Baked chicken ziti is a quick and simple dinner recipe that’s ready from start to finish in about 45 minutes. Ziti pasta is cooked until al dente and then tossed with shredded chicken, marinara sauce, and dried herbs before being layered in a baking dish. A mixture of Parmesan and shredded mozzarella cheeses cover the top of the chicken ziti bake. The cheese turns golden brown as it bakes and gets slightly crispy at the edges — I love sneaking bites of those crispy bits before my family gets to the table! It reminds me of a chicken Parmesan baked ziti we get at a local restaurant and just love. I made this baked ziti with chicken as easy and straightforward as possible so you don’t have to rush out to the grocery store to pick up any fancy herbs or veggies for it. However, if you have extra veggies on hand that you want to toss in you’re welcome to steam or saute them before mixing them into the ziti casserole. Make this chicken baked ziti whenever you need dinner on the table now and need a dish that your whole family will happily gobble up. Depending on the size of your family, you’ll likely have planned leftovers which reheat great in the microwave.
Recipe Ingredients
Baked ziti with chicken is an 8-ingredient wonder! I made this baked ziti without ricotta, which I know a lot f pasta casseroles use for richness and creaminess. However, I don’t keep ricotta on hand unless I’m planning on making lasagna and I figured you didn’t either! Here are other favorites of mine that I think you’ll love: Taco Spaghetti Bake, Baked Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo, Ravioli Lasagna, Chicken Parmesan Casserole, and Cheesy Ground Beef and Pasta Casserole. Also please check out my Top 5 Casserole Dishes if you’re wondering what cookware I use and love! Gather the following ingredients:
Ziti pasta Cooked chicken Jarred marinara sauce Dried oregano Shredded mozzarella cheese Shredded Parmesan cheese Fresh basil Red pepper flakes
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Baked Ziti with Chicken
Assembling and baking the ziti casserole with chicken takes no more than 20 minutes, and then your oven does the rest of the work for you! Here’s an overview of the recipe steps: You can either poach chicken yourself and shred it for this recipe or you can buy a rotisserie chicken at the grocery store and shred that. Some stores even sell pre-shredded rotisserie chicken, which is even easier and faster. You can also chop up leftover baked chicken breasts or whatever remains from your whole roasted chicken dinner from last night. It doesn’t matter if the chicken is seasoned so long as it’s a seasoning you think will pair reasonably well with the marinara sauce and Italian herbs used in this chicken ziti bake recipe.
Make-Ahead Instructions
Baked ziti with chicken is a wonderful make-ahead dinner to have on hand for busy weeks. You have two options for making this recipe in advance:
Refrigerator: Up to 2-3 days in advance: Assemble the ziti casserole as instructed but DO NOT bake it. Cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate. Set it on your counter for 45 minutes or so before you plan to bake it since that casserole dish is very cold after days in the fridge. When ready to bake, remove the plastic wrap or foil and bake at 350ºF for 30 to 35 minutes. Freezer: Up to 3 months in advance: This is a trickier option because you need freezer space for a large casserole dish, but if you have it, go for it. Assemble the ziti casserole as instructed using a freezer-safe and oven-safe dish but DO NOT bake it. Cover the pan tightly with a layer of plastic wrap, a layer of foil, label, date, and freeze. When ready to bake, remove the plastic wrap and foil, then bake from frozen at 350ºF for 50 to 60 minutes.
Recipe Variations to Try
This is a very flexible recipe that you can customize so many different ways! Try one of the following recipe variations: Use rotisserie chicken to save time. Some stores even sell pre-shredded rotisserie chicken, which is a dream come true for cooks like me who want to feed their families homemade meals but don’t have more than an hour each night to get food on the table quickly. Customize the ingredients. This is a very simple recipe for baked ziti with chicken. I go into more detail later in this post on the recipe variations you can try, but know that this is a VERY flexible recipe that can be customized as you see fit. Layer the ingredients. I like to add half of the pasta into the baking dish, top it with half the cheese, then add the rest of the pasta and cheese after that. This results in two layers of gooey cheese into the ziti bake (one in the middle and one on the top). So good! Use freshly shredded cheese, if possible. Pre-shredded cheeses are typically coated in an anti-caking agent and are resistant to melting. Hand shredding the mozzarella and Parm will deliver the gooiest results, but if you only have pre-shredded cheese on hand that’s obviously fine as well.
Herbs: Replace the dried oregano with Italian seasoning or another dried herb. No fresh basil? Fresh parsley will work. If you’re a garlic fan, you can also sprinkle in a bit of garlic powder. Meat: Swap the chicken with cooked ground beef, ground pork, Italian sausage, or turkey. Cheese: You can replace the mozzarella with another cheese like Monterrey Jack or provolone which melt smoothly. Pasta: Use another short and sturdy tube pasta, such as rigatoni or penne. Use gluten-free ziti noodles if desired.
Sauce: Use homemade marinara sauce instead of store-bought. Or replace the marinara with another store-bought pasta sauce like alfredo sauce for a chicken alfredo baked ziti. Veggies: Steam or saute any veggies you need to use up and add them into the marinara-ziti mixture. Good options are zucchini, yellow squash, onions, or white mushrooms. I don’t recommend adding raw vegetables to the casserole because they won’t bake through in the 20-minute cooking time.
More Easy Pasta Recipes:
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