Overnight Chicken Fajita Pasta – a new family favorite. Cheesy chicken pasta loaded with veggies and Mexican spices. Just dump everything in the baking dish and refrigerate overnight. No boiling the noodles ahead of time! Chicken, cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, milk, chicken broth, onion, peppers, uncooked elbow macaroni, fajita seasoning, and cheddar cheese. Taco Tuesday never tasted so good!
In a large bowl combine cooked chicken, cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup, milk, chicken broth, onions, pepper, and fajita seasoning. Stir in uncooked pasta.
Pour pasta mixture into prepared pan. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Remove casserole from refrigerator and uncover.
Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Top casserole with shredded cheese.
Bake, uncovered, for 1 hour.
Notes:
DO NOT cook the pasta before assembling the casserole. Use the pasta dry - straight from the box.
I use whole rotisserie chicken in this dish. You can use any cooked chicken you have on hand.
You can use any combination of cream of soups in this casserole. Cream of chicken, mushroom, or celery are all good.
I suggest using Unsalted Cream of Chicken & Mushroom Soups in this dish to control the sodium.
Substitute mushroom bouillon to make cream of mushroom soup.
I use a combination of green bell peppers, yellow bell peppers, and red bell peppers. Feel free to use one type of pepper if you don't want to spend the extra money.
Do I need to cook the peppers and onion before adding them to the casserole? I did not cook the veggies before adding them to the pasta mixture. I think they cook fine along with the pasta.
Feel free to sauté the onions and peppers in some olive oil over medium-high heat before adding them to the casserole.
You can use any shredded cheese that you enjoy. I usually use cheddar cheese. A Mexican cheese blend is equally delicious.
Can substitute taco seasoning for the packet of fajita seasoning.
Here is our recipe for Homemade Taco Seasoning made with chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper: https://www.plainchicken.com/homemade-taco-seasoning/
I use elbow macaroni. You can use any short pasta that you have on hand. Penne , farfalle, or rigatoni pasta work good.