Chicken Parmesan Casserole
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This cozy, cheesy Chicken Parmesan Casserole has been tested in my kitchen to be weeknight easy and consistently delicious. There’s no dry or mushy pasta in this casserole! It comes together quickly with pre-breaded chicken and simple ingredients, and delivers that classic chicken parm flavor.
This Chicken Parmesan Bake is a spin on my reader-favorite baked ziti using the same reliable sauce to pasta ratio, so you can be certain the casserole won’t come out dry.
Some recipes have you breading the chicken from scratch, and you certainly can if you want. I show you how to do it in my Homemade Chicken Nugget Recipe, but this recipe is designed to work great with pre-breaded chicken bites to eliminate extra steps. Use your favorite from the freezer aisle or bread your own cutlets.
This recipe can also be prepped ahead for an easy bake, and the leftovers reheat beautifully the next day (I had some for breakfast the day after testing!)
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Quick and Easy – This recipe uses minimal ingredients and is designed to work great with pre-breaded chicken bites to eliminate the extra steps.
- Stays Saucy – Just like my Three Cheese Baked Ziti, this recipe has been tested and tweaked to make sure the pasta is perfectly cooked and not mushy and that there’s enough sauce to keep the casserole from getting dry!
- Make Ahead or Meal Prep – Prep the chicken parm bake ahead for an easy meal later, and the leftovers reheat beautifully.
Chicken Parm Casserole Ingredients
- Rotini pasta – cooked for 2 minutes less than the package directions. Undercooking the pasta before layering will keep it from getting mushy as it bakes later.
- Frozen breaded chicken nuggets – cooked to package directions
- Marinara sauce – You can use your favorite jarred sauce, or try my Homemade Cherry Tomato Sauce. I can usually find 32-ounce jars of marinara at my grocery store, but when I can’t, I grab two smaller jars and measure out 4 cups of sauce total.
- Shredded whole milk mozzarella cheese – For this recipe, I use the pre-shredded stuff (I really like New England Cabot), and it melts great!
- Grated parmesan cheese – I like a blend of romano and parmesan. You can also use shredded parm if that’s what you have on hand.
How to Make Easy Chicken Parmesan Casserole
See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for complete instructions.
Step 1
Cook the nuggets according to the package directions or bake your homemade nuggets while you prep everything else. Boil the pasta until just shy of al dente (2 minutes less than the package says), then drain.
Preheat the oven and lightly spray a 9×13 baking dish with nonstick spray.
Step 2
Add the cooked pasta to a large mixing bowl. Pour in the marinara sauce and stir until it’s evenly coated.
Step 3
Spread half of the pasta mixture in the bottom of the baking dish. Top with half of the chicken nuggets. Then sprinkle half of the mozzarella and parmesan over the chicken.
Add the remaining pasta, then the rest of the nuggets.
Finish by topping with the remaining mozzarella and parmesan.
Step 4
Bake for about half an hour, until the casserole is hot and bubbling around the edges.
If the cheese needs more color, broil on high for 1-2 minutes until lightly golden brown. Watch it closely.
Once baked, remove from the oven and let the casserole rest for 10 minutes so it sets up and scoops easily.
Substitutions & Variations
- Instead of chicken nuggets, you can use diced chunks of chicken breast, store-bought rotisserie chicken, or even slices of chicken sausage or meatballs (you just need about 4-5 cups)
- Use your favorite pasta sauce. You can even mix red sauce and Alfredo sauce!
- To give your marinara extra flavor, add fresh herbs or a scoop of fresh walnut pesto to the mix.
- I use rotini for this recipe, but rigatoni, ziti, cavatappi, or penne pasta would all be great alternatives.
Tips & Tricks for the Best Chicken Parmesan Pasta Bake
- Cook the pasta slightly under al dente. I find that boiling the pasta 2 minutes less than the box recommends keeps it from turning mushy and overcooked while baking.
- Use the full jar of marinara. Pasta absorbs sauce as it bakes, so make sure the noodles are well coated before baking.
- Watch the cheese while baking. If the top browns before the casserole is bubbling, loosely cover the dish with foil, or if your casserole is bubbling, but the cheese has not browned, broil on high for 1- 2 minutes.
- Let the casserole rest. Let it sit 5-10 minutes before serving so it sets up and scoops neatly
How to Serve Chicken Parmesan Casserole
Serve family style at the table, with some extra marinara sauce, grated parmesan, and minced basil on the side.
This chicken parm casserole goes great with a tossed green side salad, green beans, or asparagus, and lots of homemade garlic bread.
Mom Tip:
Got picky eaters? Same. Use a 16-oz box of pasta instead of 12 oz. Set aside 2 cups of cooked pasta and a few nuggets before assembling the casserole. Toss the pasta with parmesan and butter, and serve it alongside the nuggets (and some veggies) for an easy dinner for picky eaters.
How to Store and Reheat Chicken Parm Bake
Store leftover casserole in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or in the oven (covered with foil) until warmed through. I like to add a little extra marinara sauce during reheating, since the pasta absorbs all the sauce in the fridge.
Freezing instructions: This casserole can be frozen for up to a month. Prep as listed above and follow the steps until just before baking. Double wrap the unbaked casserole in plastic and then a layer of aluminum foil to prevent freezer burn during storage. Thaw in the fridge overnight before baking. Bake covered in foil for 20 minutes, remove foil, and continue baking until bubbly and brown.
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Chicken Parmesan Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 ounces dried rotini (about 4½ cups)
- 1 tablespoon coarse kosher salt for the pasta water
- 22 –24 ounces frozen chicken nuggets (about 40 nuggets)
- 32 ounces (4 cups) marinara sauce
- 8 ounces (2 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese, I like Cabot cheese if you can find it
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese, divided
Instructions
- Cook the chicken nuggets according to the package directions. Or if you're making homemade chicken nuggets, cook through per the recipe.
- When the nuggets are done, set them aside. If any nuggets are large, cut them in half or into bite sized pieces.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the rotini and cook 2 minutes less than the box recommends for "al dente".
- While the pasta boils, gather the rest of your ingredients and preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and transfer to a large bowl. Add the marinara sauce and stir until everything is evenly coated.
- Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Spread half of the pasta mixture in the bottom of the dish. Top with half of the chicken nuggets.
- Sprinkle 1 cup mozzarella and ¼ cup parmesan over the nuggets. Add the remaining pasta, then the rest of the nuggets, and finish with the remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
- Bake for 25–35 minutes, until the casserole is hot and bubbling around the edges. If the cheese needs more color, broil on high for about 2 minutes until lightly golden.
- Let the casserole rest for 5 minutes before serving so it sets up and scoops easily.
Video
Notes
- Time-saving tip: Boil the pasta once the nuggets start cooking. As the pasta cooks, set out the marinara and measure the cheeses. That way, everything’s ready to assemble as soon as the nuggets are done.
- Undercooking the pasta before assembling the casserole will keep it from turning to mush later as the casserole bakes.
