I’d like to take a second and introduce you to Connie from Smockity Frocks! Every 2 weeks, she’ll be sharing how she feeds her family of 10 on a budget! First up…
This Chicken Spaghetti is a real crowd pleaser!
When I make this meal, I cook and debone a whole chicken. This provides me with plenty of meat to make 2 huge casseroles, so I can make one to eat and one in a disposable aluminum pan to give away or save for later.
In case any mothers of eight have had an extremely long day and have had. It. Up. To. Here. and can’t think straight enough to execute dinner. (I’ve … uh… heard about this phenomenon happening.) Then she can just reach in the freezer and pop this casserole into the oven.
Each casserole will feed our family of 10, which includes 2 adults, 2 teens, and a passel o’ young ‘uns, and leave a small dish of leftovers.
Our entire family absolutely loves this delicious dish!
The following is the recipe for one Chicken Spaghetti Casserole:
Chicken Spaghetti
Ingredients
- Meat from 1/2 of a whole chicken
- 1/2 stick butter
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 1/3 large package Velveeta
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup (or make your own!)
- 1 can Rotel
- 1 can milk
- 12 oz spaghetti
- 1 cup shredded cheddar
Instructions
- Cook and debone 1 chicken.
- Put the spaghetti on to boil while you saute the chopped onion in a large pan.
- Add Rotel and Velveeta and cook until melted.
- Whisk in Cream of Mushroom soup.
- Add milk, using the empty can to measure.
- Add chicken.
- Pour over spaghetti in 9×13 baking dish and top with shredded cheddar.
- Heat in 350 oven until bubbly.
- Enjoy!
Add a small “Honeymooners’ Salad” (lettuce alone) for 50 cents and you have served a delicious meal for 10 people for $7.27!
Connie is a homeschooling mama to 8 rowdy children, wife for 25 years to one hunky golf pro, writer of stories, wiper of noses. She strives to live a joy filled life in the noisiest house on the block and blogs regularly about life in a large family at Smockity Frocks. She can also be found on Twitter and on Facebook.
Lynn says
This looks so easy and a meal that kids are sure to love.
Crystal & Co says
Yummy! And quick.
I have had.it.up.to.here many many nights with my kiddos!
Great recipe.
DebC says
I’ve always loved chicken spaghetti, but have never had it with the Rotel – I don’t use Rotel much because even the Milder version is a bit spicy to me. BUT…I think I’ll try this with some plain canned tomatoes, and some canned mild chiles. Sounds delicious, thanks!
Kristy @momhatescooking says
Honeymooner’s salad cracks me up…pretty sure my hubby and I had that many times! 🙂
Tasha (Steps to Simple Living) says
When do you add the milk stated in the ingredients?
Also can you tell me how you cook your whole chickens?
Last time I cooked a whole chicken it turned out awful and I had to throw the whole thing out. :/
Thanks,
Tasha
Colleen says
I might make this for dinner tomorrow night. Only question is 1/3 of what size package of Velveeta?
Kristine says
Yay! I look forward to recipes that serve large crowds. We only have a 4 year old and a 5 month old, but we ALWAYS have a collection of family members at our house. Since we have the biggest one, everyone gathers here. I need something to feed them besides pizza, hamburgers, and chilli!
MamaLaundry says
Velveeta and Rotel. One of my favorite combos! This is sure to be a dish my family will love!
I’d also love to know…when do you add the milk?
-Lauren
Candi @ Family Stamping and FOOD! says
The addition of Rotel to any meal is a winner for me! 🙂
kim says
Tasha,
I make my whole chickens in the crock pot when I am cooking chicken for casseroles and such. Just throw it in add water or broth season how you like it. Cook all day meat falls of the bone. Easy!!!!
Smockity Frocks says
I put the milk in right after the mushroom soup. Just use the same can to measure.
I cook my whole chickens in the crockpot all day, or boil it in a big stock pot for a quicker meal.
Kimberly Yue says
Umm, this sounds great and I plan on making it as soon as I can figure out what Rotel is? <>
Connie says
Kimberly, Rotel is diced tomatoes with green chilis. It is a Tex-Mex staple. I don’t know what I would do without it!
Missy_in_WV says
How coincidental that you posted this today! I made a Chicken Taco Soup tonight for dinner that had almost identical ingredients – minus the pasta, add corn! It was a big hit here.
Another way to roast a whole chicken in the crockpot is to wrap the chicken in foil, poke a couple holes in the bottom then set it on 3 balls of foil. That way the chicken doesn’t stew in the fat and juice and comes out more like a roasted chicken than boiled. I do this with roasts too cause I don’t like the texture of boiled beef (just a quirk on my part lol)
Kimberly says
mmmm!! I bet this would be great over rice or little pastas too.
Kelly @ A Full Table says
I’ve made something similar and my family loves it! It is so nice to have easy (and freezable!) recipes that make everyone happy.
Tracy says
I cook whole chickens in the crock pot…take a long sheet of tin foil and scrunch it up so you have a long length of it. wrap it around the outter edges of the inside of your crock.
Place frozen whole chicken breast side down so it rests on the tin foil (the tin foil is only meant to keep the chicken from resting on the bottom of your crock)
Cook on low for about 8 hours, let cool and debone.
This will be much like a rotisserie chicken – you can add whatever seasonings you wish. I usually just cook it plain because I plan to use the chicken in other recipes.
gina says
You said you use 1 whole chicken to make two casseroles. Do you double the other ingredients to make two casseroles and just use 1/2 of the whole chicken in each? Or is this recipe enough for two casseroles.
Just checking cause I think this is a great idea. I love having meals in the freezer. Also, I always want to take freezer meals to people, but never quite know what to cook. This would be a good one to make.
Thank you.
Gina
FoodontheTable says
I enjoyed your guest post! Great chicken spaghetti recipe. What you do with 8 kids is amazing! Looking forward to the next post!
[email protected] Tree Hugger says
I love Connie and Smockity Frocks! I can’t wait to try this recipe. I’m always looking for ways to use whole chickens. Often they are priced the same as a 3-pack of chicken breasts! Sometimes less – and I always have free noodles in the pantry.
Connie says
Gina, This recipe is only for one of the casseroles. I double it when I make 2.
Sarah says
Might be a stupid question, but when you say you take out of the freezer and pop in the oven, do you defrost it first in the fridge or can you put a frozen casserole in the oven?
Connie says
Sarah, I just pop the frozen casserole into a 350 oven for about an hour and a half. Easy peasy!
[email protected] Tree Hugger says
I am cooking this dish right now. I cooked up 9 chicken breasts yesterday and used half in this dish. I did not have Velveeta or cream of mushroom soup in the pantry so I am using a block of Monterey Jack cheese (1/2 in mixture, 1/2 on top) and homemade cream of chicken soup. It smells so good!!! I may scoop up a bit for a tortilla (less the noodles) because the bite off the spoon tasted like it would be great in a tortilla or on a tortilla chip!
Kimberly says
Word to the wise…. do not cook the cheese and chicken mix in a crock pot on high will stuck at the Dr’s office all day…. I had to salvage the chicken and start over on the sauce:(
Viv says
One question; what on earth are Rotel & Velveeta (sounds like toilet roll!!) ?
Cheryl says
YUM!!! & I have a whole lotta pasta & a whole lotta ro-tel. Now I know what to do with that chicken fryer in the freezer! (DH asked me to please not make any more sticky chicken–another crock pot chicken recipe for awhile)
Viv, Ro-tel is canned diced tomatoes with green chiles. look for them by the diced tomatoes, or sometimes they are down the ‘mexican food’ aisle.
Velveeta is the blcok of processed cheese food that can be melted in so many ooey gooey delicious ways that you kind of forget it’s not healthy for you. But it melts REALLY well & makes the best chile con queso dip.
Both Kroger & Meijer have it sitting next to the dairy cooler in my neck of the woods. Wal-mart has it on the bottom shelf by the spaghetti cheese.
& I have to ask by ‘large’ brick of Velveeta do you mean the 4lbs or 2lbs?
Off to pull the chicken from the freezer; thanks for the dinner recipe for tomorrow!
Lisa O Shea says
Sorry mite be a stupid queestion but how many people does this recipe serve?
Connie says
This recipe feeds our family of 10 and leaves a little dish of leftovers.
Karen says
Please tell me what is rotel? and where to find it at ?
Connie says
Rotel is canned diced tomatoes and green peppers. I find it in the grocery store aisle with the Mexican food or the tomato products.