Home » Casseroles » Classic Chicken Tetrazzini
A baked casserole made with chicken or turkey, pasta, mushrooms and cheese that's easy enough for weeknights and delicious enough for special occasions and is PERFECT for leftover turkey!
Updated 5/11/26
Chicken (or turkey) tetrazzini combines some of the best comfort food components (pasta, chicken or turkey, and cheese) into one big casserole!
And the best part is that is nice enough to serve guests or prepare for a special meal, even though it's fairly simple to make. I have yet to serve this to someone that they didn't ask me for the recipe!
It's an American classic for a reason: it's GOOD!
KEY INGREDIENTS FOR TRADITIONAL TETRAZZINI
- Spaghetti or linguine
- Cooked chicken or turkey
- Mushrooms
- Creamed soup (or homemade version)
- White wine or vermouth
- Mozzarella or cheddar cheese
WHY I PREFER THESE INGREDIENTS
Linguine - it's a little sturdier than spaghetti and stands up to the creamy sauce and chunky chicken.
White wine - it's milder than vermouth and I associate vermouth more with beef recipes than chicken or turkey.
Cheddar cheese - I like the contrast in color more than you get with mozzarella and it's creamier than the stretchy mozzarella.
8 TIPS FOR MAKING CHICKEN (OR TURKEY) TETRAZZINI
1 - You'll need to have about 4-5 cups cooked cubed or chopped chicken or turkey. Leftovers and rotisserie chicken are great in this!
2 - You can use cream of chicken, celery, onion, mushroom or any combination of the lot in this recipe – just use 2 cans total.
3 - Use a dry white wine like chardonnay or sauvignon blanc.
4 - You can substitute chicken broth for the wine if you must but I highly recommend using the wine as it brightens the flavor and balances all the creamy components.
5 - Baby bella or button mushrooms are best in this.
6 - Though I haven’t done it myself, I hear tetrazzini freezes beautifully.
7 - You can absolutely cut this recipe in half. Divide all ingredients exactly in half and bake for 20-25 minutes.
8 - Breaking the pasta in half makes it easier to work with and serve.
Recipe for Classic Chicken (or Turkey) Tetrazzini
Classic Chicken (or Turkey) Tetrazzini
Tetrazzini made with chicken or turkey, pasta, mushrooms, wine (optional) and cheese is easy enough for weeknight meals and special enough for special occasions and is the PERFECT casserole recipe for leftover turkey!
Ingredients
- 1 lb. linguine pasta
- 4 cups cooked chicken (or turkey)
- 5 tablespoons butter
- 8-12 oz. mushrooms, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 can cream of chicken soup
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 pint sour cream
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 8 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
Instructions
- Break pasta in half then cook in liberally salted water per manufacturer’s instructions for al dente preparation. Drain well then set aside. If not immediately mixing the cooked pasta, rinse to ensure it doesn't stick together.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- While pasta is cooking, sauté mushrooms in butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat for 4-5 minutes or until mushrooms start to brown. Add garlic, reduce heat to medium and continue cooking for 3 minutes.
- Add wine to mushrooms, stir to deglaze the pan then simmer for 6-8 minutes or until wine is reduced by about half.
- Take a minute to appreciate that beautiful mushroom wine reduction you just made. You go, girl.
- Combine soups (unprepared), sour cream, milk, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl then stir until well combined and creamy.
- Add mushrooms, pasta and chicken to soup mixture then stir to combine.
- Pour mixture into a greased 13x9 baking dish then cover with cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbly and cheese is starts to brown.
Notes
- Leftovers and rotisserie chicken are great in this!
- Use a dry white wine like chardonnay or sauvignon blanc.
- You can substitute chicken broth plus a little lemon juice for the wine if you must but I highly recommend using the wine as it brightens the flavor and balances all the creamy components.
- See more tips in article above.
I like to chop up a little onion and celery (esp. celery) into the mix. Lately I've been microwaving some broccoli and tossing it in for some extra roughage. :-)
ReplyDeleteThink I'll be making this for dinner.
Followed through on my threat. :-) I had frozen chicken breasts on hand, which saved a little time. No cheddar, but I ALWAYS have Velveeta on hand - what can I say, I was a 50's kid who still uses Velveeta in his scrambled eggs.
DeleteMMMmmmm. Just like in that old commercial, "I can't believe I ate the whole thing.... " :-)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFKifpMtlNs
DeleteHaha! I haven't seen that in FOREVER! Glad you liked the recipe! Thank you for taking the time to let me know :)
DeleteI agree I came on here for dinner ideas and BAM! This smacked me in the face.... in a good way. THIS is for dinner tonight! And thanks for the *or* note, I have some Vermouth I was trying to figure out how to use up so this helps tremendously!!!
ReplyDelete:o)
DeleteCan this be made in the crock pot? And does it freeze well? Also, do you think I could cut the recipe in half? :) Just messing - looks gorgeous!!
ReplyDeleteSomeone will ask.... just wait and see...
DeleteChuckle :-).
DeleteLooks great! I've never made or eaten tetrazzini either - except perhaps in the ol' college cafeteria??
ReplyDeleteBrandie's comment!! ha ha!! Love it!!
I have frozen a very similar recipe and it does great. Thaw in the fridge and bake until hot and it is just like fresh.
ReplyDeleteThis is completely off topic but I love the dinner plate!
ReplyDeleteI'm a total Pier 1 and World Market junkie.
DeleteLooks pretty damn tasty! I've been thinking about making my own recipe in the future. You're post was very helpful and I'm sure I'll try it out soon :)
ReplyDeleteI love chicken tetrazzini. My mother used to make it often. When my first husband and I were dating, he thought it was Chinese food! It looks delicious.
ReplyDeletei add a little Worcestershire to mine gives it a kick
ReplyDeleteYou say that Canadian and American, Campbell's soup is different, which is better? I live close enough to the border that I could buy either.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely the US. The Canadian is this weird peachy color (colour - ha!) and oddly congealed. Blech!
DeleteHi! Love your recipes. Just got done making the Crock Pot Honey Garlic chicken and it was a big hit with everyone! I am going to make Chicken Tetrazzini next and wanted to ask if I could replace some of the sour cream with Greek yogurt to lighten it up a bit? Thanks for the info.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great basic recipe! I add green olives and pecans to mine!! This is one of those childhood comfort meals!
ReplyDeletelooks really good. I love a tetrazzini. would you guess how much chicken you're using? (( never know if whole chicken breasts, halves, or what is involved). Maybe about 3 cups?
ReplyDeleteFor this recipe I use 4 chicken breasts or about 5 cups of chopped chicken but there's really no wrong way to make this! If you have less chicken than I use, it will still be delicious!
DeleteMade this tonight for the first time and it was delicious! Everyone enjoyed it! Will make it again for sure! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteJust made this for supper and I added Roasted red peppers along with a large diced onion for more flavor. I also used Crm of Chicken Herb soup for a change up on one of the soups. Will serve a nice tossed salad and a warm French baguette for a full meal. Oh, and of course will be serving the left over white wine with it too😊.
ReplyDelete