Slow Cooker Olive Garden Chicken Pasta
1,838 CommentsUpdated Jan 18, 2026
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Use Olive Garden Italian Dressing to make this Slow Cooker Olive Garden Chicken Pasta! It’s a creamy pasta dish that has so much flavor.
We love easy pasta dishes for the crockpot! Try my Baked Spaghetti, Feta and Tomato Pasta, or Beef Stroganoff recipes too!
I found this recipe in my Facebook group and had to try it out! You can make this Olive Garden Chicken with or without the pasta! Serve over rice or just with green steamed vegetables.
How to make Olive Garden Chicken Pasta in the Crockpot:
- Add chicken breasts to the slow cooker.
- Pour over one 16-ounce jar of Olive Garden Italian Dressing (or any Italian dressing you have on hand.
- Shake over grated parmesan cheese and ground pepper. Add one block of cream cheese.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on HIGH for 4 hours or low for 5-6.
- Shred the chicken with two forks right in the slow cooker.
- Cook 16 ounces of pasta according to the package directions on the stove-top. I am using penne pasta for this recipe.
- Add the drained pasta to the slow cooker along with the sauce and shredded chicken, stir.
- Sprinkle over more parmesan cheese if desired. I also garnished with a touch of oregano and black pepper.
Can I serve this chicken with something other than pasta?
- Serve over rice.
- Or with steamed vegetables.
Must I use cream cheese?
You can leave it out or add a cup of heavy cream at the end of cooking time is desired. Though the sauce will be thinner.
Does this taste like chicken alfredo?
This Olive Garden Chicken Pasta is thick and creamy like alfredo but has a zesty Italian dressing flavor
What should I serve with olive garden chicken pasta?
Chose one or more of these great dishes to go along with this dish:
- Olive Garden Salad – Recipe by The Cookie Rookie
- Olive Garden Bread Sticks – Recipe by Lil Luna (or buy them premade, I get mine at Safeway)
- Slow Cooker Copycat Gnocchi Soup
- Slow Cooker Copycat Zuppa Toscana
- Slow Cooker Copycat Minestrone – Recipe by Tammilee Tips
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Slow Cooker Olive Garden Chicken Pasta
How to Video
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast, (1.5-2 pounds works fine)
- 16 oz. Olive Garden Italian dressing, (or any Italian dressing you like) Note- olive garden dressing is high in sodium and can be salty. Choose a lower sodium dressing if desired.
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
- 8 oz. cream cheese
Add these items after cooking time is up:
- 16 oz. penne pasta, cooked according to package directions and drain well
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Add the chicken breasts to the slow cooker.
- Pour over the Olive Garden Italian dressing and sprinkle over the parmesan cheese and pepper.
- Place the cream cheese on top.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 5-6 hours.
- When the cooking time is almost done, start cooking the pasta on the stove top as directed on the package.
- Shred the chicken with 2 forks. Drain the pasta and add to the chicken and sauce. Stir. Sprinkle over the remaining parmesan cheese.
- Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
This was good, but not worth all the hype, in my opinion. The chicken by itself was very good. The sauce was harsh, and I had to add thing to calm it down. I used 2/3 a block of cream cheese, 1 full bottle of Olive Garden dressing and added garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, pepper and Parmesan cheese. Breast were frozen cooked on low for 9 hours. I added 2% milk, mozzarella cheese, more Parmesan cheese and 5 slices of white American cheese. To cut the saltiness and harshness. I put it over fettuccine noodles and made microwave peas. I also left the chicken separate. 5 stars for the chicken by itself, 3 stars for my modified sauce, so I average it to 4 stars. If I were to make it again I just might cook the chicken and through out the sauce.
I use 8 oz dressing. I add a bag of baby spinach and sundried tomato’s.
When do you put the spinach in?
I love your idea of spinach and sun dried tomatoes. How much of those ingredients did you use, and when did you add them to the sauce?
It was just ok, needs a little work.
I’m going to add broccoli &
Mushrooms next time,if there is a next time!
Not good. Dressing is too strong.
I tried this from the Pinterest link – I should have realized WHY the “comments were turned off” for the pin… I’m sure it was full of reviews echoing what mine is about to say: Awful.
Let me start with a positive, though: If you take out the bottle of Olive Garden Italian Dressing – and substitute it with a low salt bottle or can of [insert something else you prefer here]… you might have a winner. The basic “concept” ingredients of a liquid, cream cheese, chicken & pasta work well with each other, just not with this dressing.
The negatives: Sour. Just.. plain… sour. And soooooo salty – it was like licking a salt block.
I had to make a basic white sauce (butter, flower, half & half) and dump that over the entire thing in hopes to dampen the salt & sour. It did help, and I saved about $40 in ingredients by doing so. I also served it over cooked broccoli – where I didn’t add ANY salt to it.. to stretch out the salt lick casserole.
This is NOT good.
I’m sorry.. I hate to leave bad reviews, but times are tough, groceries are expensive – and I don’t want anyone to waste their hard earned money on food they might throw out uneaten.
Thank you for your “bad review”. I’m looking for something to prepare for friends coming to dinner, and I was this on Face Book. It looks so easy! Will perhaps make my own Italian salad dressing!
My coworker just made this and brought in a crockpot full to work for everyone and everyone LOVED it. So I wouldn’t base your decision off someone else’s taste buds. In fact I’m making it right now because it was so delicious. And it’s not expensive to make at all whatsoever. It’s basically 4 ingredients. So please try it before you knock it.
I’ve made this and we all love it but used chicken breasts before-if I sun out for breast tenderloin so I need to adjust the cooking time?
It should be about the same amount of time.
This was awful and a total waste of $8 worth of chicken breast. It was almost inedible. I followed the recipe exactly. That OG dressing had way too much vinegar. I don’t recommend.
I agree. What a waste of money…may as well heated up that dressing. It was all one could taste
This was amazing! Didn’t have Parmesan cheese, but seasoned with garlic and onion powder. Used the remaining bottle of dressing which was a little more than half a bottle. Served over rice. Delish!
Had anyone ever used frozen chicken to make
I wondered the same thing.. so I put it in frozen anyways.. have it going right now
I used frozen chicken breast, cooked on low for 8 hours. Delish!
Has anyone tried this in the instant pot?
I have. I’ve actually never made it in the crock pot lol. Comes out delicious!