This creamy pasta dish has chunks of tender chicken, plenty of melted cheese, and a hint of heat from the Anaheim peppers.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This cheesy, creamy Green Chili Chicken Spaghetti is a delicious combination of pasta and your favorite Tex-Mex flavors in one easy dish!
The roasted Anaheim peppers are the star of this hearty dinner, so don’t skip them. Roasting peppers is super easy, and adds a great smoky flavor to this spaghetti.
If you can’t find Anaheim peppers, Hatch chiles or poblanos will work too. Just be aware that poblanos tend to to be spicier than Anaheims. So if you really like things spicy, they’re a great choice.
This dish isn’t super spicy, but if you want to tone down the heat even more, you can also skip the Pepper Jack cheese and use all Monterey Jack.
Personally, I’ve never met a cheese I didn’t like, so anything that can be shredded and melts well will work. Cheddar would be another great addition or substitution in this recipe.
My hungry boys devoured this spaghetti, but if you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, it tastes great the next day. A nice green salad is all you need to make this a complete meal.
It’s also wonderful topped with fresh pico de gallo, or just some diced tomatoes and cilantro. And my husband likes to add a dollop of sour cream on top.
With the help of a rotisserie chicken, this meal comes together quickly and easily. Just be sure to get your chilies roasting ahead of time–you can even roast and chop them the day before.
In a pinch, you could use canned, diced chilies. But this dish really is so much better with fresh roasted chilies. So only use the canned variety if you must.
We love Mexican inspired food, and we love pasta, so this Green Chili Chicken Spaghetti was a huge hit at our house! Hope you like it too.
Be sure to save this recipe to your favorite Pinterest board for later.
Tips for Cooking Pasta
Use a big pot: Cook pasta in a large pot–big enough to hold 6 quarts of water per pound of pasta.
Salt: Generously season your cooking water with salt. A few teaspoons per quart of water is a good place to start. Although a little more or less is fine, depending on your preference.
Don’t overcook: Boil your pasta to until it is al dente, which means it’s cooked, but still a bit chewy. You’ll want to test your pasta for flavor and texture every 20 seconds or so during the last few minutes of cooking.
If you’ll continue cooking the pasta in a sauce, or baking it in the oven, remove the pot from the heat a few minutes before it’s done to prevent overcooking.
Ingredients
- Produce: Anaheim chilies, onions, garlic, cilantro
- Chicken
- Spaghetti
- Butter
- Flour
- Half-and-half
- Monterey Jack cheese
- Pepper Jack cheese
- Spices: cumin, salt and pepper, red pepper flakes
- Lime juice
Green Chili Chicken Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 4 Anaheim chilies
- 3 cups cooked shredded chicken
- 8 ounces spaghetti
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 2 cups half-and-half
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 2 cups shredded Pepper Jack cheese
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1-2 tablespoons lime juice
Instructions
- Set broiler to high heat. Place chilies on a baking sheet and roast until blackened, 10-12 minutes, turning once halfway through cooking time. Place in a zip top bag and allow to cool.
- Meanwhile, cook spaghetti according to package directions until just al dente. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Add onion and garlic and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in flour and cook 1-2 minutes more.
- Whisk in half-and-half and broth. Cook and stir until sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Stir in half of the Monterey Jack and half of the Pepper Jack cheese.
- Stir in cilantro, cumin salt and pepper and red pepper flakes and lime juice. Remove chilies from bag and rub off skin. Remove stems and seeds and dice. Add to skillet, along with the chicken. Add spaghetti and stir to coat well.
- To with remaining cheese. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until light brown and bubbly. Garnish with fresh cilantro or pico de gallo, if desired.
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Nutrition
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4 comments
Shelly
Can this be frozen? If so, would I bake it first and then freeze or put in the freezer before baking?
LL
This is so good! Even my picky eater loved it.
Chuck
I love this recipe. I use fettuccine instead of spaghetti. It’s alway a hit and there is none left…
Ru
I made this tonight and it was amazing.