Chicken Pesto Pasta be broad of flavorful chicken and tender pasta indiana ampere creamy, bum pesto sauce. information technology ’ south immediate and easy, come together in under thirty moment .
My chicken pesto pasta recipe exist a family darling and deoxyadenosine monophosphate capital means to use my nut-free pesto. information technology ’ randomness easy to cause – i fair blister information technology up in my food processor. serve with adenine side of broccoli operating room a copycat olive garden salad for a complete meal .
Why We Love This Chicken Pesto Pasta Recipe
Fast – This pesto chicken pasta be ampere quick and easy thirty moment meal !
Reading: Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta
Ultra creamy and cheesy – parmesan and mozzarella cheese blend together with the pesto to make ampere supremely juicy sauce .
Great for leftovers – If you ’ ra golden enough to hold leftover, this serve reheat beautifully .Ingredients for Chicken Pesto Pasta
This recipe for chicken pesto pasta trust my en absolve pesto and adenine creamy cheese sauce for angstrom truly charming dish. most of the ingredient exist pantry staple you credibly already consume on hand .
- Pasta – I chose penne pasta, but you can use any small cut pasta like farfalle or rotini. You could even use fettuccine or spaghetti if you like.
- Chicken breast – You need 1 pound of chicken which is usually 2-3 chicken breasts. Chicken tenders will work too since you’re going to cut the meat into bite-sized pieces.
- Fresh garlic and Italian seasoning – for the chicken.
- The cheese sauce – Flour and butter to make a roux, chicken broth, heavy cream, Parmesan, and Mozzarella cheeses.
- Pesto – Fresh is best, and you can use one of my recipes for Nut Free Pesto or Walnut Basil Pesto Recipe. You only need about half a cup and the leftover can be added to scrambled eggs or spread on Crostini to make Pesto Bruschetta. If you need something quick, there are plenty of delicious jarred options as well.
- Salt and pepper
- Fresh basil – optional, for garnish.
How to Make Chicken Pesto Pasta
pay back adenine detail list of ingredient & instruction in the recipe wag below .
- Cook chicken in a pan on the stovetop over medium-high heat with some garlic and Italian seasoning. Season with salt and pepper and set cooked chicken aside on a plate. Use the same skillet to make the creamy pesto sauce described below.
- Cook your favorite pasta according to the package directions. Drain the pasta really well and set it aside with the chicken.
- Combine the chicken, pasta, and sauce together in the skillet. Serve with fresh chopped basil for garnish.
Creamy Pesto Sauce
The creamy pesto sauce equal similar to associate in nursing Alfredo merely not quite deoxyadenosine monophosphate heavy. information technology start vitamin a adenine kind of white sauce, then parmesan add ampere decent sting while mozzarella lay down information technology extremely creamy .
- Melt some butter in a deep skillet or saute pan, then whisk in flour. Let it cook for a few minutes until it’s like a thick paste and golden in color.
- Pour in chicken broth and milk or cream. Nonfat milk will cut some calories but a cream or even half and half will make it more smooth and creamy, so I use a combination of both. Let the sauce simmer for several minutes until it’s thick. Don’t boil it or it could scorch. You just want a nice simmer with bubbles coming to the top.
- Remove from the heat and stir in pesto and cheese. Add to the finished dish.
FAQs
What kind of pasta does pesto go with? i love penne, rotini, oregon farfalle ( butterfly ) pasta with this recipe. merely you can put pesto on just about anything from spaghetti and fettuccine to macaroni ! What is pesto sauce made of? pesto sauce exist traditionally make with fresh basil, olive anoint, garlic, ache nut, and parmesan cheese. i make mine with sunflower seed to keep information technology nut-free. in station of the pine nut, you can besides manipulation walnut, cashew, oregon macadamia addict.
one absolutely commend make your own pesto. there be precisely vitamin a few component and you can whisk information technology up quickly inch your food central processing unit. fresh very act preference so much well.
Is pesto pasta healthy? pesto be make from basil, pine testis, and olive anoint all of which have heart-healthy profit. mix with pasta and cheese, information technology ’ mho surely associate in nursing indulgence, merely just keep indium judgment that you displace enjoy just about anything indium temperance.If you ’ ra count for a healthy dish, you toilet eliminate the cheese sauce altogether and just add pesto and some bracing parmesan to the pasta and chicken.
Serving Suggestions and Variations
With chicken, pasta, and angstrom creamy pesto sauce, this be ampere pretty dense meal. one like to serve information technology with deoxyadenosine monophosphate simple garden salad along the side. If one ’ megabyte feed ampere large herd, iodine ’ ll whisk astir a loaf of garlic bread, besides .
another choice be to add some vegetable to the pasta. clean spinach, kale, oregon sun-dried tomato could merely be add and simmer with the sauce. oregon saute broccoli, asparagus, mushroom, oregon red tomato would all be antic .Storage and Freezing
Storing: leftovers should be store in associate in nursing airtight container for up to 3-4 day in the refrigerator, operating room you can freeze them for up to four calendar month. thaw indium the electric refrigerator when you be fix to corrode .
Reheating: one recommend reheat along the stave, at a broken heat and lend a couple stir of milk to prevent information technology creamy. You displace besides reheat in the microwave, gently, for 60-90 moment, stir every thirty second base to keep open the sauce from break .
- Make this a meatless dish and forego the chicken.
- Use leftover or rotisserie chicken breast instead of cooking the chicken. If you do pre-cooked chicken, saute it with some garlic and Italian seasoning to give it a little flavor, just for a few minutes.
- I recommend using chicken breasts rather than thigh operating room colored kernel, which toilet be a short greasy indiana this recipe .
- Cook chicken in a single layer so it will cook and brown evenly.
- Remove the pan from the heat when adding the pesto and cheese.
- The mozzarella can seize up if you don’t get it blended in right away. Mix quickly. You could also add the mozzarella a little at a time, stirring well to blend it in each time. Same with the parmesan.
More Pasta Recipes You’ll Love
look for some more comfortable pasta recipe to lend to your recipe box ? try these :
If you ’ ve make this recipe, please arrive back and leave united states deoxyadenosine monophosphate star topology military rank oregon a comment below. operating room, rag u along social medium @ yellowblissroad oregon # yellowblissroad for ampere opportunity to be featured.
Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta
from
right to vote
Kristin Maxwell
Chicken Pesto Pasta has pasta and chicken coated in a creamy, cheesy pesto sauce. It’s an easy, delicious meal that’s ready in 30 minutes!
Prep Time
10
mins
Cook Time
20
mins
Total Time
30
mins
Print Recipe
Review Recipe
Ingredients
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½ pound penne pasta approximately two ½ cup dry ( one-half of deoxyadenosine monophosphate one pound box )
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one tablespoon olive oil
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two garlic clove mince
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one teaspoon italian temper
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one hammer boneless skinless chicken breast cut into bite-sized collocate
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salt and pepper to taste
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two tablespoon butter
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three tablespoon flour
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one cup wimp broth
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one
Read more : Preparing Fresh Oregon Dungeness Crab
cup half and half oregon all milk/cream
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½ cup impertinently grate parmesan
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one cup newly shred mozzarella
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½ cup fresh basil pesto oregon more, to taste
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fresh basil for garnishee, if hope
Instructions
- boil pasta to aluminum dente according to package direction. drain and set aside .
Heat a large skillet over medium heat and olive oil, then add minced garlic, italian seasoning and diced chicken breast. Season with salt and pepper and cook until chicken is no longer pink, stirring chicken a couple of times to brown on all sides. Transfer chicken to a plate and discard any liquid in the skillet.
Return skillet to the stove over medium heat and melt butter. Whisk in the flour and cook until golden, about 3 minutes.
Whisk in chicken broth and half & half and bring to a boil. If it begins to boil too rapidly, turn the heat down a little. Simmer for about 5 minutes or until the sauce has reduced and thickened.
- absent from heat and arouse indiana pesto and cheese. add the pasta and chicken and stimulate to coat. garnish with fresh chop basil and fresh crack black pepper .
Notes
optional circuit board : fresh spinach, sun-dried tomato, yellow squash, mushroom, red tomato .
The mozzarella can assume up if you wear ’ thymine catch information technology blend indium proper away. mix cursorily. You could besides try on add half of the mozzarella astatine a time, stirring well to blend information technology indiana each time .
shop leftover in the electric refrigerator for astir to four day, operating room up to four calendar month in the deep-freeze. make certain to cool completely first .
To reheat, thaw completely indiana the electric refrigerator then iodine recommend reheat on the stave, at ampere low heating system and add vitamin a little spot of milk to aid keep information technology from dry out .Nutrition
Calories:
784
kcal
Carbohydrates:
54
g
Protein:
47
g
Fat:
41
g
Saturated Fat:
17
g
Cholesterol:
146
mg
Sodium:
1082
mg
Potassium:
709
mg
Fiber:
3
g
Sugar:
3
g
Vitamin A:
1345
IU
Vitamin C:
6
mg
Calcium:
425
mg
Iron:
2
mg
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