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Chicken Parmesan Pasta Bake

With only 4 ingredients, this chicken parmesan pasta bake might be the easiest recipe on my blog. And that’s saying something because I made some seriously minimal recipes when I first started blogging about food!

I’ll walk you through the recipe below and cover ingredient substitutions as we go. There’s a printable recipe card at the bottom of the post as well. Let’s get it. 

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Step 1: Mix your choice of pasta and marinara together in a baking dish.

baking dish with marinara next to a box of Banza cavatappi

Make sure your baking dish is similar in size. More surface area will likely reduce the cook time and less surface area will increase the cook time. Don’t worry—you can always cover and bake a bit longer if your pasta is undercooked. 

And feel free to use another pasta. 

Step 2: Top with shredded cheese.

pasta and marinara mixture in the baking dish next to Tillamook Italian cheese blend

Okay, I know I always talk about how freshly shredded cheese is so much better than pre-shredded, and it is. I just wanted this pasta bake to be as simple as possible. I’d still recommend grating some fresh mozzarella and parmesan for best results.

And as far as cheese options go, the version in the finished recipe photos actually used Trader Joe’s quattro formaggio cheese blend (asiago, fontina, provolone, parmesan). It’s hard to go wrong here! 

Note: You may want to toss the chicken in the sauce along with this pasta like in this mostaccioli pasta recipe.

Step 3: Add Perdue Farms Lightly Breaded Chicken Breast Chunks.

pasta and marinara topped with cheese next to Perdue Simply Smart lightly breaded chicken breast chunks

Since you can’t have chicken parmesan without the chicken, the recipe calls for Perdue Farms Lightly Breaded Chicken Breast Chunks. This is one of my favorite products from Perdue. The chicken gets crispy golden brown on the outside while staying juicy on the inside. And that’s straight from the freezer! 

Where to buy: Target is my go-to for frozen Perdue chicken, but you can use the store locator on the product page

I’ll add that I’m a Perdue Farms ambassador and you can use my affiliate link (perduefarms.com/mason) to get a free box of this diced chicken breast and 15% off your order. Then you can make other recipes like my honey sesame chickenbuttermilk pan fried chicken, or chili garlic chicken fried chicken cauliflower rice.

And lastly, Costco has a very similar product, which you can check out in my healthy sweet and sour chicken recipe.

Step 4: Top with more marinara and cheese, cover, and bake.

fully assembled chicken parmesan pasta before covering and baking

I added some crushed red pepper flakes and dried parsley, but that’s totally optional. 

Step 5: Uncover and continue baking for a melty, crispy top. 

Parmesan and hard cheeses will give you the extra crispy look in the photo above. While a softer cheese like mozzarella will be more melty and give you that cheese pull effect. There is no right or wrong here. 

Final Recipe Notes

I guess it wouldn’t technically be chicken parm if you added a bunch of stuff. Still, I wanted to toss out the idea of adding some extras like mushrooms or cherry tomatoes like in my Italian Sausage and Veggie Pasta Bake. Or if you like extra spice, a little Italian Bomba Pepper Sauce like I used in my Sausage and Mushroom Cauliflower Gnocchi might tickle your fancy.

These suggestions are purely speculation, but I bet extra goodies would increase the amount of diggity exponentially. 

That’s a wrap. If you have any questions about this recipe, drop a comment below or join my Facebook group. There are more than 12k awesome home cooks in the group to help you out!

Chicken Parmesan Pasta Bake

Chicken Parmesan Pasta Bake

Yield: 6 Servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

Frozen chicken breast chunks baked with Banza chickpea pasta, marinara, and a cheese blend.

Ingredients

  • 8 oz Dry Pasta (I used Banza Cavatappi)
  • 24 oz jar Marinara
  • 16 oz Perdue Simply Smart Lightly Breaded Chicken Breast Chunks
  • 1 1/4 C (140g) Shredded Italian Cheese Blend
  • 1/2 tsp Crushed Red Pepper and Parsley Flakes (optional)

Instructions

  1. Preheat an oven to 450F.
  2. Mix 3/4 of the marinara with the dry pasta in a 13x8 baking dish.
  3. Add 3/4 C (84g) cheese on top of the pasta and marinara, followed by the chicken. Pour remaining marinara in the gaps and top with remaining cheese and the optional red pepper and parsley flakes.
  4. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes until the cheese on top is melted and the chicken is crispy golden brown.

Notes

Each serving has 12 WW SmartPoints (blue plan).

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Servings Serving Size: 240 grams
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 410Total Fat: 17gCarbohydrates: 35gProtein: 31g

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Nubia

Monday 29th of November 2021

Super easy to make and delicious recipe. My whole family loves it.

Lauren Phillips

Wednesday 7th of October 2020

I, like some others, found this dish tasty, but dry. I would have added a can of stewed Italian tomatoes if I knew it would have helped. Loved how quick and easy it was

Jennifer Petrie

Wednesday 7th of October 2020

I would have to say this is the most requested meal by my kids! They absolutely love it and it is SUPER EASY to make!! I do often substitute the breaded chicken for chicken nuggets in a pinch and often use whatever pasta I have on hand. Probably not as healthy but it works for the kids!

Maddy

Tuesday 21st of July 2020

THIS. IS. SO. GOOD. So simple and delish!! Seriously, I could make this 3 nights a week and still not be over it. We do not have Purdue where we live, but I use Tyson Chicken Nuggets and it is dreamy!! So perfect for busy nights or when you aren't in the cooking mood, or... every night?????

Sara Fleckenstein

Monday 20th of July 2020

5/5! I love this recipe so much and make it over and over. I waited months to make it at first, as i tried to find the Purdue chicken first! So simple and easy. Some modifications I've made including making my own lightly breaded chicken and air frying it, using regular pasta (if I'm down for the carbs), and adding in some cottage cheese!

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