This easy chicken alfredo recipe is the definition of comfort food. What can beat a big bowl of long, thick noodles coated in a dreamy, flavorful alfredo sauce and topped with tender bites of chicken? It’s also a gourmet Italian dinner you can whip up in a few quick steps at home. You won’t believe how simple it is as you don’t need any special ingredients to make this fancy meal. It even comes together in 30 minutes.
Alfredo sauce, fettuccine, and chicken combine beautifully together. It’s such an irresistible meal that’s not just tried and true but also a family favorite. It’s an easy weeknight meal, but it is also perfect for guests. While filling and hearty on its own, this homemade chicken alfredo recipe is absolutely perfect with a side of garlic bread, breadsticks, or homemade garlic knots if you want something to soak up any leftover sauce in your bowl.
What You Need to Make This Recipe
Chicken — boneless, skinless chicken breasts are my go-to for this easy chicken alfredo recipe. Seasoned with some salt and pepper, it pairs wonderfully with the sauce. Don’t have chicken? Try my shrimp alfredo recipe.
Pasta — you can’t go wrong with fettuccine pasta! The long and flat noodles are thick and sturdy enough to hold up the thick and luscious alfredo sauce. However, if you don’t have any fettuccine in your pantry, you can use what you have on hand, such as penne, pappardelle, or even large shells! Ideally, it’s best to use a heavier pasta shape versus a more delicate pasta. If you want to make this dish completely from scratch then you could also use my homemade pasta dough recipe to make your own!
Butter — I prefer using unsalted butter to better control the salt level of the recipe, but if you only have salted butter, adjust the amount of salt you add to the sauce. Don’t skimp on the butter, as it gives the sauce its nice and glossy look, and it can also help thicken the sauce.
Garlic — you’re putting in the work to make a flavorful sauce from scratch, so make sure to use fresh garlic for the best flavor in your chicken alfredo.
Heavy cream — the cream makes the homemade alfredo sauce super creamy and luscious.
Parmesan — I highly recommend buying a block of parmesan cheese and shredding it yourself. The flavor is better, and the cheese melts more smoothly than pre-shredded parmesan cheese.
How to Make Chicken Alfredo
1. Heat the oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and cook until browned on both sides and has an internal temperature of 165°F. Remove from skillet and cover to keep warm. Wipe the skillet clean.
2. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium-high. Add the pasta to the boiling water, and cook according to the package directions. Drain well, reserving ½ cup of the cooking water. Keep warm.
3. While the pasta is cooking, combine the cream, butter, and garlic in the same skillet as you cooked the chicken.
4. Cook over medium heat, whisking often until the butter is melted. Whisk in the salt and pepper and bring the sauce to a low simmer. Cook, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened.
5. Gradually whisk in parmesan cheese.
6. Whisk until the sauce is smooth.
7. Remove the alfredo sauce from the heat and add the cooked pasta to it. Toss to coat, adding a bit of reserved cooking water as needed to thin the sauce.
8. Slice the chicken breasts into ½-inch-thick strips. Divide the pasta among bowls, top with the sliced chicken, and garnish the chicken alfredo with parsley.
Pro Tips for Making This Recipe
- It’s always a great idea to save pasta water when making pasta dishes. It is great to thin out sauces that are too thick and also to fix a broken sauce.
- If your alfredo sauce is thin, you can add more parmesan cheese. However, add it after tossing the pasta. The starch from the pasta will help thicken the sauce as you bring everything together.
- Make sure you use a large enough pot and enough water when you cook the pasta. This ensures you give the noodles enough room, so they don’t stick together. Having enough water in the pot will also give starch from the pasta a chance to dilute, so it does not coat the pasta, making the texture gluey.
- If your skillet is not large enough, you can add the fettuccine in increments so that it is easier to toss and get it all coated in the creamy sauce.
- Don’t let the chicken fettuccine alfredo sit out for too long before serving it. The alfredo sauce will start drying up as the dish cools, leading to the pasta clumping together.
- Add a few sprinkles of red pepper flakes to the sauce for a little extra heat in your chicken alfredo.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you’d like a slightly lighter alfredo sauce, you can replace some of the heavy cream with half and half. Keep in mind your sauce will be thinner than if you used heavy cream.
Store homemade chicken alfredo leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. It’s best to enjoy this as soon as possible. I don’t recommend freezing this recipe as the sauce might break when you thaw the dish.
To reheat leftover chicken fettuccine alfredo, transfer to a skillet over low heat with a splash of heavy cream to bring the sauce back to life. Gently toss everything together until the sauce becomes hot and creamy again and the chicken is hot. You can also microwave the dish in 30-second increments, tossing everything throughout.
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If you’ve tried this Chicken Alfredo recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Chicken Alfredo
Equipment
- Large Pot
- Large skillet
Ingredients
- 1 (16-ounce) package fettuccine pasta (454g)
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (halved crosswise if very thick/450g)
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Sauce:
- 2 cups heavy cream (480mL)
- ½ cup unsalted butter cubed (113g)
- 3 cloves garlic minced, (about 1 tablespoon minced)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese (90g)
- Chopped fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium-high.
- While the water is coming to a boil, season the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Heat the oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, and cook until browned on both sides, about 7 to 9 minutes per side, and a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of each piece registers 165°F. Remove from skillet and cover to keep warm. Wipe the skillet clean.
- Add the pasta to the boiling water, and cook according to the package directions. Drain well, reserving ½ cup of the cooking water. Keep warm.
For the Sauce:
- While the pasta is cooking, combine the cream, butter, and garlic in the same skillet as you cooked the chicken. Cook over medium heat, whisking often until the butter is melted. Whisk in the salt and pepper. Bring to a low simmer. Cook, whisking constantly until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.
- Gradually whisk in parmesan cheese until smooth. Remove from heat. Add the cooked pasta. Toss to coat, adding a bit of reserved cooking water as needed to thin the sauce.
- Slice the chicken breasts into ½-inch-thick strips. Divide the pasta among bowls, top with the sliced chicken, and garnish with parsley.
Video
Notes
- It’s always a great idea to save pasta water when making pasta dishes. It is great to thin out sauces that are too thick and also to fix a broken sauce.
- If your alfredo sauce is thin, you can add more parmesan cheese. However, add it after tossing the pasta. The starch from the pasta will help thicken the sauce as you bring everything together.
- Make sure you use a large enough pot and enough water when you cook the pasta. This ensures you give the noodles enough room, so they don’t stick together. Having enough water in the pot will also give starch from the pasta a chance to dilute, so it does not coat the pasta, making the texture gluey.
- If your skillet is not large enough, you can add the fettuccine in increments so that it is easier to toss and get it all coated in the creamy sauce.
- Don’t let the chicken fettuccine alfredo sit out for too long before serving it. The alfredo sauce will start drying up as the dish cools, leading to the pasta clumping together.
- Add a few sprinkles of red pepper flakes to the sauce for a little extra heat.
