Philly Cheesesteak Pasta (One-Skillet Recipe)

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I wasn’t even planning dinner, to be honest. The day got away from me, I’d forgotten to thaw the chicken, and the kids were already asking what we were having like I knew. I looked in the fridge and saw half a steak, a pepper that was kinda soft, and some provolone left from sandwiches. Pasta was the only thing I had plenty of. So I just… threw it all in a pan. No recipe, no real idea just hunger. And somehow it turned into this creamy Philly cheesesteak pasta thing. Now we make it all the time. Go figure.

If you love one-pan comfort meals, this Creamy Steak and Pasta is another easy weeknight favorite that disappears fast.

Ingredients for Philly Cheesesteak Pasta

• 1 lb ground beef (90/10 lean preferred — no draining needed)
• 1 box (16 oz) rotini pasta, cooked al dente
• 1 can (10.5 oz) Campbell’s French Onion Soup
• 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened and cubed
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced small
• 1 green bell pepper, diced small
• Optional: 2 cups mushrooms, diced small
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (or soy sauce)
• ½ tablespoon garlic powder
• ½ tablespoon onion powder
• ¼ teaspoon paprika
• ½ teaspoon celery salt
• Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley

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How to Make Philly Cheesesteak Pasta (Not Fancy, Just Real)

1. Chop and drop the veggies.
   Butter in the pan first. Not olive oil. Butter. It’s part of the flavor. Medium heat. Then onions, peppers. Just let everything soften. Not brown exactly, but you want them kinda slumped and golden around the edges. Like they gave up, but in a good way. This part takes time — don’t hover, just check in once in a while.

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2. Add your flavor anchors.
   Worcestershire goes in. It sizzles, does its thing. Stir it into the veg. Add garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, celery salt. A few cracks of pepper. Smells pretty good now, right?
3. Now the beef.
   Crumble it in. Not chunks — nobody wants a meatball moment in this dish. I mash it up with a wooden spatula but use whatever. Get it browned all the way through. I don’t always drain mine — depends on the beef. A little fat makes it better. If there’s a lake forming? Okay, drain. Otherwise? Trust your gut.
4. Enter: Sauce phase.
   French Onion Soup goes in. Yup, straight from the can. Stir it. Let it come up to a low simmer. Then cream cheese — chopped small-ish. It’s gonna look like a weird mess at first, like “Did I mess this up?” No. Keep stirring. It smooths out.

5. Toss in the pasta.
   Rotini’s cooked already, obviously. Add it in, mix everything together. You want it coated not swimming. It’ll thicken more in a sec. Toss in the dried parsley if you’re feeling it. (Honestly, I forget this half the time and it’s still great.)
6. Mozzarella moment.
   Heat off. Add two-thirds of the cheese, stir it in. Want the classic baked look? Sprinkle the rest on top and broil it for like a minute. If your pan’s broiler-safe. If not — no broil. Doesn’t really matter. Still tastes like a win.

Craving a baked version with meatballs instead? Try our cheesy Baked Ziti with Meatballs it’s just as satisfying.

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7. Walk away. Really.
   I know you’re hungry, but give it 10 minutes. It’s loose when it’s hot. Let it sit and breathe. It settles into itself — thick, rich, satisfying. If you eat too soon, you’ll just say, “Oh, this is good.” But if you wait? You’ll close your eyes on that first bite.

Can I skip the mushrooms?

Yes. No one’s judging your texture issues.

Tips & Tricks (You Pick These Up After a Couple Batches)

• Don’t crowd the pan.
  I used to toss everything in like it was a stir-fry. Doesn’t work here. Spread the veg out so they can soften and brown. Not steam. Steam ruins the texture feels like chewing a wet salad.
• 90/10 beef is your friend.
  Too fatty, and it turns into grease soup. Too lean, and it’s kind of dry. Middle ground, always. I mean, unless it’s what you already have then do what you gotta do.
• Cream cheese needs prep.
  Trust me on this one. Cut it into chunks before adding. Otherwise, you’ll be chasing globs for ten minutes wondering if you’ve made a horrible mistake. (You haven’t. It just needs help.)
• Let it chill before you eat.
  Not fridge-chill. Just… let it sit a few minutes. Right after cooking, the sauce is too loose. Walk away. Clean up. Come back. Now it’s food.
• Leftovers hit different.
  It thickens overnight, in a good way. Microwave it with a splash of milk or water, and it’s somehow better the second time. I don’t know why it just is.

I don’t have a broiler-safe pan. What now?

Then skip it. Broiling the cheese on top is a bonus, not a rule. Stir it all in. Still hits. No points deducted.

Substitutions & Variations (What Happens When You Don’t Have the Right Stuff)

Nobody ever follows a recipe word for word not really. You swap things, run out of stuff, forget to buy ingredients. This pasta forgives all of that.

Meat Options

• Beef not required.
  If you’ve got steak, even better. Thin slices, fast sear done. It gives more of a classic cheesesteak vibe anyway. That said, I’ve used ground turkey before and nobody noticed until I told them. Not as rich, but still works.
• No meat at all?
  It holds up. Add more mushrooms if you’re into them. Maybe a bit of soy sauce for depth. Lentils can bulk it out too, though that makes it more stew-ish than pasta bake. Still tasty.

Cheese Swaps

• Don’t have mozzarella?
  Use what melts. Provolone, Jack, even cheddar if you’re okay with it being a little sharper. I once used those little cheese slices they melted just fine. Kind of weird, kind of perfect.
• Going dairy-free?
  You can, but you’ve got to work for it. Vegan cream cheese, meltable dairy-free shreds… they won’t behave the same way, but they’ll get you close. Stir slow, heat gently. Patience helps here.

Pasta Flexibility

• No rotini in sight?
  Shells, penne, fusilli — anything short and nubby. Long noodles don’t mix well with chunky sauce. You end up fighting your own dinner.
• Low-carb version?
  Try spaghetti squash or cauliflower rice underneath the sauce. It won’t be pasta, but it will be dinner — and a good one.

Can I make this gluten-free?

Yes. Use a gluten-free pasta you trust, and double-check the soup and Worcestershire labels — some have hidden wheat. It’s not obvious until you go looking.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Info (Give or Take)

Alright, this isn’t lab-tested it’s more of a ballpark breakdown, just so you have an idea of what you’re working with.

• Serving size: about a big scoop — maybe a cup and a half
• Calories: somewhere in the 550–600 range
• Protein: around 25 to 30 grams, depending on the beef and cheese
• Carbs: figure maybe 35 to 40 grams, pasta’s doing most of that
• Fat: definitely on the higher side, roughly 30g or so
• Sodium: yep, it’s salty — the soup and cheese load it up
• Fiber: not a ton — 2, maybe 3 grams if you go heavy on veggies

Obviously, brands and serving sizes shift these numbers around. This isn’t a “light” dish but it’s filling, and it doesn’t leave you digging through the pantry an hour later. That counts for something.

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Final Thoughts

I don’t know something about this dish just works. It’s not fancy. It’s not trying to be clever. But it shows up exactly when you need it to: simple, hearty, and way more satisfying than it has any right to be.

You get all the comfort of a cheesesteak without the mess, and with pasta pulling its weight in the mix, it becomes one of those meals that somehow feels like home even if you’ve never had it before. It’s the kind of recipe that doesn’t ask much just a bit of chopping, a little stirring, and maybe a few tweaks depending on what you’ve got in your kitchen.

And hey, if you make it and end up changing half the ingredients? That’s fine too. That’s kind of the point.

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