Chicken Tetrazzini
Posted Feb 16, 2024
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In this chicken tetrazzini recipe, spaghetti, chicken, broccoli and cheese are mixed with a from-scratch sauce (no canned soups), and baked until bubbly. A delicious, hearty dinner, that’s a perfect way to use leftover chicken.
We often find ourselves with lots of leftover chicken – from baked chicken breasts, slow cooker pulled chicken, rotisserie chicken, etc. and I love using it to make this chicken tetrazzini recipe.
This chicken tetrazzini is made with a rich and flavorful from-scratch sauce, and doesn’t use any canned soup. It’s a hearty main dish that your whole family will love, and the perfect way to use leftover chicken.
This recipe is a meal all by itself, and is a great one to make for friends and neighbors!
Chicken Tetrazzini: Ingredients & Substitutions
- Spaghetti. We use regular spaghetti noodles but any shape of pasta works well in this recipe. I also have used chickpea pasta (gluten-free) with great results.
- Chicken. Use leftover pulled chicken, baked chicken breasts, or a rotisserie chicken!
- Salted butter. Unsalted butter works well too.
- All-purpose flour. Gluten-free all-purpose works well in this recipe.
- Whole milk. You need 1 cup of liquid dairy. Half and half is a great substitute for whole milk. Or you can use ½ cup whole milk and ½ cup heavy cream.
- Broccoli. I use frozen broccoli because it’s easy. Fresh broccoli cut in small pieces works well too. If you don’t love broccoli you can substitute your favorite vegetable(s) or omit it.
How to Make Chicken Tetrazzini
We’ll walk through how to make chicken tetrazzini step-by-step, and don’t forget to watch the video.
Begin by cooking the spaghetti. First, break the spaghetti noodles in half.
Then, cook the noodles according to package instructions in salted water. Drain and set aside in a large bowl but do not rinse.
Make the Sauce
While the spaghetti is cooking, make the sauce. Start by melting butter in a large pot.
Then, add the onion and garlic and cook until onion is soft (about 4 minutes).
Next, add the flour, sea salt and pepper and whisk to combine and cook for 30-60 seconds until the mixture starts bubbling.
Then, add chicken broth, whole milk and Italian seasoning, whisk to combine, and cook until the mixture starts to thicken (it will boil).
Once the mixture is thickened, whisk in the parmesan and mozzarella cheeses until melted.
Assemble the Chicken Tetrazzini
When the sauce is finished, turn off the heat, and add the spaghetti, broccoli and chicken to the sauce and stir to combine.
Then, in a separate bowl, combine the topping ingredients.
Then, pour the chicken tetrazzini mixture into the prepared 9×9″ baking dish.
Next, evenly sprinkle the mixture over the top of the chicken tetrazzini in the pan.
Bake
Then, cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, remove the foil.
Bake the chicken tetrazzini for an additional 5-10 minutes, uncovered, until the top is lightly browned and the filling is bubbly.
Serve
Serve warm with a garnish of fresh parsley (if desired). The great thing about this chicken tetrazzini is that it’s an entire meal in one baking dish.
Sometimes we like to serve it with some homemade bread (homemade french bread, no knead bread, or homemade dinner rolls) and a green salad like kale salad or burrata salad.
Store/Freeze
Store leftover chicken tetrazzini in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Reheat in the microwave or in the oven.
Chicken Tetrazzini Recipe FAQs
This recipe includes a homemade sauce made of milk, cheese, butter, & spices, as well as leftover chicken, broth, broccoli and spaghetti.
Yes, to make a smaller amount halve the ingredients and bake in an 8×8″ pan.
Yes – check out our turkey tetrazzini recipe.
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Chicken Tetrazzini Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 ounces spaghetti
- Salted water
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- ½ cup onion finely chopped
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup whole milk or half and half
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 pound broccoli fresh or frozen, cut into small pieces
- 2 cups cooked chicken cubed or shredded
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
- Break spaghetti noodles in half, then cooking according to package instructions. Drain and set aside in a large bowl but do not rinse.
- While spaghetti is cooking, in a large stockpot melt butter.
- Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is soft (about 4 minutes).
- Add flour, sea salt and pepper and whisk to combine. Cook for 30-60 seconds until mixture starts bubbling.
- Add chicken broth and whole milk and whisk to combine. Cook until the mixture just starts to thicken.
- Whisk in parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning and 1 cup mozzarella cheese until melted.
- Add sauce, broccoli and chicken to the spaghetti and stir to combine.
- Pour mixture into a 9×9” pan. Top with remaining 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.
- Cover and bake for 20 minutes, then uncover and bake for an additional 10 or until bubbly. Serve warm.
Video
Notes
- Spaghetti. We use regular spaghetti noodles but any shape of pasta works well in this recipe. I also have used chickpea pasta (gluten-free) with great results.
- Salted butter. Unsalted butter works well too.
- All-purpose flour. Gluten-free all-purpose works well in this recipe.
- Whole milk. You need 1 cup of liquid dairy. Half and half is a great substitute for whole milk. Or you can use ½ cup whole milk and ½ cup heavy cream.
- Broccoli. I use frozen broccoli because it’s easy. Fresh broccoli cut in small pieces works well too. If you don’t love broccoli you can substitute your favorite vegetable(s) or omit it.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Delicious! It tasted great and smelled wonderful during the cooking process.The only change I made was to add a sprinkle of red pepper flakes- 2 adults no kid palettes here. I made it using your crockpot pulled chicken recipe. A great pairing. My husband enjoyed it. I see this being on repeat for the chilly Midwest months.
Love the addition of red pepper flakes, Heather!
This recipe was tasty and easy. I used rotisserie chicken for convenience and made a great week-night meal. My husband and kids also liked it and this recipe will go into our dinner rotation.
Do you put the frozen broccoli in frozen or thaw it first? Looking forward to making this.
If using frozen instead of fresh, put it in frozen.
Absolutely delicious.