not been able to find one since! I am SO going to try this recipe as soon as I have recovered from my knee surgery! THANKS!
Karly says
Hope you love it!
Betsy says
Very delicious! I thought the Rotel was a funny ingredient, but it really makes the dish! I made this a skillet meal and just heated everything through in a large skillet (12 in) and did not use oven. I did not drain the Rotel and it was fine. Also, I used 8 oz mozzarella and no cheddar, stirring it all in at once to get melty. I have made this twice now and will be making it more! Thanks!
Michele Duncanson says
It was absolutely delicious and my family loved it. Can it be frozen, defrosted and baked???
Karly says
I haven’t tried freezing this one, so I’m not sure how well it would hold up. Glad you enjoyed though!
Tammy Karlstad says
Mine seemed dry when I pulled it out of the oven. I would love suggestions on the best way to reheat it.
Karly says
I would just cover tightly with foil and reheat in the oven or reheat in small portions in the microwave. Mine doesn’t come out dry at all though…not sure what’s happened there.
Ruth says
Do you drain the Rotel?
Karly says
Yes, I do.
Cathie McClure says
With over 600 calories per serving, how big is the serving size? This looks yummy and I’d like to trim calories a bit.
Karly says
The nutrition info is based on this recipe making 8 servings.
Amanda Roberts says
I have been torturing myself looking at all your recipes for about 3 hours now! I’m laying in bed waiting for my Ambien to kick in and realized I was actually drooling!!! I was reading about your Bacon Fried Rice at the time! Yum! My stomach is audibly growling, too! Everything looks so perfect and so good. I think I may pick recipes from your blog to feed my clan all next week. Unfortunately, I have to convert them to gluten free but there are a ton that will be easy to make that happen! Can’t wait to try them!!!’
Karly says
Hope you all enjoy whatever you decide to try! 🙂 Thanks for the sweet comment!
Laura says
What a great idea! Anything with Ro-Tel is a hit in my house>. And new ways with spaghetti – awesome! Thanks Karly!
Karly says
I could eat Ro*Tel every day – it makes everything better! 🙂
Kasie says
Oh my gosh, this looks absolutely HEAVENLY!
Judy Dayhoff says
I will assume that you bake at 350°.
Karly says
Yes! Sorry about that – updating the recipe.