Description

Cowboy Butter Chicken Linguine puts seasoned chicken and pasta in a crazy good cream sauce loaded with herb butter. Restaurant quality in thirty minutes with tons of garlic, little bit of heat, bright lemon finish.

Ingredients

Pasta & Chicken

8 oz linguine
1½ lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp garlic salt
½ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp black pepper

Sauce

¼ cup (4 Tbsp) cowboy butter, divided
¾ cup heavy cream
1 tsp garlic salt
¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
½ tsp lemon juice
Lemon slices (for garnish)
Chopped parsley (for garnish)

Friendly Notes:

Thighs are better than breasts honestly, way juicier
Spaghetti, fettuccine, whatever pasta you’ve got works
Grocery store cowboy butter is fine, I buy it premade half the time
Regular half-and-half works if heavy cream feels too ex

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Instructions

Step 1: Cook the Pasta

Boil salted water, cook linguine till it’s got a little bite left. Box will tell you how long. Drain it, leave it alone. Rinsing pasta is a crime against sauce-sticking.

Step 2: Sear the Chicken

Hot skillet, add oil till it shimmers. Chicken goes in, one layer only or it steams instead of browning. Sprinkle on paprika, both salts, pepper. Don’t touch it for 3-4 minutes. I mean it, walk away.

Step 3: Add Cowboy Butter and Finish Cooking

Plop 2 tablespoons cowboy butter in there around the chicken. Flip pieces over, cook another 3-4 minutes till done. Poke the thickest piece – if juice runs clear you’re good, should be 165°F inside. Pull chicken out, cover with foil. Those crusty brown bits stuck to the pan? Pure gold, leave them.

Step 4: Make the Cream Sauce

Heat down to low. Toss in remaining butter, cream, garlic salt, red pepper flakes. Scrape that pan bottom hard with your spoon – all those bits dissolve into the sauce and make it taste incredible. Stir till butter disappears and sauce looks smooth.

Step 5: Combine Everything

Dump pasta and chicken back in. Toss with tongs till everything’s coated and glossy. Takes like thirty seconds.

Step 6: Finish with Lemon

Squeeze lemon in, stir. Taste it. Need more salt? Add it now.

Step 7: Garnish and Serve

Plate it up with lemon slices and parsley scattered on top. Makes it look like you tried.

Notes

Dry chicken = good sear. Wet chicken = sad gray steamed situation. Pat it dry with paper towels first.

Chicken sticks when you first put it in. That’s fine. When it’s ready to flip it’ll release on its own, probably around 3-4 minutes.

Cold cream straight from the fridge can break your sauce. Room temp is safer.

Got a massive skillet? Cook pasta right in there with the sauce and some broth. One less pot to wash.

Once cream goes in, keep heat LOW. Boiling cream curdles and separates and looks nasty.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Category: Main Dish
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: American