Sometimes cooking for the fam feels like a whole project, but this easy chicken stuffed shells recipe saves me every. single. time. I keep it in my back pocket for when everybody’s hungry and need a big pan of food ASAP. It’s basically cheesy chicken and broccoli mixed with a Creole cream sauce stuffed into jumbo pasta shells, so y’all already know it’s gonna be a hit. Even with the pickiest eaters!
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PRO TIP: Layer a thin spoonful of sauce on the bottom of your baking dish before adding the stuffed shells. Keeps them from sticking!
Chicken Stuffed Shells Recipe
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Ingredients
- 1/2 (12 ounce) box jumbo shells 6 ounces total
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp minced garlic
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese divided
- 1 tbsp creole seasoning divided
- 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
- salt (if needed) to taste
- black pepper to taste
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 1 cup rotisserie chicken shredded
- 1 cup broccoli cooked and diced
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- Parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.
- Cook the jumbo pasta shells according to the instructions on the box and set aside separately to bring back to room temperature.
- Add butter to a large pan over medium high heat. Once melted, add garlic and cook for 30-60 seconds making sure not to overcook and cause burning.
- Add heavy cream, ½ cup of parmesan cheese, ½ tablespoon of creole seasoning, and all of the Italian seasoning and stir to mix together. Bring cream sauce to a boil then reduce heat to low and simmer for 5-7 minutes to thicken. Once thickened, remove from heat and pour into a large baking pan and set aside.
- Next in a separate medium sized bowl, add ricotta cheese, chicken, broccoli, onion, remaining parmesan and remaining creole seasoning and stir together to combine well.
- Stuff room temperature shells with chicken mixture and add to bottom of sauced baking pan.
- Cover with mozzarella cheese and bake for 20 minutes or until cheese has completely melted and is bubbling. Remove from oven. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes, garnish with parsley and serve.
Video
Notes
- Fridge: Store baked shells in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days.
- Freezer: Freeze the unbaked stuffed shells in a covered dish or freezer bag for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before baking.
- Reheating: Warm leftovers in the oven at 350°F until heated through, or microwave individual portions if you’re in a rush.
Nutrition
Recipe Tips
- Cook your shells to al dente. They should be tender with a little bite left, otherwise they’ll tear apart when you stuff them.
- Make sure the sauce coats the back of a spoon. That’s how you’ll know it’s thick enough to hold up your creamy chicken stuffed shells.
- Don’t go wild stuffing the pasta! Overfilled shells will split open in the oven.
- Shred your own mozzarella cheese. It melts smoother and gives these cheesy chicken stuffed shells the best pull.
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Serving Suggestions
- Bread: Every plate of pasta needs bread y’all. I love serving these chicken broccoli stuffed shells with garlic bread, cheesy breadsticks, or a slice of roasted garlic bread.
- Veggies: Keep it simple with garlic green beans, honey glazed carrots, or a classic coleslaw.
- Salads: A bright Caesar salad or a cucumber and onion salad adds freshness to go with the stuffed shells.
Recipe Help
Yes! You can assemble the shells, cover them tightly, and refrigerate for up to a day before baking.
Keep simmering until it coats the back of a spoon. If it still looks loose, stir in a little more parmesan cheese.
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Can I freeze these Stuffed Shells. Thank You.
You can, but the texture may change due to the dairy in the recipe.
I did this with my girls and the one who doesn’t like broccoli, loved it and the one who doesn’t like cooking had a ball! Thank you from the bottom of my heart. ❤️
Awe, so happy to hear that! Sometimes, just cooking together changes the flavor!
My family with two little ones loved this recipe! I was out of broccoli but substituted bell peppers and they still turned out delicious 🙂
So glad everyone liked it!
I made this today, and the sauce was amazing but seemed heavy on the salt. What creole seasoning do you recommend? I used Tony’s and thinking maybe I should try salt free and add salt to taste. I loved adding broccoli. My only other suggestion would be to cook the onions before. The raw onions were a bit strong but if I sautee them, they will work great.
Hi Christine, you can definitely use a no-salt creole seasoning and flavor it up based on what you prefer. Definitely make the recipe your own.
My family requests this for their birthday meal. I’ve served it for extended family too and everyone loves it. I like to make the stuffing part the day before to save time the next day and it comes out the same. I like the little bit of spice but not too spicy for those sensitive to spicy.
Wow!! I am so honored, thank you for making it for your family on their special day!
Great recipe and easy to make
Looks great, have question: How does a half box feed six average eater?? Your photo shows 14 total shells, what is the serving size you based your number]ers on? Thanks so much for helping me with this! Lisa
Hi Lisa! So, we eat 2 shells each when I make this, if you think you guys will eat more you can double the recipe!
The most delish dish ever ! Truly! Thank you!
I want to try this recipe so badly, but I can’t figure out if the sodium content of 493mg is for the whole casserole or for 1 of the 6 servings. I can’t find anywhere on here that it says “Per Serving”.
It’s per serving. The nutritional information is calculated by an app and should be used as an estimate. I hope you enjoy!
This was DELICIOUS. Going in my tried and true recipe file. Thanks so much for posting.