Slow Cooker Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Pasta
This one won’t be for the calorie-conscious, but it WILL be one of the most decadent and delicious meals you ever make in your slow cooker! Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Pasta gets rave reviews time after time. A bowl (or two) of this cheesy, creamy pasta will satisfy all your carb cravings.
What’s To Love About This Recipe
But really, what’s NOT to love about creamy, cheesy carbs and tangy buffalo sauce all-in-one? Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Pasta is one of my most-loved recipes. Let me tell you why!
- Every step of this recipe can be completed in the slow cooker – even cooking the pasta. If you haven’t tried cooking your noodles in slow cooker meals yet, you’re missing a one-pot cleanup opportunity!
- The flavor – have I mentioned the flavor yet? I am a huge fan of buffalo sauce and I try to incorporate it into lots of different types of dishes. This one tops the list!
- Buffalo sauce adds a little spice, but not so much that the whole family can’t enjoy it. The added cheese creates the perfect balance.
- I don’t indulge in pasta dishes too often, but this is one for which I definitely make an exception. It’s just that good! You’ll love making a recipe that’s a real winner around the dinner table.
Okay, before we get to the recipe, I do have to warn you. This recipe is designed for 6 servings, but between 3 people in my family, we devoured every single bit of it in one meal!
Ingredients Needed
- Boneless skinless chicken – I prefer to use chicken breasts, but boneless skinless thighs are also an option. The chicken will ultimately be shredded and mixed with additional buffalo sauce.
- Chicken broth – Broth adds flavor to the sauce and cooks the noodles. I recommend keeping a little extra broth on hand in case you need it for the pasta at the end. Use bone broth for extra nutrients if you like.
- Buffalo wing sauce – Split the buffalo sauce into two portions for different segments of the recipe. You can use your favorite buffalo wing sauce – whether sweet, mild, medium, or hot.
- Seasonings – Use a tablespoon of ranch dressing mix from a single packet, and add in some garlic powder, celery salt, salt, and pepper.
- Cream cheese – This is used to achieve the super creamy sauce! If you’d like to make this slightly lower-fat, you could also use Neufchatel cheese.
- Shredded sharp cheddar cheese – Sharp cheddar is the best flavor to complement the tangy wing sauce. If you have extra time, shred some yourself for the freshest quality.
- Cornstarch slurry – Mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and 1 tablespoon of water to create a slurry that thickens the creamy sauce.
- Linguine noodles – I like the shape of linguine noodles and how they hold their texture well in the slow cooker. If you choose another type of pasta noodle, note differences in cooking time.
- Chopped cilantro – For an optional garnish, chop up some fresh cilantro to sprinkle across the top of each bowl!
How To Make Buffalo Chicken Pasta In The Slow Cooker
If you haven’t made pasta in your slow cooker before, you’re about to find out what a great shortcut this is! With pasta recipes, you will typically cook the meat and sauce ingredients first, then add the noodles to cook in the final steps. This is how it works with Buffalo Chicken Pasta!
- Place chicken, broth, 1/4 cup buffalo sauce, and seasonings in the slow cooker.
- Top with cream cheese and shredded cheese.
- Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.
- When the chicken is fully cooked, remove it from the slow cooker and shred it with two forks in a separate bowl.
- Add the remaining 1/4 cup of buffalo sauce to the chicken and toss to coat. Set the chicken aside.
- Whisk together cornstarch and water and add the mixture to the slow cooker.
- In the slow cooker, use a whisk to stir the melted cheese and softened cream cheese (added in step 2) until all ingredients are combined and smooth with no lumps.
- Break the noodles in half and place them in the slow cooker.
- Top the noodles with the shredded chicken and cover. (Keep an eye on the noodles the first time you make this since they can quickly overcook.)
- Turn the slow cooker on high for an additional 30-60 minutes until the noodles are fully cooked. Stir the noodles 3-4 times during cooking with tongs or a large fork.
- If the noodles are not done after 30-60 minutes, you can add extra broth or water, 1/4 cup at a time or as needed.
- Garnish servings of pasta with fresh cilantro, if desired, and serve immediately.
Recipe Substitutions and Variations
When you’re planning to make easy buffalo chicken pasta, you might want to try a few other ingredient swaps for convenience or taste.
- Chicken – Besides boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs, you could also use precooked ground chicken, precooked and shredded chicken, or a rotisserie chicken. If you use precooked chicken, reduce the slow cooker time to only 1 hour on high or 2 hours on low, then add the pasta for the allotted time.
- Spice – If you need a more kid-friendly option, look for a mild buffalo wing sauce or use less than the designated amount.
- Pasta noodles – Try out any shape or size of pasta noodles that you like, but keep in mind that different shapes may have different cooking times. Stay close by your slow cooker to check on the pasta during the final cooking time. If you choose gluten-free noodles, reduce the broth by ½ cup.
- Veggies – If you want to add a little extra nutrition to your protein and carbs, go for it! Finely diced peppers and onions would be a great addition, or frozen corn or a frozen veggie blend would also be delicious.
What To Serve With Buffalo Chicken Pasta
Buffalo chicken pasta makes a hearty plate but would be delicious with some fresh veggies on the side. Mix up a green garden salad topped with Zesty Lime Jalapeno Ranch Dressing, or offer a side of sliced raw veggies and dip.
Top your pasta with fresh cilantro or sliced green onion. Add a sprinkle of blue cheese crumbles across your plate if you like!
Storing and Reheating
When we make this at home, we rarely have leftovers, but you might be lucky enough to have some for lunch the next day! Store your leftover pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
I recommend adding a splash of broth or water before reheating in the microwave or on the stove to help the sauce to be smooth.
I don’t recommend freezing this dish since the combination of pasta and dairy won’t defrost well.
Slow Cooker Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Pasta
Equipment
- Slow Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce 1/4 cup now, 1/4 cup later
- 1 tablespoon ranch dressing mix from a packet
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon celery salt
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch + 1 tablespoon water
- 16 ounces linguine noodles
- Chopped cilantro for garnish optional
Instructions
- Place chicken, broth, 1/4 cup buffalo sauce, and seasonings in slow cooker.
- Top with cream cheese and shredded cheese.
- Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.
- When chicken is fully cooked, remove it from slow cooker and shred with two forks in separate bowl.
- Add remaining 1/4 cup of buffalo sauce to chicken and toss to coat. Set chicken aside.
- Whisk together cornstarch and water and add mixture to slow cooker.
- In slow cooker, use a whisk to stir melted cheese and softened cream cheese (added in step 2) until all ingredients are combined and smooth with no lumps.
- Break noodles in half and place in slow cooker.
- Top noodles with shredded chicken and cover.
- Turn slow cooker on high for an additional 30-60 minutes until noodles are fully cooked. Stir noodles 3-4 times during cooking with tongs or a large fork.
- If noodles are not done after 30-60 minutes, add extra broth or water, 1/4 cup at a time or as needed.
- Optional: Garnish pasta with fresh cilantro and serve immediately.
Notes
- Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, add a splash of broth or water to help the sauce to be smooth.
- When making pasta in the slow cooker, your best results will come if you use tongs or a large fork to stir occasionally.
- Reduce the spice level by using less buffalo sauce or a milder wing sauce.
We cook from scratch daily in my house. I found the end result of this meal to be flat. Had I known, I would have doctored this up a bit. Good starting ingredients but lacked flavor.
If I wanted to make this without the chicken how would I go about doing that?
Hi Grace! I haven’t tested this recipe without the chicken to be certain, but I think you could simply leave it out and reduce cooking time to 1-2 hours on high.
I love this recipe!!! Do you know if this can be doubled and can you freeze leftovers?
I’m so glad you love it! I don’t really recommend this one for freezing as the pasta and dairy do not reheat well from frozen.
Thanks! We make this regularly in our house! I personally don’t like seeing any pieces of cream cheese floating in my sauce, no matter how small, so I just heat the cream cheese ahead of time in a saucepan with the broth, buffalo sauce, and seasonings and whisk the crap out of it until it’s all well blended! Then I add it to the crockpot with the chicken for cooking (and then I add the cheese at the end after removing chicken to shred). So if you are having trouble with the cream cheese not melting, give it a try!
Anybody try converting this over to instant pot instead of crock pot? Looks delicious but instant pot always works better for us.
I’m working on a conversion now actually! I ended up doubling the chicken, sauce and broth and cooking for 8 minutes on high pressure, then shredding the chicken and stirring in the cream cheese and 4 oz of shredded cheese.
Finally got around to making this the other day after wanting to try it for ages. I cut the recipe a bit as there are only two of us and I didn’t have enough chicken. That also meant I cut down the stock. Unfortunately it was too late when I thought about cutting down the amount of pasta. I did have to add another 1/2 cup of stock to cook the pasta, but that’s no worries and I know what I did wrong. It was delicious! Will definitely make it again and add more heat to it! Thank you!
Awesome!
The best ever!
Awesome! Thank you!
I think the recipe looks amazing, however I am not a big fan of buffalo sauce, can you suggest a substitute?
You might enjoy this BBQ Chicken Pasta recipe instead!
I actually have added the cheese in the beginning each time I’ve made this! Although it appears as though I did it wrong, it’s worked out each time! Actually got it cooking now, that’s why I’m here to begin with 😊
Hooray! So glad you love it!
A little confused with the directions do I add the cheese in with the chicken before starting to cook meat or after the chicken is already shredded?
After the chicken is cooked and you remove it to shred, stir in cheese then add meat back in. Hope that helps!
You should probably change the directions to state this. I thought it was weird that you would add cheeses so I looked for comments about it. Your directions say to add them then cook. I’m trying this for first time now.
Please update the direction. Numbers 2 and 8 are very confusing and I already put shredded cheese and cream cheese in the crock pot in the beginning… it’s too late to take them out… I hope it tastes good 😞
Will do ;). I hope it turned out great, you can truly make it either way and it should be totally fine.
She still hasn’t change the recipe…I added the cheese with chicken (didn’t read the comments before 😡) now my cream cheese is lumpy and the cheese isn’t melting. So frustrating.
Hi Ashley. I actually didn’t change the instructions because this is actually how I make it. Either way works, and either way you need to whisk the cheese and cream cheese until smooth. It takes a few minutes and is just kind of the trade off for the ease of making in the slow cooker. I hope you were able to enjoy your dinner and I’m sorry you felt angry and frustrated!
I’m confused. Your recipe says to add the cheese before cooking. Please clarify.
Added an additional note to help clarify that cheeses are added in step 2, but stirred and whisked well in step 8. Hope that helps!
Hi. I am making this now. I put the chicken in with broth and Italian packet and salt pepper etc. it’s been cooking for about 30 min. Oh I added 1/4 buffalo sauce too. Do I cook this. Shred. Then put in cream cheese and let it cook/melt another hour? I don’t know when to add the cheeses. I’m scared I’ll mess it up. Thx Gina
You can add the cheese in the beginning or simply let the cream cheese come to room temp and stir in the cheeses at the end. Totally up to your preference but either will work out just fine! Enjoy!