What kind of chicken do I need for this recipe?

This recipe calls for cooked leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken that has been shredded. You can use either dark meat, light meat, or a combo - whatever you like! And, if you prefer, you can also chop the chicken into bite-sized pieces instead of shredding. Of course, you can always cook the chicken using your preferred method right beforehand if you don't have any leftover chicken on hand. Pan-fried or poached would be easy ways to prepare the chicken for this recipe.

What kind of bacon do I need for this recipe?

Much like using leftover chicken, this recipe saves on time by using a package of pre-cooked, ready to serve bacon. But, if you only have raw bacon, you can of course use that for this recipe. You will need 10 slices of bacon cooked to crispy, using whichever cooking method you prefer. For a really easy method, try cooking the bacon in the microwave !

What if I don't have a Dutch oven?

This recipe also saves on dishes by first boiling the pasta in a Dutch oven on the stovetop, then moving the Dutch oven directly to the oven to finish cooking. But, if you don't have a Dutch oven (or another similar pot that can go from stovetop to oven), you can still make the recipe! Just boil the pasta in a regular pasta pot, and mix in the other ingredients as called for in the recipe. When you are ready to put the pasta into the oven, just transfer it into a casserole dish. If your casserole dish has a lid, you can use that for the first part of the oven cook time. But if not, just tightly cover the casserole dish with a piece of aluminum foil.

One pot creamy chicken bacon pasta bake

Chicken Bacon Pasta Bake

plate of creamy pasta topped with bacon.

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5 from 1 review

This creamy bacon chicken pasta bake is an easy one-pot meal! Prep is simplified by using leftover or rotisserie chicken and pre-cooked bacon.

Author: Kate
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Yield: 8 servings 1x
Category: main course, entree
Method: stove top, oven
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale

12 ounces (340 g/about 4 cups) cavatappi (can sub rotini or fusilli)
4 cups (946 ml) water
1 1/2 cups (355 ml) whole or 2% milk, plus more if needed
3 cups (375 g) shredded leftover cooked or rotisserie chicken
8 ounces (227 g/about 2 cups) shredded cheddar cheese (for smoother texture use freshly shredded)
1 block (8 ounces/227 g) full-fat cream cheese
1 package pre-cooked bacon (2.52 ounce/71 g), torn or chopped into bite-sized pieces (note 1)
4 green onions
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon (7 g) salt

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
Prep the cheeses: Unwrap the block of cream cheese and cut it into cubes. If needed, shred the cheddar cheese. Set both aside.
To a large Dutch oven or other wide oven-safe pot (note 2), add the 12 ounces pasta, 1 1/2 cups milk, 4 cups water, and 1 teaspoon salt to the pot and stir. The liquid should just barely cover the pasta when in an even layer (if not you can add a splash more milk or water). Turn the burner on high to bring the liquid to a gentle boil, then turn the heat down as needed to maintain the gentle boil. Gently boil the pasta for 6 - 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, finish the remaining prep (note 3): (1) Finely chop the garlic. (2) Cut the green onions in half where the dark green portion begins (keeping the 2 portions separate). Finely chop the light green/white portion. Thinly slice the dark green portion at an angle. (3) Shred the rotisserie/leftover chicken. (4) Tear or chop the cooked bacon into bite-sized pieces. Set ingredients aside.
When the pasta is al dente (not hard but still firm when bitten), turn off the burner. The liquid should now come up about halfway to the top of the pasta. If too much liquid evaporated during cooking, you can add an extra splash of milk to the pot.
Add the chicken, garlic, white/light green portion of green onion, and cream cheese to the pot. Also add most of the shredded cheese and bacon, reserving about 1/2 cup of each to save as a topping.
Stir the pasta together with the toppings (it's ok if not all the cream cheese is melted). Add an oven-safe lid to the Dutch oven or pot (or cover tightly with aluminum foil) and place in the pre-heated oven.
Bake the pasta for 10 minutes. Remove the pot from the oven and stir the pasta, making sure all the cream cheese has evenly combined with the pasta. Sprinkle the top of the pasta with the remaining cheese and bacon. Place the pot back in the oven, uncovered, and bake for an additional 5 minutes, or until the top cheese has melted.
Garnish the pasta with the reserved dark green onion slices and enjoy immediately.

Notes

You can also use bacon that you cook yourself if you don't have pre-cooked bacon. You will need 10 slices that are cooked till crispy.
If you don't have a Dutch oven or oven-safe pot, you can boil the pasta in a regular pot and then transfer it to a casserole dish after you have mixed in the other ingredients. If the casserole dish or pot you are using doesn't have a lid, you can cover it tightly with aluminum foil.
To save time, I like to do as much of the prep during the pasta cook time as possible. I found that I was able to prep the garlic, green onion, bacon, and chicken during the roughly 15 minutes it took to both bring the liquid to a boil and cook the pasta to al dente. However, if it's easier for you, you can always prep all the ingredients before starting the pasta and use that time instead for clean up (or rest)! If prepping all the ingredients separately, it will add about 10 - 15 minutes to the recipe prep time depending on your speed.
The nutrition information below was calculated using 2% milk and plain chicken breast. This information is an estimate only, provided by an online nutrition calculator. The nutrition counts of your dish will vary based on the brand and exact amounts of ingredients used. This nutrition estimate should not be considered a substitute for professional medical, health, or nutritional advice. See our full disclosure policy.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1/8 recipe
Calories: 560
Sugar: 2.3 g
Sodium: 805 mg
Fat: 24.9 g
Saturated Fat: 13.9 g
Carbohydrates: 45.6 g
Fiber: 3.3 g
Protein: 35.5 g
Cholesterol: 111 mg

Find it online: https://nibbleanddine.com/chicken-bacon-pasta-bake/