This easy creamy chicken pesto pasta is the perfect one-pot meal the whole family will love. You only need some simple ingredients, and you’ll have this dish ready in no time. It’s bursting with flavors fitting for both special occasions or simple weeknight meals.
One of the reasons I love this pesto pasta is how creamy and luscious the sauce is, thanks to the heavy cream and parmesan combined with the pesto. It truly is the ultimate comfort food I can make every single week.
Even better, this dish keeps well and reheats beautifully, so leftovers for lunch the next day are just as delicious as if fresh off the stove. If you want another easy pasta recipe, then try my cacio e pepe recipe, stuffed shells recipe, or baked ziti recipe.
What You Need to Make This Recipe
Chicken — I use chicken breast but feel free to swap it for boneless, skinless chicken thighs!
Pasta — I use penne pasta, but farfalle or rotini pasta are great alternatives. Short kinds of pasta with ridges are ideal for the sauce to cling onto.
Chicken broth — use chicken broth instead of water to cook the pasta for the best flavor. You can use regular or low-sodium chicken broth.
Pesto — try and use the best high-quality jarred basil pesto you can find. You can also use homemade pesto but jarred pesto works great in a time crunch.
Cream — this chicken pesto pasta has a wonderfully creamy sauce, and that’s thanks to the heavy cream! I don’t recommend skipping it.
Sun-dried tomatoes — you can find sun-dried tomatoes in a bag or in oil. I like to use sun-dried tomatoes from a jar as they don’t require any rehydrating.
How to Make Chicken Pesto Pasta
1. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, combine the oil, Italian seasoning, black pepper, salt, and red pepper. Cook until the oil is fragrant.
2. Add the chicken. Cook, occasionally stirring, until the outside of the chicken pieces is golden browned. Stir in the garlic and cook for another minute more, stirring frequently.
3. Add the pasta and broth, stirring to combine.
4. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes. Uncover the skillet and increase the heat to medium. Cook, stirring frequently, until the pasta is tender and the broth is almost completely absorbed.
5. Add the pesto, cream, and sundried tomatoes, stirring to combine.
6. Remove from the heat and add the parmesan, stirring until fully incorporated. Stir in fresh basil just before serving. Serve this pesto pasta with chicken immediately.
Pro Tips for Making This Recipe
- Make sure you keep the broth simmering and stir frequently to keep the pasta from turning mushy. It’ll also help the pasta cook evenly and prevent it from sticking to the pan.
- If you have a leftover rotisserie chicken in your fridge, you can add that to the pasta instead of cooking the chicken at the beginning.
- Make sure to use a large enough skillet to allow the diced chicken breast to cook evenly in one batch. Avoid overcrowding the pan, or the chicken will steam instead of browning nicely.
- Grate your own parmesan cheese! Freshly grated parmesan melts more smoothly into the pasta than pre-shredded cheese.
- Do not add the pesto and cream too early to the pasta. You want to avoid bringing the two to a boil, as the sauce can separate.
- Avoid waiting too long to serve the pasta. If the pesto chicken pasta sits out too long, it will dry up.
- This recipe doesn’t need much salt since the broth, pesto, and parmesan contain salt. You may need to adjust the seasoning to your taste if using a homemade pesto with less salt.
Frequently Asked Questions
Baby spinach and cherry tomatoes make for a delicious addition to the pasta. You can also add additional cheese, such as mozzarella, to the pasta to make it more cheesy.
This chicken pasta is a complete meal on its own. However, a simple salad, soup, or garlic bread will pair nicely with the pasta if you’d like something on the side.
Allow the pesto pasta to cool to room temperature, then transfer it to an airtight container. Store it in the fridge for up to 3 to 4 days. When reheating the pasta, add a splash of water or chicken broth to help loosen it.
These leftovers are freezer-friendly! Once the pasta has cooled to room temperature, transfer it to a freezer-safe container and freeze it for up to 3 months.
If you love this recipe try these out!
If you’ve tried this Chicken Pesto Pasta 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 Pesto Pasta
Equipment
- Large skillet
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- ¾ pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 breast), diced into ½-inch pieces
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 8 ounces dry Penne pasta noodles (225g)
- 2 cups chicken broth (480ml)
- ½ cup basil pesto (120ml)
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream (120ml)
- ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 cup grated parmesan (80g)
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves torn
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, combine the oil, Italian seasoning, black pepper, salt, and red pepper. Cook until oil is fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the chicken. Cook occasionally stirring, until the outside of the pieces is golden browned, about 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute more, stirring frequently.
- Add the pasta and broth, stirring to combine. Bring the mixture to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes. Uncover the skillet and increase the heat to medium. Cook, stirring frequently until the pasta is tender and the broth is almost completely absorbed, about 10 minutes more.
- Add the pesto, cream, and sundried tomatoes, stirring to combine.
- Remove from the heat and add the parmesan, stirring until fully incorporated. Stir in fresh basil just before serving. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Make sure you keep the broth simmering and stir frequently to keep the pasta from turning mushy. It’ll also help the pasta cook evenly and prevent it from sticking to the pan.
- If you have a leftover rotisserie chicken in your fridge, you can add that to the pasta instead of cooking the chicken at the beginning.
- Make sure to use a large enough skillet to allow the diced chicken breast to cook evenly in one batch. Avoid overcrowding the pan, or the chicken will steam instead of browning nicely.
- Grate your own parmesan cheese! Freshly grated parmesan melts more smoothly into the pasta than pre-shredded cheese.
- Do not add the pesto and cream too early to the pasta. You want to avoid bringing the two to a boil, as the sauce can separate.
- Avoid waiting too long to serve the pasta. If the pesto chicken pasta sits out too long, it will dry up.
- This recipe doesn’t need much salt since the broth, pesto, and parmesan contain salt. You may need to adjust the seasoning to your taste if using a homemade pesto with less salt.
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