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Crock Pot Olive Garden Chicken Pasta is an easy slow cooker chicken recipe with penne pasta cream cheese, Olive Garden dressing and Parmesan cheese. The whole family will love this easy meal — perfect for busy weeknights!

serving spoon with crock pot olive garden chicken pasta in creamy sauce in slow cooker.

Slow Cooker Olive Garden Chicken Pasta

If you’re looking for easy slow cooker recipes, this Olive Garden crockpot chicken recipe is for you. Not only is this creamy pasta dish incredibly easy, but it’s also incredibly delicious.

The entire family loved this easy meal. Some went back for seconds. One went back for thirds. It is actually that good!

Tender chicken and pasta in a creamy cheesy sauce — what could be better than this?!

Check out more easy crock pot recipes to make for dinner tonight!

boneless chicken, penne pasta, garlic powder, cream cheese, olive garden salad dressing and Parmesan cheese.

Crockpot Chicken Pasta Ingredients

There are just a few simple ingredients in this slow cooker Olive Garden chicken pasta recipe. You can find them in most grocery stores. Exact amounts are in printable recipe card below.

  • Boneless skinless chicken breasts — You can sub chicken tenders or chicken thighs if you prefer dark meat.
  • Olive Garden salad dressing — You’ll need a small bottle of this creamy dressing. Regular Italian dressing won’t work.
  • Pasta — Penne pasta is my favorite pasta for this easy recipe, but you can sub ziti, rotini or cellentani noodles, instead.
  • Cream cheese — 1 block of cream cheese, softened at room temperature
  • Parmesan cheese — I love to shred my own Parm, but you can buy pre-shredded cheese.
  • Garlic powder — optional, but adds extra garlicky flavor
  • Half and half — optional, but you can add a little cream, or milk or heavy cream or chicken broth if you want a little more sauce.

How to Make Crockpot Olive Garden Chicken Pasta

First, spray the bottom of the slow cooker with non stick cooking spray. Then, place chicken on the bottom of the crock pot.

Sprinkle the garlic powder over the chicken pieces.

Then, pour the whole bottle of Italian dressing on top of the chicken, and cover with the lid.

pour bottle of salad dressing on top of chicken in crock pot.

Cooking Time

Cook chicken for 2-3 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low. Chicken is done when the internal temperature is 165 degrees f according to a meat thermometer.

Total cook time may vary with different slow cookers.

When chicken is done, cook penne pasta according to package directions. You can do this on the stove, or make pasta in the Instant Pot.

Shred chicken with 2 forks. Then, add the cooked chicken and cooked pasta back to the slow cooker.

mix shredded chicken and cooked penne pasta in slow cooker.

Cut the cream cheese into large cubes, and add to the chicken mixture.

Then, sprinkle 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan on top of the pasta, and mix well.

If you think the pasta mixture is a little dry, stir in 1/2 cup to 1 cup half and half.

cream cheese and Parmesan cheese with chicken and pasta in crockpot.

Cover and cook on low for an additional 30 minutes or until cream cheese is melted and creamy.

You can sprinkle on more Parmesan cheese before serving.

olive garden crockpot chicken pasta with parsley in slow cooker.

What to Serve with Olive Garden Pasta

We love to serve this creamy chicken pasta with a simple salad topped with Olive Garden dressing. All you need are bread sticks or homemade garlic bread to round out this delicious dinner.

If you don’t want salad, try microwave broccoli or peas.

How to Store and Reheat leftovers

Refrigerate leftover chicken and pasta in an airtight container for up to 4 days. You can reheat larger portions in the oven or individual portions in the microwave.

This delicious pasta dish freezes well for up to 3 months.

plate of olive garden chicken pasta with bread sticks and salad.

Recipe Tips

Other versions of this crock pot Olive garden chicken pasta have you cook the cream cheese along with the chicken. I prefer adding the cheese later, but you can do what works for you.

There are 2 sizes of Olive Garden dressing. If you buy the larger bottle, only use 2 cups dressing. Otherwise, the tangy dressing may overpower the pasta.

There is not a ton of the creamy sauce. That’s why I recommend adding additional liquid if you like more sauce.

Be sure to use a large slow cooker (6-7 quart slow cooker works well) for this crockpot pasta as it makes a lot!

5 from 18 votes

Crock Pot Olive Garden Chicken Pasta

By: Dee
Crock Pot Olive Garden Chicken Pasta is an easy slow cooker chicken recipe with penne pasta cream cheese, Olive Garden dressing and Parmesan cheese. The whole family will love this easy meal — perfect for busy weeknights!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours 40 minutes
Servings: 12

Equipment

Ingredients  

  • 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
  • 16 oz Olive Garden salad dressing
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 16 oz penne pasta
  • 8 oz cream cheese softened and cut into cubes
  • ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese divided
  • ½ cup half and half optional
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Instructions 

  • Spray the bottom of the slow cooker with non stick spray
  • Place chicken into the crock pot and sprinkle garlic powder over chicken
  • Pour the entire bottle of dressing over the chicken, and cover
  • Cook for 2-3 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low or until chicken is 165℉ internally
  • Cook pasta according to directions on package, and drain
  • Shred chicken with 2 forks
  • Mix shredded chicken, cooked pasta, cubed cream cheese and 1/4 cup Parm together in the slow cooker. Add half and half
  • Cover and cook for an additional 30 minutes on low or until cream cheese is melted and pasta is heated through. Top with more Parmesan before serving

Notes

Cook time may vary with different slow cookers.
You can add cream cheese along with chicken and cook together if cooking on low. You may not need the half and half if you prefer dryer pasta.
Make sure to use the small bottle of Olive Garden dressing. If you only have a large bottle, use 2 cups of dressing and not the whole bottle.
You can sub another bottle of creamy Italian dressing, but it may not taste the same. Do not use regular Italian dressing as it will be too tangy.

Nutrition

Calories: 415kcal, Carbohydrates: 35g, Protein: 24g, Fat: 19g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 5g, Trans Fat: 0.03g, Cholesterol: 75mg, Sodium: 604mg, Potassium: 445mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 362IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 83mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Main
Cuisine: American
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Recipe Rating




5 Comments

  1. Tenny says:

    I absolutely love how this tastes, so much better than Olive Garden! Definitely making again5 stars

  2. Kelly says:

    Made this for guests last night! What a hit! Better than going to the restaurant! Skip the salad and breadsticks have another helping! Going to make this often!5 stars

  3. Angela says:

    Made this for dinner tonight and boy was it good! Thereโ€™s hardly any leftovers because everyone went back for secondsโ€ฆand some for thirds!5 stars

  4. Brandi says:

    Wow! This is 10 times better than Olive Garden! The only thing that would make it better is unlimited soup salad and breadsticks magically appearing after making this dish ๐Ÿ˜‚5 stars

    1. Dee says:

      So glad you like it! Thanks for the wonderful review!