This Buffalo Chicken Pasta Bake is a tasty and simple casserole that can be ready in just 30 minutes. Combining buffalo chicken dip and cheesy pasta in one pan creates a meal that everyone will devour in minutes.
This buffalo chicken calzone is another easy and quick buffalo chicken recipe that everyone enjoys, too.
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Buffalo Chicken Pasta
Our family loves anything with buffalo chicken in it. The kids always request this easy buffalo chicken dip for movie and game nights. So, I combined our favorite dip with a cheesy pasta bake for a quick and easy dinner.
Adding pasta noodles to cream cheese, hot sauce, and melted cheese makes this the best buffalo chicken casserole ever! The dish has all the flavors of buffalo chicken dip, but it's much heartier!
Keeping pasta, chicken, and cheese on hand at all times makes assembling a quick 30-minute meal easy. We always keep extra chicken in the freezer for chicken Alfredo gnocchi, cheesy chicken pasta, or buffalo chicken pasta.
Why This Recipe Works
This casserole is so easy to put together on busy nights. You can also prep it the night before and pop it in the oven when you get home from work.
The top layer of melted cheese will have everyone wanting to dive in as soon as the timer goes off. Give it a few minutes, add some toppings, and then go to town on the spicy chicken goodness!
Ingredients Needed
Enjoy all the flavors you love about buffalo chicken wings in a creamy, cheesy buffalo chicken casserole. This easy pasta bake recipe requires just a few simple ingredients.
- Chicken - You can use a rotisserie chicken, leftover chicken breasts, chopped grilled chicken, or canned chicken. We have used every kind of chicken in this buffalo chicken recipe, and it tastes amazing no matter what you use.
- Cream Cheese - Makes the pasta creamy and delicious.
- Shredded Cheese - A mixture of shredded mozzarella cheese and cheddar cheese bakes up nice and gooey.
- Hot Sauce - We love using Frank's Red Hot sauce to give the buffalo pasta a hot and spicy flavor. Feel free to reduce the amount or use a wing sauce instead to make it milder.
- Ranch Dressing or Blue Cheese Dressing - Either one will taste great. It all depends on which dressing you prefer with your buffalo chicken wings. Our family prefers ranch dressing, so we make buffalo ranch chicken.
- Pasta - For this easy casserole, use your favorite pasta noodles. We prefer penne noodles because they hold the sauce better. Bow-tie noodles would be awesome in this buffalo chicken pasta, too. Cook and drain the noodles before stirring them into the spicy mixture.
- Optional Toppings - Green onions and blue cheese crumbles are great toppings for buffalo pasta.
How to Make Buffalo Chicken Pasta
This easy buffalo chicken pasta recipe can be made in minutes. It is a great meal to have on the dinner table in under 30 minutes.
Be careful! This easy buffalo chicken casserole has a thick layer of gooey cheese on top. Everyone will be fighting for the first cheesy scoop!
- Stir the cream cheese, ranch, and hot sauce in a large bowl until smooth and creamy.
- Add the shredded cooked chicken, cooked noodles, and some of the mozzarella cheese, then stir gently.
- Spoon the buffalo chicken mixture into a greased baking dish and top with the rest of the shredded cheese.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until hot and the cheese on top melts and begins to brown.
- Drizzle the hot buffalo chicken casserole with ranch dressing and hot sauce, then top with green onions and blue cheese crumbles.
BRUCREW TIP: Make this a low-carb buffalo chicken recipe by substituting cooked cauliflower for the noodles. It's a healthy chicken recipe just like that.
Storage Recommendations
Leftovers can be kept in a tightly sealed container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat single servings in the microwave.
Tips and Tricks
- Drizzle the cooked pasta noodles with olive oil to keep them from drying out and sticking together.
- Are you looking for buffalo pasta with a milder, buttery flavor? Use buffalo sauce instead of Frank's hot sauce.
- Shred block cheese instead of buying bags of pre-shredded cheese. Bagged cheese has a powder added to it to keep it from sticking and clumping together. Freshly shredded cheese tastes better and melts creamier.
- Blue cheese has a stronger flavor that some people do not enjoy. For those who love that flavor, serve blue cheese dressing and crumbles on the side.
Make it a Full Meal
This buffalo chicken casserole is a complete meal on its own. However, having extra sides and desserts always makes dinner better. Here are a few recipes we love with it.
FAQs
The pasta casserole can be made up to one day ahead of time. Mix everything together, then cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate it.
Remove the casserole dish from the fridge 30 minutes before baking. Bake until hot and bubbly.
You sure can. Substitute cooked cauliflower for the pasta noodles and enjoy.
It can. Use a crock pot to cook raw chicken breasts instead of using cooked chicken.
Add the chicken breasts and hot sauce to the hot sauce. Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours. Shredded the chicken in the juices.
Stir in the cream cheese, ranch dressing, and cheese, then let it cook for 15 minutes.
Add the cooked pasta and top with more cheese right before serving.
More Buffalo Chicken Recipes
- Buffalo Chicken Nachos
- Buffalo Chicken Totchos
- Buffalo Chicken Wrap
- Buffalo Wing Chips
- Buffalo Chicken Slider
- Buffalo Chicken Cauliflower Pizza
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Recipe
Buffalo Chicken Pasta Bake
Combining buffalo chicken, cheese, and pasta in one casserole creates a meal that everyone will love. This Buffalo Chicken Pasta Bake is delicious and can be on the table in 30 minutes.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (8 ounces) uncooked, penne pasta (or substitute cooked cauliflower)
- 1 - 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
- ¾ cup ranch dressing
- ⅓ cup hot sauce
- 2 cups shredded, cooked chicken (or 1 - 12.5 ounce can chunk chicken breast)
- 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
- green onions, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray an 8-inch casserole dish with nonstick spray.
- Cook the pasta noodles, according to the package directions. Drain and drizzle with a little bit of olive oil to keep them from sticking.
- Stir together the cream cheese, ranch, and hot sauce until creamy.
- Add the chicken, ½ cup mozzarella cheese, and cooked pasta noodles to the cream cheese mixture and stir to combine. Spoon into the prepared dish.
- Combine the remaining two cheeses and sprinkle over the top of the pasta. Bake for 20 minutes, or until cheese on top is melted.
- Remove and serve immediately with green onions, hot sauce, and ranch drizzles. Serves 6.
Notes
- If you are using canned chicken, drain and break it apart with a fork before using.
- To keep the cooked pasta noodles from drying out and sticking together, drizzle them with olive oil.
- Are you looking for buffalo chicken pasta that has a milder, buttery flavor? Use buffalo sauce instead of Frank's hot sauce.
- Shred block cheese instead of buying bags of pre-shredded cheese. Bagged cheese has a powder added to it to keep it from sticking and clumping together. Freshly shredded cheese tastes better and melts creamier.
- Blue cheese has a stronger flavor that some people do not enjoy. Serve blue cheese dressing and blue cheese crumbles on the side as an option for anyone who loves that flavor.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 416Total Fat: 29gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 78mgSodium: 858mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 1gSugar: 3gProtein: 21g
Nutrition facts are an estimate and are not guaranteed to be accurate. If you need special diet advice, please see a registered dietician.
*This post was first published in October 2016. The post has been updated and republished in July 2021.
Kat
This looks super creamy and full of flavor ?
denise prosek
This recipe is a go-to now in my house. My husband and son love it--it's the most requested dinner of all-time! Thank you so much for sharing! P.S. Just because they love the spiciness, we do 3/4 cup ranch and 3/4 hot sauce.
Lori
My kids LOVE this easy pasta dish! Great for weeknight dinner, too.
Susan Dubose
My kids LOVE this easy pasta dish! Great for weeknight dinner, too.
Nicole
Made this last night with cauliflower instead of pasta. So good!! This will definitely be something I make again and again!
Carrie Galvin
This recipe sounds wonderful. My only problem is no one in my house like hot sauce. Is there any other sauce I can substitute for the hot sauce, maybe some type of BBQ sauce or something?
Jocelyn
Well, to be honest I have never made this with any other sauce, so I don't know how it would taste or be. I think BBQ sounds good, so if you try it that way, let me know how it turns out.
Laura
Wow! I am putting this on the list for cold night comfort food. It's a Southern thing y'all. ^-^ Yummy!
Callie
This was such an easy recipe and it turned out perfectly! Thank you!
Raquel
What is your favorite hot sauce to use? I’m making this tonight for my boyfriend 🙂
Jocelyn
We love Frank's red hot sauce in this particular recipe. I hope you both enjoy the pasta.
Amarie
I made this last night and it was perfect. I think I just have to go with the actual recipe...I'll be making this again! Oh and I used Light House ranch and Melindas ghost pepper buffalo sauce! I put bleu cheese crumbles on and a drizzle of sauce afterwards its was yummy!
Jena
Hello!! I have a request and some praise: I love the creative content of your site, but navigating it from my phone is making me crazy. The advertisements and the endless scrolling to find the actual recipe is endless. I hope to be on here in the future, so please take this as constructive. My son's favorite thing in the world right now is this Buffalo Chicken pasta. I make it like a lasagna, using gluten free lasagna noodles. I boil a whole chicken and use the broth to make the consistency more ooey-gooey lasagna-ish. But he LOVES it. So thank you!
Leslie
This recipe is easy and delicious!
Susan Dubose
Thank you so much for giving me a dinner that my whole family loved! It has such a burst of flavor and perfect for changing up our normal pasta routine.
Pearl
My daughter and I discovered pasta and Frank's Red Hot Sauce mixed with melted butter in the 1990's as a side when I made buffalo wings (also with Frank's) and it's been such a favorite- then recently looked for Buffalo chicken casserole thinking that would be awesome- and this is a great recipe! I use a little less cheese so the Frank's shines through more- this is a tasty tasty recipe!
Jocelyn
I am so glad you found this recipe and are enjoying it. It's one of our favorites!!!
Nancy Stout
This sounds like a great addition to our July 4th cookout! I always like to put out some casseroles to round things out.
Jamie
LOWER CARB VERSION
Instead of pasta, I used two 12oz bags of frozen riced cauliflower, in a 9x13 pan. One bag would probably be enough for a smaller pan, but hubby and I are rather 'hearty' eaters (so I'm learning to sub for pasta, rice, etc). Mine came out a bit over an inch thick, and we'll have six servings. Don't forget to heat up the cauliflower first to cook off some moisture, or your dish may end up soupy.
I also added two eggs to help bind the cauliflower; this worked well.
I did use a little more cheese -- 2c of mozzarella in the casserole, and about a cup of
cheddar on top. My two chicken breasts came out closer to 3c, which was a good quantity for the larger pan.
I didn't increase the 'sauce' ingredients, and it's sufficiently moist. We aren't fans of super spicy, and the 1/3 c of hot sauce (Aldi brand) was enough for good flavor without mouth-burning heat.
Served tonight with roasted fresh baby asparagus 🙂
Jocelyn
Woo hoo! It sounds like you hit it out of the park! Awesome job with the healthier substitutions!
Carla
Love this recipe, I added chopped up broccoli to the mix, as well as added some to the top and then sprinkled the cheese over it. Deliciousness <3
Kristy
Do you have to use hot sauce?
Jocelyn
If you don't use it, it isn't going to be a buffalo chicken dish...
Maria
Sounds good! Can I use blue cheese instead of tanch dressing both in and on casserole?
Thank you.
Jocelyn
You sure can! We prefer ranch, so that's what I always use, but lots of others have used blue cheese instead. I hope you enjoy the pasta dish!
Becca
Any idea of the nutrition facts for this recipe? Specifically calorie count?
Jocelyn
I'm so sorry about that. I just went into the recipe card and activated the nutrition facts. Although, for what it's worth, I don't recommend looking at the calories of any cheesy gooey pasta. LOL!
Becca
That’s not too bad!!! It’s actually less than I was expecting! Lol thanks!!! Ps. We absolutely LOVE this meal.