Chicken Parmesan Casserole
This chicken parmesan casserole is a classic comfort food recipe that has been turned into an 5 ingredient weeknight dinner recipe that is perfect for families.
I like to keep things simple, and this chicken parm casserole takes just 5 simple ingredients to make! Tender breaded chicken breasts cut up into bite-sized pieces, a good sauce, and lots of cheese, tossed together with pasta and baked into a delicious casserole that will have you coming back for seconds.
It’s great for busy weeknights because you can prep everything ahead of time. That way when it’s time for dinner you just pop it in the oven for 30 minutes before serving.
If this dish is a hit with your family, check out some of our other chicken parmesan inspired dishes like chicken parmesan sliders, chicken parm roasted spaghetti squash, and mini chicken parmesan lasagna rolls.
Love chicken parm but also staying keto? We have you covered. Try our keto chicken parmesan roll ups.
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Ingredients You’ll Need
- Breaded chicken strips – You can sub with grilled chicken strips if you prefer. Just make sure whatever chicken you use it is fully cooked.
- Penne Pasta – This pasta holds up the best in casseroles, but feel free to sub with any tube-shaped pasta.
- Cheese – Shredded and fresh mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese
- Pasta sauce – Your favorite store-bought brand or homemade marinara sauce .
Instructions
Step 1 – Preheat. Preheat oven to 375°F.
Step 2 – Prepare chicken. Cut cooked chicken into bite-sized pieces.
Step 3 – Boil pasta. Add penne pasta to a pot of salted boiling water. Cook for about 9 minutes until just short of al dente then drain.
Step 4 -Combine ingredients. In a large bowl combine chicken, penne pasta, 16 ounces mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, and sauce (reserve about a cup of the sauce and set to side). Toss until ingredients are coated.
Step 5 – Add mixture to pan. Pour mixture into a greased 9×13-inch casserole dish. Add the remaining cup of sauce to the top of the casserole, then sprinkle the top with the remaining 4 ounces of mozzarella.
Step 6 – Bake. Place your baking dish in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when the cheese is fully melted and the dish is heated all the way through.
Step 7 – Serve. Remove from the oven and serve with a few slices of Texas toast garlic bread or some cheese twists.
Can You Make Chicken Parmesan with Chicken Tenders?
Yes. We use prepared chicken tenders for this recipe, but you can also use chicken nuggets or skinless chicken breasts (you’ll need to cut them up).
Whatever chicken you use, even frozen chicken tenders, should be fully cooked before adding them to the casserole.
Can You Freeze Chicken Parmesan Casserole?
This pasta casserole is perfect for making ahead and freezing for later. Follow the recipe as written and bake it. Once the casserole has finished baking let it cool completely then remove it from the casserole dish and place on foil to wrap it up or place it in a freezer safe plastic airtight container.
Before you use the casserole let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
When you are ready to bake the casserole unwrap it and place it back in the casserole dish. Cover the dish with foil and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 30 to 45 minutes until the casserole is heated through.
To make this process easier, I highly recommend baking the casserole in a disposable aluminum pan. This way you can wrap the whole thing up to store in the freezer and then reheat the casserole right in the pan when you are ready to eat.
What Goes with Chicken Parmesan?
Simple sides to pair with your chicken parmesan casserole include our delicious Texas toast garlic bread or cheese twists, and a side salad. We like panzanella salad, cucumber and tomato salad, or a simple caser salad.
Looking for more chicken casseroles?
- Low carb chicken cordon bleu casserole
- Keto chicken bacon ranch casserole
- Keto chicken and broccoli alfredo casserole
- King Ranch Chicken Casserole
- Chicken Tortilla Casserole
- Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- Keto Chicken Alfredo Casserole
- Chicken Alfredo Lasagna Roll Ups
- More Casserole Recipes…
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Chicken Parmesan Casserole
Ingredients
- 16 ounces Breaded chicken strips, fully cooked
- 16 ounces Penne Pasta
- 20 ounces Shredded mozzarella cheese
- 4 ounces Parmesan cheese
- 32 ounces Pasta sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Cut up cooked chicken into bite-sized pieces. (See note 1)
- Add penne pasta to boiling water and cook for about 9 minutes, until just short of al dente.
- Drain pasta.
- In a large bowl combine chicken, penne pasta, 16 ounces of mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, and sauce (reserve about a cup of the sauce and set to side). Toss until ingredients are coated.
- Pour mixture into a greased 9×13 inch casserole dish.
- Add remaining cup of sauce to the top of the casserole and then sprinkle with remaining 4 ounces of mozzarella cheese.
- Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes. You'll know it is done when the cheese on top is fully melted and the dish is heated through.
- Remove from the oven and serve.
Notes
- The chicken can be frozen chicken (fully cooked), rotisserie chicken (shredded), or chicken breast (fully cooked). It is up to you!
Nutrition
If u use frozen breaded chicken strips and are assembling day prior would u just thaw them out? Not bake them separately?
If you are making this ahead of time you should still use fully cooked chicken strips. I also suggest not adding the sauce until your ready to bake so the bed doesn’t get soggy overnight
Oops sorry! I read that as our chicken parmesan sliders! You can fully assemble ahead of time. Still use the cooked chicken strips though. Thawing them ahead of time without cooking them can give you soggy breading on the chicken.