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This crockpot Olive Garden chicken is to die for! The juicy and tender chicken cooked with some pasta is insanely delicious! Plus, it’s super easy which is a total win-win!

I love an easy and delicious crockpot meal! If you want to try more meals like this, you should start with Soup, this Beef and Broccoli, and this amazing Lasagna!

Chicken and pasta cooked in a crockpot.

Crockpot Olive Garden Chicken (with Pasta!)

I love a recipe that I can whip up at the last minute and still have it taste delicious!! This Olive Garden crockpot chicken and pasta is the perfect meal! It only takes 5 minutes to put together! Then, it cooks all day and you don’t have to do a thing! Cook up some Broccoli, Asparagus, or this delicious salad and you have a meal to remember!

This recipe only uses 5 ingredients! And one is a bottle of Olive Garden salad dressing. The dressing is SO GOOD and when you mix it with the chicken and cheeses, it takes it to a whole new level! I also love that you just throw in some cooked pasta again and the meal is done! My kids go crazy over this and are so impatient that they want to just eat it straight out of the crockpot! Go ahead and try it! You are going to love it!

Ingredients for Crockpot Olive Garden Chicken

This recipe only uses 5 ingredients…. yes, 5! It’s so easy and delicious, you have to try it! See the recipe card below for a list of exact ingredient measurements.

  • Chicken breasts: Use fresh boneless, skinless chicken breasts for this recipe.
  • Olive Garden Italian dressing: This dressing is SO GOOD! Using the entre bottle will make it so you get all of that amazing flavor!
  • Parmesan:  I just used parmesan cheese from the can! It’s super easy and you probably already have it in your fridge.
  • Cream cheese: This makes that sauce texture taste so creamy. And you can’t beat the tangy flavor of cream cheese!
  • Pasta: Cook up the pasta right before the chicken is done and all you have to do is throw it right in and mix it up!
Ingredients laid out for Olive Garden crockpot chicken.

Let’s Cook Some Chicken!

This meal is really a set it and forget it kind of meal! It only takes a few minutes to put it together and then you can enjoy it as soon as it’s done!

  1. Add chicken and dressing: Place the chicken breasts in a slow cooker laying flat. Pour the whole bottle or homemade olive garden dressing over top the chicken.
  2. Add cheeses and cook: Sprinkle parmesan over top the chicken and dressing. Place the block of cream cheese on top. Cover the slow cooker with the lid and cook for 6 hours on low or 4 hours on high. 
  3. Cook pasta: Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside. 
  4. Shred the chicken, add pasta and serve: Using 2 forks or shredders, shred the chicken evenly. Use 1/4 cup parmesan and sprinkle over top the chicken. Add in the pasta and stir until well combined. Serve while hot.
Chicken being placed in a crockpot and ingredients being added on top of it.

Tips for Cooking with a Crockpot

Using a crockpot is easy but try out these tips and it will make cooking with one even easier! You may never go back to cooking on your stove again! This crockpot Olive Garden chicken is the perfect place to start!

  • Keep the lid ON: I know it’s tempting to want to take the lid off and check on your food! But a crockpot is designed to do its thing with the lid ON. Keep the lid on and don’t let out all of that heat that has been built up! Just look throught the glass and trust your recipe!
  • Preheat your crockpot: A lot of people don’t do this and it really is a step that should always be taken. Turn your crockpot on to the correct setting about 20 minutes before you plan on putting your food it. You can just turn it on while you prep your food!
  • Spray it: If you spray your slow cooker with cooking spray before you put your food in, then your cleanup will be so much easier! This helps so that your food doesn’t stick to the sides. Trust me, it’s an easy step that you will appreciate doing later!
Chicken and pasta on a plate with a fork.

How to Store Leftovers

If you have some leftovers with this dish then consider yourself lucky! This crockpot Olive Garden chicken and pasta is so delicious the next day! Once the food has cooled them store it in an airtight container in your fridge. It will last for 3-4 days! When you are ready to eat, you can heat it up in your microwave for 1-2 minutes or until heated through!

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Crockpot Olive Garden Chicken

3.95 from 68 votes
By: Alyssa Rivers
This Olive Garden crockpot chicken is to die for! The juicy and tender chicken cooked with some pasta is insanely delicious! Plus, it's super easy which is a total win-win!
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 6 hours 15 minutes
Total Time: 6 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 6 people

Ingredients 

Instructions 

  • Place the chicken breasts in a slow cooker laying flat. Pour the whole bottle or homemade olive garden dressing over top the chicken.
  • Sprinkle parmesan over top the chicken and dressing. Place the block of cream cheese on top. Cover the slow cooker with the lid and cook for 6 hours on low or 4 hours on high.
  • Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
  • Using 2 forks or shredders, shred the chicken evenly. Use 1/4 cup parmesan and sprinkle over top the chicken. Add in the pasta and stir until well combined. Serve while hot.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 414kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 34gFat: 19gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 121mgSodium: 381mgPotassium: 515mgFiber: 1gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 614IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 140mgIron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Tried this recipe?Mention @alyssa_therecipecritic or tag #therecipecritic!

About Alyssa Rivers

Alyssa Rivers is the author of 'The Tried and True Cookbook', a professional food photographer and experienced recipe-developer. Having a passion for cooking, her tried and true recipes have been featured on Good Morning America, Today Food, Buzzfeed and more.

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Recipe Rating




152 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Great recipe! My mother, husband and 1.5 year old all loved it! Definitely keeper. Easy to make as well!

    1. I was so excited to try this. Used exactly what it called for.
      It was so salty and the cholesterol amount…wow
      I love olive garden dressing but it’s to much .. next time not 8 Oz maybe 4oz

  2. Regarding the Recipe Tips, I never preheat my crock, having learned a hard and expensive lesson when I added a cold ingredient to my preheated crock, and the thermal shock immediately cracked it! I put a note to self that I keep in my replacement crock “Cold ingredients in a cold crock, hot ingredients in a hot crock.”

    Additionally, I use slow cooker liners rather than spraying the crock with cooking spray; clean up is so much quicker and easier!

  3. 5 stars
    If this was too tangy for people, then it was made incorrectly or with not enough cream cheese when they did it. 8 ounces of cream cheese is what you want to use. I added sautéed yellow squash, broccoli, on the vine tomato and red peppers to mine to make it more like a primavera. Was really tasty. Next time I plan to add the new shredded cream cheese and mozarella mixture that kraft now makes partnered with philadelphia cream cheese to give it a bit more cheese pull. I will also not be addding more parmesan as a topper after it cooks. And I may pop it into the oven for a broiler at the end with some of that mozarella on top and serve with garlic toast

  4. 4 stars
    Super easy recipe! The only issue I found with this recipe is that it is rich. Maybe it would be better as a side than a main course. As someone who loves rich food, this recipe was almost too rich!

  5. 5 stars
    Made this dish with the home-made Italian dressing recipe. Added a little half & half to the pasta before serving which toned down the tanginess & made it more creamy. I’ll make it again with this revision.

    1. While putting this together I was worried it would be overwhelming. ( just the smell)I added heavy cream. Then cooked asparagus to mix in. Hope it helps.

  6. 5 stars
    Perfect! Absolutely yummy. I did add garlic because I love garlic. I used grated Parmesan because that’s what I had on hand. Only took a couple hours in my crockpot. This is a keeper!

  7. What happens if I accidentally cooked the chicken for 10 minutes, will it still be good ?
    I still put the chicken in the crockpot.

  8. 5 stars
    I love this recipe! I dont use the bottled dressing, I prepare the homeade dressing. I like to add real garlic, 1 Vidalia onion, sometimes a red pepper, & sun dried tomatoes. Whatever I have on hand. Sometimes I use half the cream cheese called for, sometimes I omit it all together. I always use more mayo, about 1/3 C. It’s just a delicious chicken & pasta combo!! I’ve made this a dozen times in the past 9 months & everyone loves it!!

    1. I added more chicken , so there’s 4 chicken breast instead of 2 . Do you think 2 blocks of cream cheese is okay since I added more chicken ?

      1. 1 star
        OMG…. I never leave comments…..

        This was gross….. really salty…& tangy!!!

        Don’t bother…..

      2. Omg it was aweful. Taste was strong and overwhelming I tried to dilute it with cream. It was terrible

    1. It was awful!! I tried doctoring it up,added sour cream, more parm, seasoning salt,pepper, butter. Nothing could get thru the flavor of the too tangy dressing. Oh, and heavy cream. Nothing helped. Just bad!!

  9. Too much Olive Garden dressing flavor boring and dry. I added heavy cream and 4 oz. More of cream cheese after cooking. Not so dry but definitely needs some color or other flavors. Won’t cook this again.

  10. Apple cider vinegar helps knock out that salty taste. I used half the bottle and half the cream cheese. Added heavy cream and some 6 blend Italian cheeses to it. It was still saltier than I’d like so I added a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar and it worked wonders!!

  11. 4 stars
    I read some of the reviews about it being too salty. I did follow the recipe except after I had shredded the chicken and added the pasta I added 3/4 of a cup of heavy cream. It was perfect. The cream added a smoothness to the sauce and took the salty taste down. Very good. I am putting it in a sealing bag and freezing it. I will let you know how it freezes.

  12. 4 stars
    so after reading all the comments I didn’t want mine to come out tasting bad so I only used 1/3 of the Olive garden dressing. I added basil. oregano. Italian seasoning and paprika to make up for the lack of dressing I put in there and also one cup of water. the cream cheese was still in clumps at the end but using a plastic spoon I was able to break down the chicken breasts into small pieces and mixed it til it looked like a sauce. then I added sun dried tomatoes and parmesan cheese. It came out good. I needed to add a bit of salt but not bad.