An alfredo inspired pasta dish with a creamy sauce, fresh broccoli and chicken. The sauce comes together in the time it takes to boil the pasta, making it a perfect weeknight comfort meal you’re sure to love!
Creamy Chicken Pasta will be your new weeknight favorite!
There are few things more perfect that a big bowl of creamy pasta. Especially one that comes together in the time it takes to boil said pasta. This recipe is so quick to come together (literally 25 minutes) and doesn’t require much prep work aside from cutting chicken and broccoli! This recipe is two servings but can be easily doubled for more people! It’s a perfect mid-week pick me up. You can find options for substitutions as well as vegetarian swaps at the bottom of the post.
What you need to make Creamy Chicken Pasta
The ingredients list for this recipe is fairly short and doesn’t require much prep ahead of time, so it’s a great recipe for a weeknight when you want something delicious, with minimal effort.
- olive oil
- chicken thighs
- kosher salt & black pepper
- pasta (I prefer a short noodle for this recipe)
- broccoli (you can buy a bag of broccoli florets and cut down on prep even more!)
- white wine
- butter
- heavy cream
- parmesan cheese
- parsley
How to make Creamy Chicken Pasta
The steps for this recipe are very simple and the sauce comes together in the time it takes to boil the pasta, so you can have dinner on the table in under 20 minutes! Just make sure to have your broccoli and chicken chopped before boiling the water, and the whole thing will come together seamlessly.
Browning the Chicken
Start by bringing a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil, while you heat the olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over high heat. (I love my 12″ Lodge Cast Iron for this recipe) Once the pan is hot, add the chicken in a single layer. Season with salt and pepper and cook, undisturbed, until the chicken becomes white around the edges. Flip the chicken and cook on the second side until cooked through, about 4 minutes. Leaving the chicken to cook, undisturbed, is what helps to create a brown crust on the outside. Once the chicken is browned and cooked through, remove it from the pan and set aside while you make the sauce.
Once the water comes to a boil, cook your pasta according to package instructions. When there are 90 seconds left on the pasta, toss in the broccoli florets to cook with the pasta.
Making the Sauce
The sauce is made in the same pan that you brown the chicken, mostly for flavor, but also to cut down on dishes.
With the heat still on high, add the wine and deglaze the pan. Allow the wine to bubble up and slightly reduce, while you scrape the bottom of the pan, releasing any browned bits that formed from cooking the chicken. Browned bits = flavor.
In the wise words of my queen and role model, Anne Burrell, “brown food tastes good”. Please tell me someone gets that reference from her show? SOMEONE?
When the wine has reduced slightly, add the butter and cream. Cook for two minutes over medium high heat, until the sauce begins to bubble up and thicken.
Add ¼ cup of the cheese and stir to combine. Once the cheese has melted, taste the sauce and add salt and pepper if needed. You want the sauce to be thick enough that when you run your spatula down the pan, it holds on either side. Continue cooking the sauce on the lowest heat while the pasta finishes cooking.
Finishing the Creamy Chicken Pasta
Once the pasta and broccoli have finished cooking, add them to the sauce. Scoop the pasta and broccoli, using a strainer or slotted spoon, directly from the water, into the sauce. Some of the pasta water will transfer into the sauce, helping to thicken and emulsify the sauce.
Top with remaining ¼ cup cheese and parsley. Stir to combine and serve with additional Parmesan cheese.
If you love easy pasta recipes, check out my 15 Minute Spaghetti Carbonara!
Questions about Creamy Chicken Pasta
Yes! I recommend swapping the chicken for mushrooms & sautéing them before making the sauce as the recipe states. *Parmesan Cheese is not classified as vegetarian, so depending on your diet I would also recommend using a vegan parmesan.
This pasta recipe is best served immediately. Once the sauce cools, it looses it’s thickness, so I don’t recommend re-heating this pasta.
Absolutely! This pasta recipe would be delicious with asparagus (only cook for 45 seconds in boiling water) or zucchini (skip the boil & sauté with the chicken).
Creamy Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
- ½ lb Chicken Thighs cut into 1 ½" pieces
- Kosher Salt
- Black Pepper
- 8 oz Pasta I prefer a short noodle for this recipe
- 2 cups Broccoli cut into medium sized florets
- ¼ cup White Wine
- 2 tablespoons Butter
- ⅓ cup Heavy Cream
- ½ cup Parmesan divided, plus more for serving
- ¼ cup Parsley roughly chopped
Instructions
- Begin by bringing a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil.
- While your water comes to a boil, heat a large cast iron skillet with olive oil, over high heat. Once pan is hot, add the chicken in a single layer. Season with salt and pepper and cook, undisturbed, until the chicken becomes white around the edges. Flip the chicken and cook on the second side until cooked through, about 4 minutes.
- Once the water is boiling, add the pasta. When there are 90 seconds remaining on the pasta, add the broccoli.
- Remove cooked chicken from the pan and set aside.
- With the heat still on high, add the wine and deglaze the pan. Allow the wine to bubble up and slightly reduce, while you scrape the bottom of the pan, releasing any browned bits that formed from cooking the chicken.
- When the wine has reduced slightly, add the butter and cream. Cook for two minutes over medium high heat, until the sauce begins to thicken.
- Add ¼ cup of the cheese and stir to combine. Once the cheese has melted, taste the sauce and add salt and pepper if needed. Continue cooking the sauce on the lowest heat while the pasta finishes cooking.
- Once pasta and broccoli have finished cooking, add them to the sauce. Scoop the pasta and broccoli, using a strainer or slotted spoon, directly from the water into the sauce. Some of the pasta water will transfer into the sauce, helping to thicken and emulsify the sauce. Top with remaining ¼ cup cheese and parsley. Stir to combine and serve with additional Parmesan cheese.
BROWN FOOD TASTES GOOD!
Can’t wait to try this recipe this week 👩🏻🍳
This tastes really good and comes together very quickly. Plus with the broccoli included it’s a full meal, no extra side dishes needed!
That’s definitely what I love about it too!