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This Pesto Chicken Spaghetti Squash Dinner is an easy, one-pan meal that comes together with just a few fresh ingredients. Everything cooks on the same sheet pan — chicken, spaghetti squash, and cherry tomatoes — for less mess (but just as much delicious flavor!). Toss it all with pesto and add soft mozzarella or burrata on top for a simple, healthy dinner that tastes amazing. It’s simple enough for weeknights, beautiful enough to serve to guests, and packed with real-food ingredients.
Nutritional benefits of this recipe
- Pesto has basil in it which is rich in antioxidant and nutrients that are great for the immune system, GI tract, heart, and more. I also like using homemade pesto which uses olive oil as a healthier alternative to the store-bought versions with typically have a vegetable oil.
- Chicken is rich in tryptophan, which promotes serotonin. Also rich zinc, selenium, iron, and b-vitamins. Eating protein helps regulate cravings, hunger, blood sugar, weight, and energy.
- Spaghetti squash is low glycemic and high in fiber. It also has lots of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals such as Vitamin A, C, and B6.
- For the healthiest dairy, I always recommend buying grass-fed. Better yet, if you can support a local farm that has grass-fed cows and dairy products, then do that! I used the Buf Creamery mozzarella balls which are soft in the center like burrata. They’re also from grass-fed water buffalo, which is amazing!
- Tomatoes are rich in antioxidants like lycopene, as well as Vitamin C, lutein, zeaxanthin.
Ingredients for Pesto Chicken Spaghetti Squash
Spaghetti squash – mine was 2 1/2 pounds, 8×4 inches. I recommend finding one the same size or smaller so that it cooks at the same rate as the recipe. You’ll need to adjust the cook time if it’s any bigger.
Chicken breasts
Spices: Granulated garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper
Cherry tomatoes – I used on-vine tomatoes, but regular cherry tomatoes work too.
Burrata or mozzarella balls – I use Buf Creamery mozzarella balls which are soft in the center like burrata. They’re also from grass-fed water buffalo, which is amazing!
Pesto sauce – either homemade or a healthy store-bought one that uses olive oil or avocado oil instead of vegetable oils like canola, safflower, sunflower, etc.
How to make Pesto Chicken Spaghetti Squash
Prep the Squash
- Preheat oven to 375°F and grease a large sheet pan.
- Cut the spaghetti squash across the middle (not lengthwise), so each half makes a bowl.
- Scoop out seeds and drizzle each half with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Place the halves cut side down on one side of the sheet pan.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes to give the squash a head start. Cooking time varies by how soft you like the “noodles”. If your squash is any bigger than 2 1/2 pounds (8×4″), then you will need to add even more time.
Prepare the Chicken and Tomatoes
- While the squash starts roasting:
- Drizzle avocado oil over the chicken and season both sides with granulated garlic, italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Cover and place in the refrigerator.
- After the squash has roasted for 15 minutes, add the chicken breasts to the other side of the pan. Put the cherry tomatoes on the pan and drizzle with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper.
- Return to oven and roast for another 20–30 minutes until:
- Chicken reaches 165°F internal temperature
- Squash is tender and strands pull away from the sides easily with a fork
- Tomatoes are blistered and juicy
If needed, you can remove anything that finishes early. It should all be done roughly the same time, but depending on the size of each chicken breast or how long the tomatoes take, something may take a few minutes shorter than other things. Just remove and place on a plate while everything else finishes up.
Finish and Assemble
- Once cooked, remove the chicken, place on a plate, cover, and let rest 5 minutes. This helps the chicken stay juicy when cutting into it.
- To plate: Scrape the squash strands gently with a fork to loosen them and place into a bowl like a bed of spaghetti. Slice the chicken and put on top of the spaghetti squash, add the blistered tomatoes, pesto sauce, and burrata or mozzarella balls (if desired, you an warm the mozzarella in the oven for a couple minutes before adding to the bowl).
Note on variation in cooking time
The cooking time can vary based off the size of the spaghetti squash that you buy. I recommend buying a squash that is no larger than 2 1/2 lbs (8×4″) to keep the cooking time consistent with the recipe.
Other recipes you’ll love
Pesto Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken
Autumn Harvest Roasted Chicken & Veggies
Moroccan Chicken & Veggies with Lemon Garlic Sauce
I hope you love this one-pan Pesto Chicken Spaghetti Squash! Please be sure to leave a comment and a rating I you give this recipe a try. I would love to know how it turned out for you!
PrintPesto Chicken Spaghetti Squash (One Pan!)
An easy one-pan dinner featuring roasted spaghetti squash, juicy chicken, blistered cherry tomatoes, pesto sauce, and soft mozzarella or burrata. Everything cooks together on a single sheet pan, so it’s flavorful meal that’s perfect for weeknights.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 3–4 servings 1x
- Category: dinner
- Method: sheet pan
Ingredients
Spaghetti squash:
1 small spaghetti squash, mine was 2 1/2 pounds, 8×4 inches
Salt, pepper
Chicken:
3 medium chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
1 Tbsp avocado oil
2 tsp granulated garlic
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp italian seasoning
Fresh cracked black pepper
Extra:
Cherry tomatoes, I used on vine
Burrata or soft mozzarella balls, I use Buf Creamery
Pesto sauce, either homemade or healthy store-bought
Instructions
Prep the Squash
- Preheat oven to 375°F and grease a large sheet pan.
- Cut the spaghetti squash across the middle (not lengthwise), so each half makes a bowl.
- Scoop out seeds and drizzle each half with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Place the halves cut side down on one side of the sheet pan.
- Bake for 20 minutes to give the squash a head start. Cooking time varies by how soft you like the “noodles”. If your squash is any bigger than 2 1/2 pounds (8×4″), then you will need to add even more time.
Prepare the Chicken and Tomatoes
While the squash starts roasting:
- Drizzle avocado oil over the chicken and season both sides with granulated garlic, italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Cover and place in the refrigerator.
- After the squash has roasted for 20 minutes, add the chicken breasts to the other side of the pan. Put the cherry tomatoes on the pan and drizzle with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper.
- Return to oven and roast for another 20–30 minutes until:
- Chicken reaches 165°F internal temperature
- Squash is tender and strands pull away from the sides easily with a fork
- Tomatoes are blistered and juicy
If needed, you can remove anything that finishes early. It should all be done roughly the same time, but depending on the size of each chicken breast or how long the tomatoes take, something may take a few minutes shorter than other things. Just remove and place on a plate while everything else finishes up.
Finish and Assemble
- Once cooked, remove the chicken, place on a plate, cover, and let rest 5 minutes. This helps the chicken stay juicy when cutting into it.
- To plate: Scrape the squash strands gently with a fork to loosen them and place into a bowl like a bed of spaghetti. Slice the chicken and put on top of the spaghetti squash, add the blistered tomatoes, pesto sauce, and burrata or mozzarella balls (if desired, you an warm the mozzarella in the oven for a minute before adding to the bowl).
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Notes:
The cooking time can vary based off the size of the spaghetti squash that you buy. I recommend buying a squash that is no larger than 2 1/2 lbs to keep the cooking time consistent with the recipe.
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