If you’ve ever walked in the door after a long day and just wanted dinner to magically appear, then boy, do I have the recipe for you! This **Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner** is the definition of stress-free cooking. Honestly, I adore how these kinds of slow cook recipes just quietly get everything done while the kitchen still smells incredible. You basically just toss everything in the big pot, set the timer, and walk away. It’s such a filling, comforting meal that tastes like you spent hours fussing over it, but really, that crockery did all the heavy lifting.
Why This Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner is a Weeknight Hero
This recipe isn’t just about food; it’s about winning back your evening. If you are looking for true, honest-to-goodness lazy dinners, this is where you find it. We’re talking about minimal dishes to clean up afterward, which, let’s be honest, is half the battle!
What makes this one of the best crockpot dishes, in my opinion, is the balance of effort versus reward:
- It’s a total dump and go crockpot dinner—no sautéing required upfront!
- The long, slow cook time means the chicken breaks down perfectly, making the sauce incredibly rich.
- You get that amazing, comforting fall dinner recipes vibe, even if it’s only Tuesday.
If you need more easy, hands-off meals on your rotation, you absolutely have to check out other dump and go crockpot dinners we’ve perfected!
Gathering Ingredients for Your Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner
Okay, listen up. This recipe shines because we don’t skimp on the foundation, even though it’s ridiculously easy. Getting these items prepped is what makes this one of the best crockpot recipes for dinner, period. You need to have your measurements right, especially when it comes to flavor bombs like garlic and seasoning. I always tell people that precision matters when you’re using a slow cooker, even if the *cooking* part is lazy!
Gather everything before you start. You won’t regret having your cutting board clean before the wonderful smells start filling your house.
Main Slow Cooker Components
These are the things that marry together beautifully over those long serving hours:
- You need 600 grams of chicken breasts. Keep them whole for now; they shred like a dream later!
- Grab 500 ml of your favorite marinara sauce. Don’t worry about fancy stuff here; a good quality jar sauce is perfect.
- We need 240 ml of chicken broth. This liquid is crucial for keeping everything silky, not dried out.
- Two cloves of garlic, minced finely. Don’t cheat on the garlic, trust me!
- One teaspoon of Italian seasoning. This brings that classic, savory depth that makes it feel homemade.
Ingredients for Serving the Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner
The rest of the ingredients are added right at the very end, which is key so nothing gets gummy. You cook these components separately from the main pot, remember!
- 300 grams of pasta. Remember, you’ll cook this according to the package directions—we don’t want soft noodles swimming in the slow cooker for six hours!
- About 100 grams of grated Parmesan cheese to finish it off. This adds that salty, nutty kick right before serving.
If you’re curious about the different types of salt you could use to enhance the overall flavor profile, I wrote a little something about salt choices that actually make a difference.
Step-by-Step Instructions for the Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner
This is where the magic really happens without you lifting a finger! The beauty of these slow cook recipes is that you can handle the prep in about ten minutes while your coffee is brewing. Remember, for the best outcome, we are keeping the pasta out of the pot for most of the cooking time. This prevents it from turning into a gloopy mess, giving us a much better final texture for our finished crockpot dishes.
Combining and Cooking in the Crockpot Dishes
First things first, grab your slow cooker. You’re going to simply layer everything in there—this is that easy dump and go method we love! Layer in your 600 grams of chicken breasts right on the bottom. Next, pour over that 500 ml of marinara sauce and the 240 ml of chicken broth. Sprinkle in your minced garlic and that single teaspoon of Italian seasoning right on top.
Now, you need to set the timer. For this amount of chicken and sauce, you absolutely must cook it on the LOW setting for a full 6 hours. Resist the urge to check it every hour! That 6-hour period on LOW is what tenderizes the chicken so perfectly for shredding later on.
Shredding and Finishing the Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner
Once that timer dings, carefully remove the chicken breasts. Pop them onto a cutting board—they should be so tender they practically fall apart—and use two forks to shred them up, nice and easy. Once shredded, put all that lovely chicken back into the sauce inside the slow cooker and give it a gentle stir.
While that’s happening, get your 300 grams of pasta cooking on the stove according to its package directions. This is so important! Once the pasta is al dente, drain it really well. You don’t want excess water thinning out your sauce! Quickly stir the drained pasta into the chicken mixture in the crockpot so it absorbs all that delicious sauce. If you want to see some other great stovetop pasta techniques, check out my guide on rules for cooking pasta.
Finally, serve it up immediately, topping each bowl generously with that grated Parmesan. If you’re looking for more ideas similar to this, you might want to look at inspiration from places like this chicken alfredo recipe for variation!
Expert Tips for the Perfect Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner
Even though this is one of the easiest dump and go crockpot dinners out there, a few little secrets will take it from good to absolutely amazing. The number one thing people mess up in slow cook recipes? Timing the pasta! If you toss the dry pasta in with the sauce at the beginning, you end up with mushy sadness. Trust me, cooking it separately is non-negotiable for perfectly textured crockpot dishes.
Another pro move for deep flavor, especially if you decide to try using ground beef recipes for dinner instead of chicken? You need to bloom your seasoning! Before you add the Italian seasoning to the liquid, you can gently warm it in a little dry skillet for about thirty seconds until you can really smell it. It wakes up the flavor instantly.
If you’re swapping out that chicken for ground beef, you’ll want to quickly brown that beef first, not because of safety, but because you need to drain off the excess fat before it goes into the slow cooker. If you want ideas on how to make that ground beef sing, check out my tips on what to add to ground beef!
Ingredient Substitutions for Your Slow Cook Recipes
One of the best parts about these super easy crockpot dishes is how adaptable they are! Life happens, and sometimes you don’t have exactly what’s on the list. That’s totally fine. This recipe is super forgiving, which is why it’s one of my go-to healthy crockpot meals.
If marinara isn’t grabbing you today, try swapping it out for an equal amount of Alfredo sauce—that flips this into a creamy creation instantly!
And remember that ground beef idea I mentioned? If you want to try ground beef recipes for dinner instead of chicken, just make sure you brown and drain the meat before it goes into the slow cooker. It just prevents the finished sauce from being too greasy, which is important for these healthy dinner recipes.
For a total flavor journey, you could also try using a creamy ranch seasoning packet with chicken broth instead of marinara when you are looking for fun fall crockpot recipes. If you want to see a great example of that flavor profile done well, check out this ranch chicken pasta recipe for inspiration!
If you’re looking to keep things vegetarian, you can definitely skip the chicken and double up on vegetables—think mushrooms, zucchini, or even canned white beans for protein. Pair that with a robust roasted tomato vegetable sauce, and you’ve got a winner! For more creative crockpot recipes, I highly recommend checking out my recipe for stuffed pepper soup.
Making This Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner Meal Prep Friendly
I absolutely love making a huge batch of this Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner because leftovers are glorious, especially on those days when you don’t want to even think about cooking. The key to making this a great meal prep idea, though, is simple—you have to separate your wet and dry components.
If you mixed the cooked pasta into the sauce right away, it tends to soak up all the liquid overnight and gets a little too soft by day three. So, here’s my trick: store the saucy, shredded chicken mixture by itself in airtight containers.
When you’re ready for a serving, just cook a fresh, small batch of pasta. Mix the pre-made chicken sauce right into the freshly cooked noodles, maybe add a splash of water or broth to loosen it back up if needed. It tastes like it was just made! If you need more inspiration for getting ahead of the game during the week, you should read up on my tips for making meal prep snack boxes; a little planning goes a long way!
Equipment Needed for Dump And Go Crockpot Dinners
I really preach simplicity here, and that’s why I love being able to call this a true set-it-and-forget-it recipe. When you’re looking for easy crockpot dishes, the equipment list should be short and sweet, right? You don’t need a dozen fancy gadgets for this Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner to turn out spectacularly.
The main tool, obviously, is your trusty slow cooker. We used a standard 6-quart model when testing this recipe, but honestly, any size works! If you use a smaller one, you might need to slightly reduce the liquid or just accept that it will be super full. If you have a bigger one, it just means more leftovers—which is never a problem in my book!
You also need
- Two forks for shredding the chicken—make sure they are sturdy!
- One large pot for cooking your pasta separately.
- A strainer or colander to drain the pasta well before you add it at the end.
That’s really it for the core setup! See how simple that is? It’s designed to keep your kitchen clean and your stress levels low. If you’re looking for more inspiration on appliances that make easy cooking even easier, you can browse our roundup of other great crockpot and instant pot dinner recipes.
Frequently Asked Questions About Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner
It’s funny how many questions pop up when you’re making something supposedly simple! People always want to make sure their favorite slow cooker dishes turn out just right. I’ve gathered the most common ones I get about this recipe. Hopefully, these help you feel super confident before you hit that ‘low’ button!
Can I make this a healthier Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner?
Absolutely, you sure can twist this into one of those healthy dinner recipes you feel good about eating! Since we are cooking the pasta separately, you have total control there. Swap out the standard white pasta for whole wheat pasta, or even chickpea pasta if you want a protein boost. For the liquids, try using low-sodium chicken broth, and be sure to use a lower-sugar or fire-roasted marinara sauce.
What is the best pasta to use in Crockpot Dishes?
Because you stir the pasta in right at the very end when the sauce is hot but not actively cooking, most dried pasta works fine! However, I swear by penne, rigatoni, or rotini. These sturdy shapes stand up to a good stir and hold onto that rich sauce really well, making them perfect for these types of crockpot recipes for dinner. Avoid delicate noodles like angel hair unless you are adding them right before serving only.
Can I cook the pasta directly in the slow cooker for this Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner?
Oh, I know why you ask this—it seems like the ultimate lazy dinner dream to just dump everything in one pot! But please, resist that urge! If you cook dry pasta directly in the sauce for 6 hours, it soaks up all the liquid, swells up way too much, and turns into a thick, gummy paste by the time the chicken is done shredding. It’s one of the key pointers I learned early on. For this specific Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner, it’s worth the extra ten minutes on the stovetop to boil the pasta separately so you get that wonderful, saucy texture we are aiming for in these crockpot dishes!
If you’re looking for recipes where you *can* cook the pasta right in the slow cooker, you need to look for ones specifically designed that way, often with a lot more liquid! If you want to stick with chicken but try a different format, you should look at my recipe for chicken pot pie—it’s a comforting alternative!
Storage and Reheating Instructions for Leftover Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner
Don’t you just love knowing you have dinner sorted for tomorrow? This Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner keeps really well! For the best results, I always suggest storing the saucy chicken mixture separate from any leftover pasta you might have. If you combined it all, the noodles soak up everything and get a little sad looking.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days. When warming it up, I prefer the stovetop—just reheat the sauce and chicken gently, then stir in a small splash of water or broth to loosen it up before adding your portion of pasta. Seriously, it tastes almost as good as the first night! If you love comforting leftovers like this, you should check out my recipe for creamy chicken noodle soup.
Share Your Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner Experience
Now that you’ve created your very own amazing batch of Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner, I desperately want to know what you thought! Honestly, these comfort meals are so much better when shared. Did you try adding spinach at the end? Maybe you sneaked in some extra mushrooms? Don’t be shy about your tweaks!
Please take a moment to leave me a star rating right here on the page. Those little stars help other busy folks find this easy recipe when they need some real dinner salvation. If you made any specific modifications that you think other readers would love, drop those in the comments below too. I read every single one!
And if you managed to snap a photo of your delicious spread—maybe with a side salad or melting cheese on top—please share it! Tag us socially or send images through the contact page. I love seeing my recipes come to life in your kitchens!
Happy cooking, everyone!
By Clara Bennett, Lead Plate Designer at Recipes by Betty.
Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta Dinner
Equipment
- slow cooker
Ingredients
- 600 g Chicken breasts
- 500 ml Marinara sauce
- 240 ml Chicken broth
- 2 Garlic, minced
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
For finishing
- 300 g Pasta Cooked separately
- 100 g Grated Parmesan
Instructions
- Place the chicken breasts, marinara sauce, chicken broth, minced garlic, and Italian seasoning into the slow cooker.
- Cook on LOW setting for 6 hours.
- Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and shred it using two forks. Return the shredded chicken to the sauce in the slow cooker.
- Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain the pasta and stir it into the chicken mixture in the crockpot.
- Serve immediately, sprinkling the top with grated Parmesan cheese.