Crack Chicken Pasta – chicken and bacon tossed in a quick homemade cheesy ranch sauce! Ready to eat in under 15 minutes. Such an easy weeknight meal!! Cooked chicken, bacon, butter, flour, milk, cheddar cheese, ranch dressing mix, and pasta. Everyone in the family loves this! Serve with a salad and some crusty garlic bread – so delicious! We make this all the time!
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Pin This RecipeChicken Pasta with Cheddar, Bacon & Ranch
This Crack Chicken Pasta is a weeknight favorite. Chicken and bacon tossed in a quick cheddar ranch sauce. OMG! SO good. The best part about this recipe is that it is super easy to make. I boiled the pasta and then used the same pot to make the cheese sauce and toss everything together. I took a shortcut and used half of a rotisserie chicken and this was done in minutes. We both loved it. How could we not since it has all the flavors of our beloved “Crack” Dip in it! Serve this with a salad and some bread for a delicious weeknight meal!
What does CRACK mean?
If a recipe has “crack” in the title it means that the recipe has cheddar, bacon, and ranch in the ingredients. It all started with my Crack Dip way back in 2007. I made the dip for a Titans football game. Everyone went crazy over it. We couldn’t stop eating it and said it was like crack. The name stuck.
According to the dictionary, the definition of crack is “of superior excellence or ability”. We think the flavor combination of cheddar, bacon, and ranch fits this definition! This recipe is most definitely of superior excellence!
How to Make Crack Chicken Pasta
As I said, this dish is super simple to make. In a large pot, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside. In the same pot melt butter. Add flour and stir. Cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in milk. Continue cooking until the sauce thickens. Stir in ranch dressing mix and cheese. Stir until cheese melts. Add chicken, bacon, and pasta. Stir to coat and enjoy!
- I used rotisserie chicken for the cooked chicken in this pasta dish.
- Here is our recipe for Slow Cooker Rotisserie Chicken: https://www.plainchicken.com/slow-cooker-rotisserie-chicken/
- Can substitute turkey bacon for pork bacon in this pasta.
- Can use any shape of pasta that you prefer. I like penne or bowtie pasta.
- Feel free to toss in some steamed broccoli for a full meal!
- Adjust the ranch dressing mix to your personal preference.
- Here is our recipe for Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix: https://www.plainchicken.com/homemade-ranch-dressing-mix/
What to Serve with Chicken Mac & Cheese with Bacon
This quick pasta is one of our all-time favorite recipes. I always have the ingredients on hand to whip up a batch at a moment’s notice. We usually serve the pasta with some broccoli or a salad and some rolls. Give this a try the next time you need a quick and easy meal to please the whole family!
Need more side dish ideas? Here are a few of our favorite recipes from the blog that go great with this stovetop mac & cheese:
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Crack Chicken Pasta – Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta
Equipment:
Ingredients:
- 8- ounces penne pasta
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 Tbsp ranch dressing mix
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- ⅓ cup cooked chopped bacon
- 2 cups cooked chopped chicken
Instructions:
- In a large pot, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- In the same pot melt butter. Add flour and stir. Cook flour for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in milk. Continue cooking until the sauce thickens.
- Stir in ranch dressing mix and cheese. Stir until cheese melts. Add chicken, bacon, and cooked pasta. Stir to coat.
Notes:
- I used rotisserie chicken for the cooked chicken in this pasta dish.
- Here is our recipe for Slow Cooker Rotisserie Chicken: https://www.plainchicken.com/slow-cooker-rotisserie-chicken/
- Can substitute turkey bacon for pork bacon in this pasta.
- Can use any shape of pasta that you prefer. I like penne or bowtie pasta.
- Adjust the ranch dressing mix to your personal preference.
- Here is our recipe for Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix: https://www.plainchicken.com/homemade-ranch-dressing-mix/
Steph
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Made this tonight. Very good! I added garlic, smoked paprika and pepper. I also increased the roux. We like sauce!
Do you bake it?
No
Do you bake it?
I made this for lunch today. It was good, creamy and flavorful. We did not think it too salty. The only change I had to make was using less chicken. I didn't have as much leftover chicken as I thought I had. It turned out more like a jazzed up mac & cheese, but very good non the less.
Hey we made this tonight and the flavor was awesome, but the sauce came out gritty. Can't figure out what went wrong. Thoughts?
Made this tonight and it was a hit! I used spiral noodles instead of penne, and my kids loved it. Thanks!
Made this twice now and it's become one of our favorites! It's so yummy.
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Oh my! Made this tonight for supper and it was delicious!!! I added white onion and sautéed with the melted butter and used the 'Fiesta' ranch mix. We can't wait to make it again!!! So creamy and yummy!
I followed the recipe exactly the way it was written, and it turned out perfect. It was very good and we well definately make this again. Thanks for sharing.
Could you do this in a crock pot? I don't currently have a stove!!!
Made this for dinner and ended up doing a double batch for me, my boyfriend and his family. He had 4 HUGE bowls and then the left overs the next day. I must say this was a very good dish and with bee one to put in the books 🙂
I've made this before and my fiancée and I really enjoyed it. I'm making it again tonight for friends but instead of chicken I plan on using chorizo. I'm crossing my fingers that all turns out well.
I just love pasta! Always tastes best with wine, specially if you chose the best quality! I'll try this soon. Thank you!
– Lilly Rason
Thanks for the wonderful recipes, time and time again. I've been cooking some dishes for my date lately and it's going on pretty well. You're a life-saver!
Best,
Mischna Ong
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Will this work with ranch dressing not dry seasoning?
This was a no go with my bunch. Too bad it looked very promising.It was eaten but will not be requested again.
Made this recipe last night and it was delicious! I doubled the recipe and I didn't have enough cheese so I added cream cheese and sour cream. I also added spicy mustard. Certainly a new favorite!
I made this for dinner tonight for my family and they loved it. I added mustard to it for taste and it came out awesome.
Made this tonight. It was amazing! Added the mustard (very little) and poured the whole packet of organic ranch dressing seasoning, and used about 3/4 block of mild cheddar cheese (8oz). Delicious! Salad and bread made it a perfect full meal. Thank you!
How did you all cook the chicken first? Boil it?
rotisserie chicken works fabulous with this!
Very yummy. Used homemade ranch seasoning and there is plenty of flavor.
This wasn't bad. I did have to add a squirt of liquid ranch to add a little more flavor & creaminess. My husband & 2 children LOVED it and said they would want me to make it again. So it's a keeper! Thanks!**I used a generic dry ranch seasoning packet (Surefine)- Anyone try the Hidden Valley packet, and have great success with this recipe?**
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I just made this tonight, I added some button mushrooms to the mix and mixed mild and sharp cheddar cheese. It was delicious!
The only thing I noticed, however, was that the sauce was a little clumpy, even after letting the flour cook a little bit and whisking everything pretty well… Wonder how to fix that?
Great recipe, thanks so much!
I made this tonight, substituting Chicken Chipotle Ranch brats from my local (awesome) meat market and bowtie pasta – YUM. Going on the repeat list! 🙂
How many people does it ?
How many people does it serve ?
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I want to try this tonight…. this looks delicious.
I used this as the starting point for our dinner tonight. Followed the recipe, but used egg noodles cuz that's all I had. I added a bunch of spinach, upped the sauce amount slightly, and mixed it all together in a 9×13 pan. Popped it in the oven because I like crispy food, and holy smokes, this was so tasty!
One thing I've noticed, sauces like these only thicken if you use something other than skim milk. I cheated and added some half-and-half to my skim to simulate whole milk…
I just made this for dinner and it was delicious!!!! I used elbow macaroni and it turned out great! Thank you for a great recipe!!!!!
The addition of sautéed onions and fresh diced tomatoes would be awesome!
How wuld you make this recipe if you had the packit off ranch all redy make. I want to make it but I dont have the dri ranch.
Made this last night and everyone loved it! Thank you for sharing.
Doubled this and fixed it tonight for my Grown Daughters and their Boyfriends, A HUGE HIT, no leftovers.
Debbie, I think canned chicken would be fine. Hope you enjoy it!
Do you think this would be ok with canned chicken? I have some in the pantry and need to use it in something. Want to use chicken breast with other recipes on your blog.
Omg I am all over this recipe! It's going on my menu for this week, thank you!
Miss Hensley – it will serve 4. You can stretch it to 6 if you serve bread and salad.
About how many does this recipe feed? I'm making dinner for 6 and was wondering if I should double the recipe or not. Thanks!
Another great dish!!!
I took a shortcut and used "Real Bacon" bits. I've fixed this twice and shared it also.
Thanks for sharing it.
Try marinating the chicken in fajita seasoning. Someone suggested this to me in version that puts these ingredients on a pizza using ranch as the sauce and I though it sounded nasty but I took her at her word and there just are no tasty adjectives I could use to describe how even more over the top delicious I thought chicken, ranch and bacon could be.
Thank you Stephanie!!
Denise – if you want to freeze it, I would make it and then put it in a 9×13 pan. Reheat it in the oven at about 350.
I am looking to make sympathy meals. The widow likes pasta. Do you think this would freeze well? If so, how would you cook it afterwards? I need to make these meals tomorrow (Sunday 10/1).
Thank you in advance for your help.
Amberly – I think you might just need to cook it a little longer – it takes a few minutes to feel it thicken up. you could also add a little more flour.
I tried this recipe last night. The flavor was great, but the sauce was really soupy. Any suggestions?
So good made for dinner. I agree a little mustard would be good!!
So good made for dinner. I agree a little mustard would be good!!
Have this on the menu for this week! Can't wait to try it. TFS
Anna @ Bean Bug Crafts
Pinned it, gonna make it!
My husband made this for us the other night – it was delicious!
Made this last night and OMG GOOD! Husband loved it too. Only thing I may change WHEN I make it again, is cut back on the ranch seasoning. Maybe it was the brand I used but it seemed a bit too salty. Having said that, we both cleaned our plates – delicious!
Made this lastnight using bowtie pasta (WackyMac brand) and LOVED IT!!!
Next time I'll add a little mustard to the sauce to kick up the flavor just a tad.
Thank you for sharing this recipe. A keeper for sure.
I have to admit that I've used leftover "Crack dip" on pasta before — just cooked and drained the past and stirred in the dip. It's not so bad!
Well, this looks delicious!!!
I love the ranch recipes! I can't wait to try this one!
It does look delicious.
Pinned! Oh my son would love this dish! I will be making this soon. If you get a chance come visit my blog and follow back. Have a great week.
Thanks
~Rina