Cheesy Ranch Chicken Pasta is so addictive, you won’t be able to have just one plate! Moist shredded chicken is paired with thick-cut crispy pieces of bacon and a creamy and cheesy ranch mixture on a bed of penne noodles for an amazing finish! If you are looking for more pasta ideas, make sure to check out my cheeseburger pasta and my mushroom and swiss pasta!
Easy One-Pot Cheesy Ranch Chicken Pasta
OK, so I know by now I have already sold you on why you would want to make cheesy ranch chicken pasta, but I am going to go ahead and add another thing. It all cooks in one pot! Just one. If you are like me, this is an amazing discovery. My kids love it and it cleans up easy which means I am winning. There is a little bit of prep work to be done but if you do that, I am here to tell you the rest of your week will be a breeze too.
Can I Make This Ahead of Time?
Yes! Here are some ways to make prepping and assembly easier.
- Shredded Chicken: You can buy your chicken cooked and pre-shredded but I prefer to make it ahead. Use this easy shredded chicken recipe for perfectly cooked and moist chicken every single time.
- Bacon: You can also buy pre-cooked bacon at the store but again, there is nothing better than the taste and crunch of perfectly cooked and crispy bacon. I always bake mine in the oven. Start by lining a large baking dish with tin foil and lay out the individual pieces of bacon. Bake them in the oven at 415° F for 18-20 minutes. Cook times will vary based on your oven heat.
- Ranch Seasoning: Make your own homemade ranch seasoning mix if you don’t have any on hand.
How to Make Cheesy Ranch Chicken Pasta
- Start with a small to medium-sized bowl.
- Add the chicken and the dry ranch seasoning and stir to combine making sure to coat all of the chicken well.
- Move to the Dutch oven and set it over medium heat. Add the broth, the dry penne noodles, and the chicken mixture. Stir to combine and bring everything to a boil.
- Reduce the heat down to low and cover. Allow this mixture to simmer 15-20 minutes.
- Stir it occasionally to make sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan. (There will still be liquid in the pan when the noodles are finished cooking.)
- Add in the cream cheese and stir until it has completely melted into the mixture.
- Remove from heat and add the bacon and the shredded cheddar cheese. Stir everything together until it has completely melted.
Garnish with parsley and serve! Yup, it’s just that easy.
How to Store Cheesy Chicken Ranch Pasta
Store leftover pasta in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. I like to add a bit of milk or cream to the dish before reheating.
More Dinner Recipes
Cheesy Ranch Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded chicken, cooked
- 1 package (1 ounce) dry ranch seasoning mix*
- 8 ounces penne noodles, uncooked
- 3½ cups chicken broth
- 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 4 slices thick-cut bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
- In a small bowl combine shredded chicken and dry ranch seasoning. (This is your chicken mixture.)
- To a large Dutch oven over medium heat, add the chicken broth, penne, and chicken mixture. Stir to combine and then bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and then cover and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes or until the pasta is cooked to your preference. There should still be some liquid in the pot when the pasta is done cooking.
- Add the cream cheese to the dutch oven and stir until most of the cream cheese has melted.
- Add the bacon and shredded cheddar cheese. Stir everything until cheese is fully melted.
- Garnish with parsley and serve.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Thank you for making my recipe! You took pictures, right? Well go ahead and post them on Instagram! Be sure to mention me @iambaker and use the hashtag #YouAreBaker.
This is delicious and easy. We didn’t have bacon so i cut up two Roma tomatoes and added 2 handfuls of baby spinach. So yummy!!
This recipe was pretty good. I enjoyed the richness of the sauce. Part of me wants to say this was “too salty” but I think some of the taste had to do with the potency of the ranch and cream cheese flavor which gave it an almost tangy, sour taste. So I’m not certain if it was the salt content or the ranch and cream cheese. Either way I found the recipe enjoyable but I would probably use heavy cream instead of cream cheese. Not sure. I’d have to experiment a bit.
If I want to use a lb of noodles, should I double the chicken broth to like 6 cups?
Too rich! Too much cheese!! No break from the richness for your palate. Never making this again
It’s actually an appropriate amount of cheese for this dish. If you don’t like rich foods or cheese you might want to stay away from dishes literally called CHEESY Ranch Chicken Pasta. Have a nice day!
I made it tonight and I have to agree. It was a lot of cheese which took away the taste of everything else. It needed more chicken, garlic added and less cheese. Mine turned orange from so much cheddar in it. It didn’t look like the recipe picture.
Made it. Had no bacon (and I don’t really like becon to be honest), so substituted it with 100g pack of Italian sundried tomatoes (the ones that come just sprinkled with oil) and added a bot of green peas and spinach at the end.
It came absolutely delicious, and it took below 30 min to make it, so it’s a great meal prep recipe (it was even better the next day). Serving it with parsley and buffalo xtra hot from franks.
Thank you for the recipe!
Looks delicious
This is incredible! We used canned chicken because I didn’t prep chicken ahead of time, it’s fantastic! New family fav!
Reading the reviews and I have never met another Lolly Jane! This is my nickname from my family. ❤️
Delicious! Great the way you have it above and an easy recipe to adjust to your own particular tastes. I have made it as it and then made it another time adding my favorite vegetable, broccoli. Like I said very versatile to add anything you want like zucchini, kale, spinach, peas and the veggie ideas are endless. ***** Enjoy and be creative!
I’ve never said this about a dish before, but it was too cheesy. It needs more chicken and less cheese. I’ll add garlic too if I make it again.
My husband loved this recipe! I will be making it again. I didn’t add as much cheese as it called for tho. But it was so delicious! Thankyou for the recipe 😊