Chicken spaghetti is a delicious comfort meal, but cooking it in the Instant Pot is a great way to bring comfort to a new level with this simple 1 pot recipe!
This cheesy chicken spaghetti recipe doesn't take much time to come together and is perfect for when you want something quick and easy for dinner.
This rotel chicken spaghetti recipe has so many great things to love about it! The noodles come out perfectly cooked and the sauce is so creamy and cheesy.
Why This Recipe Works
- Pretty basic ingredients. This recipe can use up leftover shredded chicken, and a few basic ingredients to make a flavorful dish the whole family can love.
- Even the leftovers taste great! The leftovers are still incredible (and NOT dry) the following day when you reheat them for lunch.
- You may not WANT to share. I swear that if given the chance, I probably could have eaten most of this batch to myself, but unfortunately, I have to share with the hubby and kids, haha.
🥘 Ingredients
Butter- You'll need butter to cook down the onions with. This will help to give us a great flavor too!
Onion- Cooked onions help to add a nice flavor to any recipe.
Garlic- Adding aroma and flavor.
Chicken broth- This is the liquid that will help us to pressure cook our food, and because it's broth and not water, it will give us a lot more flavor too.
Spaghetti noodles- You will want to use spaghetti noodles for this recipe. I have not tested other noodle sizes/shapes.
Rotel- I love the heat and flavor of the Rotel in this recipe, and you can easily adjust it to taste by simply picking up a can of Hot, Mild, or Medium flavored Rotel.
Shredded Chicken- Have some rotisserie chicken or cooked chicken leftover from the night before? This recipe can be a great way to repurpose leftovers.
Seasonings- To keep things simple, you'll want some basic seasonings like salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder.
Cream of chicken- Use a can of cream of condensed soup as a thickener for this recipe and for added flavor.
Cream cheese- Adding in cream cheese will make this dish feel a lot richer and more indulgent.
Cheddar cheese- Add in some cheddar cheese for added flavor and goodness.
Sour cream- By adding sour cream, we can make the sauce richer and creamier.
For the exact amounts needed, please see the recipe card below.
🍽 Equipment Needed
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🔪 Instructions
Check out how to make Instant Pot chicken spaghetti with these simple step-by-step instructions:
Set Instant Pot to Saute and Set the timer for 5 minutes.
In the pot, saute the butter and onion until soft (about 3 minutes).
Add in the minced garlic and then press the Cancel button. Stir to incorporate the garlic.
Pour in the chicken broth.
Break the noodles in half so that they can fit inside the Instant Pot. Place them inside the pot, in a scattered manner. The more directions they're going in the less they'll stick together as they cook.
Add the can of Rotel (undrained) to the top. DO NOT STIR.
Scatter your shredded chicken over the top of the Rotel and sprinkle the seasonings over the chicken. DO NOT STIR.
Dollop the cream of chicken over the top of the chicken. DO NOT STIR.
Close the lid and then seal it shut. Set it to High Pressure for 4 minutes, do a 6 minute Natural Pressure Release before releasing the rest manually.
Open the lid and add in the cubed cream cheese. DO NOT Stir.
Close the lid again and let continue resting on Keep Warm Mode for another 7-10 minutes.
Stir in the cheddar cheese and sour cream. Stir well.
Serve warm.
🍴 Recipe Tips
This Instant Pot cheesy chicken spaghetti recipe is very simple and easy if you follow along with the instructions. Using softened cream cheese cuts down on the time needed to heat it up for blending into the pasta for sauce, but cold can be used too.
You will have to break your long spaghetti noodles in half, or buy them "pot sized" where they come in a box about half the normal length. This is to keep them short enough they can lay flat in the Instant Pot without issues.
Another good thing to note is that the noodles should be tossed into the pot in a way that they are very scattered around and ununiform in direction. This will prevent them from sticking to each other, so drop them in while fanning them around into every direction.
Noodles that become stuck together will still cook thoroughly but they won't get sauce between the noodles and will stick together with that noodle starch creating a bit of a pain when you go to stir and break up the chunks.
Although, my kids actually found noodle clumps to be a fun prize on their plates, so it's totally up to you on what you want to do.
💭 FAQs
If you plan to freeze leftover chicken spaghetti, I recommend placing it in a greased aluminum pan with foil or a lid on top. Keep it in the freezer for no more than 3 months and thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating in the oven at 350 degrees F, until warmed throughout and reaching at least 160 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer.
While this pasta dish has a nice kick of flavor from the Rotel it can be served alongside any Italian or Mexican inspired side dishes as well as steamed vegetables or a side salad and garlic bread.
If properly stored in an airtight container in the fridge, I recommend storing for no more than 3-5 days. Reheat before eating.
Here are some more great Instant Pot recipes to try
- 5 Ingredient Instant Pot Chili
- Instant Pot Bacon
- Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks
- Instant Pot Ground Beef
📖 Recipe
Instant Pot Chicken Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon Butter ($0.09)
- 1 small Onion, diced (about ¾ cup) ($0.70)
- 1 clove Garlic, minced (about 2 tsp) ($0.10)
- 4 cups Chicken broth (one 32 ounce carton) ($1.33)
- 16 ounces Spaghetti noodles, broken in half ($1.00)
- 1 can (10oz) Rotel, undrained ($1.24)
- 2 cups Cooked chicken, shredded ($2.08)
- ½ teaspoon Salt ($0.05)
- ¼ teaspoon Black pepper ($0.02)
- 1 teaspoon Garlic powder ($0.10)
- 1 teaspoon Onion powder ($0.10)
- 1 can (10.5oz) Cream of Chicken Soup ($0.50)
- 1 brick Block cream cheese, softened (8oz) ($1.98)
- 1 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded ($0.99)
- ½ cup Sour cream ($0.40)
Instructions
- Set your Instant Pot to saute mode and set the timer for 5 minutes.
- Saute your butter and onion until soft, about 3 minutes.
- Add in the minced garlic, and push the cancel button. Stir to incorporate the garlic.
- Pour in the chicken broth.
- Break your spaghetti noodles in half and lay them in the broth, going every direction. The more scattered they are, the less they'll clump together as they cook.
- Add your can of Rotel (undrained) over the noodles. DO NOT STIR.
- Scatter the shredded chicken over the top and then sprinkle the seasonings in. DO NOT STIR.
- Lay the cream of chicken right over the shredded chicken. DO NOT STIR.
- Close the lid and seal it. Set it to High Pressure for 4 minutes. Do a 6 minute Natural Pressure Release before releasing the remaining pressure.
- Open the lid and add in your cubes of cream cheese. DO NOT STIR. Close the lid back up and continue to let it rest on "keep warm" mode for another 7-10 minutes.
- Stir in the cheddar cheese and sour cream. Stir the mixture together well.
- Serve warm.
Jackie says
Great recipe, but it never says WHEN to add seasonings (salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder). I put it at the end once I realized it had been missed. But I bet it's best added after the broth. Thank you! I always appreciate a good IP recipe!
Nicole says
The recipe states to add the seasonings over the top of the shredded chicken. It says this both in the recipe card as well as in the post (near the image illustrating this step). I'm sorry that you missed it, but I'm glad you liked the recipe!
Angie says
I often try a recipe and make changes on purpose. When I started this recipe I thought I had all the supplies. But, I didn’t. I used can chicken…2 cans, I with broth and one drained. I didn’t have cream of chicken soup, so used cream of mushroom and cream of celery. Otherwise it was awesome! This is a keeper!
BeeyondCereal says
So glad you liked it!