Description
Easy one-pan dinner featuring seasoned chicken and penne pasta cooked in chicken broth, finished with parmesan cream sauce and fresh herbs.
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied or pounded to about ½” thickness
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- ½ tsp paprika
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 tbsp avocado oil (or olive oil)
For the Pasta & Sauce
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- ½ jumbo yellow onion, diced (about 1 cup)
- 4–6 large garlic cloves, minced
- 8 oz dry penne pasta (regular or gluten-free)
- 2 cups chicken broth (to cook pasta)
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
Mix up your Italian seasoning, paprika, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Rub it all over your flattened chicken pieces with your hands – really work it in there so it sticks good.
Get your big pan hot over medium heat and add that oil. When it starts shimmering but not smoking, put the chicken in. Don’t move it around – just let it sit there for 3-5 minutes per side until it’s golden brown and reads 165°F on your thermometer. Take it out and set it aside to rest.
Turn the heat down to medium-low and add your butter and the other tablespoon of oil to the same pan. Throw in your diced onion with a little salt and cook it for about 3 minutes until you can see through it and it smells sweet.
Add the minced garlic and cook just one more minute. It’ll sizzle and smell incredible. Don’t let it burn though because burnt garlic tastes awful and ruins everything.
Pour all that chicken broth in and scrape up every single brown bit from the bottom with your wooden spoon. This is where all the flavor comes from. Get it bubbling gently, then dump in all your pasta. Make sure it’s mostly covered with liquid.
Slap that lid on and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring it around every few minutes so nothing gets stuck. The pasta will drink up most of that broth and taste amazing instead of like cardboard.
This part is crucial – turn off the heat completely before you add anything else or your sauce will turn into chunky grossness. Stir in the grated parmesan first, then the cream, then the parsley. It all melts together into this silky sauce that coats everything perfectly. Taste it and add more salt and pepper if you need to.
Slice up that chicken and mix it right back into the pasta. Give it all a good stir and eat it right away while it’s hot. The sauce gets thicker as it cools down so don’t wait around taking pictures for Instagram.
Notes
The amount of broth matters a lot here. You want just enough to barely cover the pasta – if there’s too much, your sauce will be watery. If there’s not enough, the pasta won’t cook right and you’ll get crunchy noodles.
Don’t cram all your chicken pieces together in the pan. They need space to get brown and crispy. If your pan is too small, cook them in two batches. Takes a few extra minutes but worth it for that golden crust.
Before you add the cream, scoop out about half a cup of that pasta cooking liquid and set it aside. If your sauce gets too thick later, a splash of this brings it right back to creamy perfection. I learned this from watching too many cooking shows.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: One-Pan Skillet
- Cuisine: Italian-American