This slow cooker Olive Garden chicken pasta recipe is the ultimate combination of comfort food and minimal effort. Olive Garden dressing contains all the seasoning and flavor this dish needs, while cream cheese adds the creaminess. Just set your crock pot and add pasta when you are ready to eat!
Here’s what you’ll need to make it
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- Olive Garden dressing – This is the magic ingredient, it is full of delicious seasonings and has enough acidity to help make the chicken extra tender.
- Chicken breasts – We used 3 large chicken breast for this recipe.
- Cream cheese – This is what adds the subtle cheesy, creaminess.
- Pecorino romano – You can usually find this where you find fresh mozzarella in your grocery store.
Making changes to a recipe can result in recipe failure. Any substitutions listed below are simple changes that I believe will work in this recipe, but results are not guaranteed.
How to make slow cooker olive garden chicken pasta
Fill the crockpot. Add chicken breasts to the slow cooker and pour dressing over, followed by pecorino romano cheese, cream cheese, salt and crushed red pepper flakes. Cover and cook for 4 hours on high. You can also set your slow cooker to low, and cook for 6 hours if you prefer.
Cook the pasta. When the slow cooker is done, cook pasta according to package directions to al denté. Drain and set aside.
Shred the chicken. Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and shred with a fork. Use caution, the chicken will be hot. The chicken will fall apart a little more as you stir in the pasta so shred the chicken into bigger pieces.
Pull it all together. Return the chicken to the slow cooker and add the pasta. Stir to combine. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and a sprinkle of pecorino romano cheese.
Everything to know about this olive garden chicken pasta
Does slow cooker chicken pasta reheat well?
Yes, this pasta dish reheats great. Add a splash of milk before reheating to keep the dish from drying out. This meal also keeps well on the warm setting on your crockpot, if you have a busy house this is a great meal!
Should you brown chicken before putting in slow cooker?
You do not have to brown or sear the chicken before adding it to the slow cooker.
Can you put raw pasta in slow cooker?
For this recipe, you will need to cook your pasta. Some recipes may call for uncooked, raw or dry pasta but this recipe will not turn out properly if you do not cook the pasta in a separate pot.
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Slow Cooker Olive Garden Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 ½ – 2 pounds boneless chicken breasts
- 16 ounce bottle olive garden dressing
- 8 ounce cream cheese
- ¼ cup pecorino romano cheese
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 pound pasta
Instructions
- Place chicken into slow cooker, in a single layer.
- Pour dressing over chicken.
- Place cream cheese on top of chicken.
- Add pecorino romano, salt and crushed red pepper flakes.
- Cover and cook on high for 4 hours.
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- When cooked remove chicken, shred and return to slow cooker.
- Add cooked pasta to slow cooker, stirring to combine.
Nutrition
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