Description
Slow cooker chicken caesar pasta brings together tender chicken and creamy sauce that comes together with minimal effort on your part. Pasta absorbs all those savory caesar flavors while you go about your day, making dinner ready when you need it.
Ingredients
Scale
Protein and base:
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 300 grams penne pasta
- 4 cups chicken broth
Seasonings and aromatics:
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- Salt to taste
Sauce and garnish:
- 1 cup Caesar dressing
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
- Set your 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 500g) into the slow cooker and season them with salt and 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper.
- Pour 1 cup of Caesar dressing over your chicken and scatter 3 minced garlic cloves across the top.
- Add 4 cups of chicken broth to your slow cooker, making sure the chicken stays completely covered by liquid.
- Cover your slow cooker and let it cook on low heat for 4 to 6 hours until your chicken becomes tender and easily pulls apart.
- Lift the chicken out of your slow cooker and use two forks to shred it into bite-sized pieces.
- Return your shredded chicken to the slow cooker and stir in 300g of penne pasta.
- Mix in 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese (about 100g) with the pasta and chicken.
- Cover and cook on high heat for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring your mixture every 10 minutes, until your pasta reaches al dente texture.
- Top your pasta with extra Parmesan cheese and 1/4 cup of fresh chopped parsley before serving to your table.
Notes
- Pound your chicken breasts to an even thickness before cooking so they cook uniformly and shred more easily when done.
- Stir the pasta a couple of times during that final cooking phase to prevent it from sticking together at the bottom of the slow cooker.
- If your slow cooker runs hot, check the pasta around 25 minutes instead of waiting the full 30-40 minutes, since pasta can turn mushy quickly in the moist environment.
- For a lighter version, swap regular Caesar dressing for a Greek yogurt-based version and reduce the Parmesan to keep the dish from becoming too heavy.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 4 hours 30 minutes-6 hours 40 minutes
- Category: Slow Cooked Chicken
- Method: Slow Cooking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4
- Calories: 633 kcal
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 980 mg
- Fat: 27 g
- Saturated Fat: 10 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 15 g
- Trans Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 53 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 49 g
- Cholesterol: 130 mg