Olive Garden Dressing Chicken Pasta Recipe

Name: Olive Garden Dressing Chicken Pasta Recipe
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 240 min
Total time: 245 min
Ingredients: 1.5-2 lbs chicken breast; 1 bottle Olive Garden Italian Dressing (or my recipe!); 1 block cream cheese; 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan or Romano cheese; 1 lb pasta (reco: penne or spiral ); 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan or Romano cheese

This recipe for Olive Garden Dressing Chicken with cream cheese has taken over the internet – with good reason! This recipe is the best of all worlds: it’s super easy, it goes in your slow cooker, it’s creamy and comforting and – best of all – it involves Olive Garden!

This is perfect for a set it and forget it type of day – the chicken and dressing cook in your slow cooker while you get things done! When it’s dinner time – cook your pasta and add to it and it’s ready to serve.

What’s in Olive Garden Dressing Chicken Pasta?

1.5-2 lbs of chicken breast – I used 3 chicken breasts – the nice thing with this is you don’t have to worry at all about dry chicken!
1 bottle of Olive Garden Italian Dressing – or MAKE YOUR OWN (it’s super easy!)
1 block of cream cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan or Romano cheese – I always use fresh! It’s so much more flavorful than the pre-shredded!! Trust me on this!
1 lb. pasta of your choice – the viral video used Penne but I used a curly pasta because that’s what was in my pantry (I got this huge gift box of pasta products and it’s been so handy! I even sent one to my mom I loved it so much!)

How to make Olive Garden Chicken Pasta in the Crockpot

Start by placing your chicken (frozen or thawed) into the slow cooker
Pour in your bottle of Olive Garden dressing (or my whole recipe)
Top with a block of cream cheese and 1/4 cup of shredded Parmesan
Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours
Cook pasta of your choice
While pasta is boiling, remove slow cooker lid and shred chicken breasts – stir to mix
Drain pasta and add to slow cooker with other 1/4 cup of shredded Parmesan
Serve!

FAQs

Do I need to use cream cheese?

I would stick with cream cheese – if you want an alternative you could use 1/2 cup heavy cream and 1/2 cup sour cream.

Can I serve with something other than pasta?

Of course! This would be great over rice, cauliflower rice or mash or just served with an Olive Garden salad (and more dressing!)

Does this taste like chicken alfredo?

No – not really. The cream cheese and Italian Dressing bring out totally different flavors than alfredo. There’s also no butter or cream and just a bit of cheese. The Italian dressing is much zingier!

How do you shred chicken in slow cooker?

I have a pretty small slow cooker – so I take each piece of chicken out and put it in a bowl and shred with two forks. You can also do it in the pot – but be careful to not burn yourself. I’ve also seen handy tricks of using a hand mixer – but that seems like overkill!

Can you make Olive Garden chicken pasta on the stove top?

Yes! For the stove top – I would poach your chicken breasts in water for 20 min or use a cooked rotisserie chicken and shred. Then, in a saucepan, mix together the Italian Dressing, cream cheese and 1/4 cup shredded Parm. Add your shredded chicken and heat through. Then add your cooked pasta and remaining 1/4 cup cheese.

Can you make Olive Garden chicken pasta in the oven?

For the oven, you can use the raw chicken and place it in a baking dish with cream cheese, dressing and cheese – just like the slow cooker directions. After cooking for 30-40 minutes at 350 – remove baking dish from the oven and shred the chicken. Stir in cooked pasta and remaining cheese and serve!

Can you freeze Olive Garden chicken pasta?

Yes! I’m a single (right now) and there’s no way I could finish that whole crock pot alone so I parsed it out into glass containers and popped in the freezer!

What should I serve with Olive Garden dressing chicken pasta?