This Creamy Chicken and Bacon Spaghetti is a quick stovetop dinner made with bacon, mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, and tender rotisserie chicken tossed in a rich, creamy sauce. There’s no baking and no cream-of-whatever—just real ingredients and big flavor in about 30 minutes.
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This Creamy Chicken and Bacon Spaghetti is comfort food that feels a little grown up without getting complicated. Bacon, mushrooms, and sun-dried tomatoes build tons of savory flavor, while rotisserie chicken keeps the whole thing firmly in easy weeknight territory.
Everything comes together right on the stovetop in about 30 minutes, with a creamy homemade sauce that coats every strand of spaghetti. It’s cozy, flavorful, and just a little fancy without requiring any fancy effort.
Why You'll Love This Creamy Chicken Spaghetti
- Ready in 30 minutes: Rotisserie chicken keeps prep quick and gets dinner on the table fast.
- Made completely on the stovetop: No baking, assembling, or casserole situation required.
- Big savory flavor: Bacon, mushrooms, and sun-dried tomatoes make the simple cream sauce taste like it took far more effort than it did.
- No canned soup: The creamy sauce comes together from scratch with simple ingredients.
- Easy but impressive: It’s absolutely doable on a weeknight but good enough to serve when you want dinner to feel a little special.
What You'll Need & Why
- Bacon: Smoky, salty, and the first layer of flavor for the sauce.
- Onion, garlic, mushrooms + sun-dried tomatoes: Build a deeply savory, slightly tangy flavor base without adding extra work.
- Kale: Adds color and a little freshness to balance the rich sauce.
- Chicken broth: Adds savory flavor and helps bring the sauce together.
- Heavy cream: Creates the rich, silky sauce.
- Parmesan: Freshly grated for the smoothest melt and plenty of salty, nutty flavor.
- Rotisserie chicken: The shortcut that keeps this firmly in 30-minute dinner territory.
- Spaghetti: Perfect for catching all that creamy sauce.
- Kosher salt + fresh ground pepper: Season to taste.
The Recipe Rundown
This Creamy Chicken and Bacon Spaghetti is a weeknight hero! Here's a brief overview of how to make it!
- Cook the bacon: Let it render in a large skillet, then add the onion and mushrooms and cook until softened.
- Build the flavor: Add the kale, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, and chicken broth and cook until the kale wilts.
- Make it creamy: Stir in the heavy cream, Parmesan, and rotisserie chicken and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly.
- Add the spaghetti: Toss in the cooked pasta until everything is well coated.
- Finish and serve: Season to taste and top with extra Parmesan and fresh chives.
Swaps & Variations
This chicken and bacon spaghetti is flexible, forgiving, and easy to adapt depending on what you’ve got on hand.
- Swap the greens: Baby spinach works beautifully in place of kale and wilts quickly into the sauce.
- Change the pasta: Linguine, fettuccine, or your favorite short pasta all work.
- Add some heat: A pinch of red pepper flakes or Calabrian chili paste gives the creamy sauce a nice kick.
- Make it extra creamy: Add a little softened cream cheese for an even richer sauce.
Tips For The Best Creamy Chicken and Bacon Spaghetti
A few smart moves make this creamy chicken and bacon spaghetti amazing every time.
- Cook the spaghetti al dente: It’ll finish in the sauce without getting mushy.
- Let the bacon render: That flavorful bacon fat becomes the base for everything that follows.
- Use freshly grated Parmesan: It melts much more smoothly into the cream sauce.
- Keep some pasta water: A splash is perfect for loosening the sauce if it gets too thick.
- Watch the heat: Keep the sauce at a gentle simmer once the cream and Parmesan go in so it stays smooth.
Creamy Chicken and Bacon Spaghetti Recipe
Equipment
- large skillet
Ingredients
- 5-6 slices bacon, diced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 bunch kale, rough chopped
- 8 oz mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes, minced
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1½ cups heavy cream
- 2 cups parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 rotisserie chicken, deboned and shredded
- kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
- 1 lb spaghetti, cooked to al dente
Instructions
- Add bacon to large skillet on medium heat and cook until fat begins to render.
- Add the onion and mushrooms to the bacon, continue cooking until softened.
- Add kale, garlic, sun dried tomatoes, and chicken broth. Cook until kale is wilted.
- Stir in the heavy cream, parmesan, and shredded chicken. Simmer until chicken is warmed through and sauce has thickened slightly. Season with salt and pepper as needed.
- Toss chicken mixture with cooked spaghetti. Garnish with fresh chives and extra parmesan.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition
Storage & Reheating
This creamy chicken spaghetti stores well and reheats like a dream.
- Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Reheating: Warm gently on the stovetop or in the microwave with a splash of chicken broth or cream to loosen the sauce.
- Freezing: Not recommended. Pasta with cream-based sauces tend to separate after freezing and reheating.
recipe testing notes & troubleshooting
- Let the bacon do the work: Rendering the bacon first gives you plenty of flavorful fat for cooking the vegetables and building the sauce.
- Rotisserie chicken goes in last: It’s already cooked, so it only needs enough time to warm through. This keeps it tender instead of drying it out.
- Keep the sauce gentle: Once the cream and Parmesan are added, a low simmer is plenty. High heat can cause the sauce to separate. I promise. Been there before.
- The sauce will tighten as it sits: Keep a little pasta water handy to loosen it just before serving if needed.
More easy pasta recipes You'll Love
If creamy, comforting, weeknight pasta dinners are your love language, try these next:
- Creamy Lemon Shrimp Orzo – A creamy, one-dish shrimp dinner with bright lemon flavor, ready in about 30 minutes.
- Ground Beef Stroganoff: Rich, creamy, and fast—everything a comfort dinner should be.
- One-Pot Chicken and Couscous : Simple ingredients, big flavor, and minimal cleanup.
- Cheesy Taco Pasta Skillet: A one-pot, family-friendly mashup that disappears fast.
- Skillet Lasagna – All the comfort of lasagna without the layering or long bake time.
Who’s Stirring the Pot?
Hi, I’m Ruth—recipe developer, comfort-food creator, and the voice behind Rufus For Real. I specialize in cozy, doable, flavor-packed meals for real-life kitchens, and I’m a firm believer that breakfast, dinner, and everything in between should be simple, satisfying, and impossible to mess up.
You’ll find me sharing even more comfort-food goodness, kitchen tips, and behind-the-scenes chaos over on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube (@rufusforreal everywhere).
If you love approachable recipes with a whole lot of personality, pull up a chair—there’s always room at this table.
Happy Cooking!
-Ruth aka Rufus