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This Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta is a kid-friendly recipe that is made in less than 30 minutes. Bite sized chicken and pasta tossed with a creamy pesto sauce, your family will be reaching for seconds.
This pesto chicken pasta is a classic pasta recipe that will make your weeknights way less stressful. It’s a pasta recipe that your whole family will love any time of the year and comes together so quickly. So quickly that you’ll finish making this pasta dinner in less than 30 minutes! It’s a no fuss, no muss recipe!
Want more easy chicken recipes? Try my Creamy Tuscan Chicken or my Lemon & Garlic Chicken.
Why You’ll Love This Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta Recipe
- It’s customizable. Feel free to change up the ingredients to use up what you have in your kitchen or to turn this into something your family will love. You can swap the pasta, add vegetables, etc to suit your family’s taste.
- It’s simple. You only need a handful of ingredients that you probably already have at home.
- Loaded with flavor! The ingredients might look simple but it’s packed with flavors.
What is pesto?
There are many types of pesto sauces, which are made from many ingredients but the main known pesto is a sauce made from fresh basil, garlic, olive oil, pine nuts, and cheese pounded or processed together into a thick, green paste. It is very famous in Italy, as it was originated from there.
What You’ll Need
- Penne pasta
- Chicken tenderloins — cut into even cubes
- Salt
- Pepper
- Olive oil
- Butter — salted
- All purpose flour
- Heavy cream
- Chicken broth — use low sodium chicken broth
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Parmesan cheese — grated
- Pesto sauce
- Basil
How To Make Pesto Chicken Pasta
- Cook the pasta: Cook to al dente according to package instructions.
- Cook the chicken: Season the chicken cubes. Add in the olive oil and pan sear the cubed chicken for 6-8 minutes until golden brown on the outside. Remove the chicken and set aside in a bowl.
- Make the creamy pesto sauce: In the same skillet, melt the butter and then add in the flour. Whisk to blend well into a creamy mixture. Gradually add in the chicken broth while whisking before adding in the heavy cream, salt, pepper, dry basil, onion and garlic powder. Simmer on medium and then add in the pesto sauce and the grated parmesan cheese. Mix well to get a smooth and creamy consistency.
- Coat pasta and chicken with sauce: Return the drained and cooked pasta to the creamy sauce and mix to coat well, then add in the cooked chicken. Mix everything together well. Simmer on low heat and cover to cook for about 5 more minutes.
- Serve: Remove from heat and garnish with some fresh basil leaves and serve.
Recipe Variations
- Chicken: you are welcomed to swap the chicken tenderloin for breasts or thighs if you’d prefer.
- Cheese: feel free to add some shredded mozzarella cheese to make it even more cheesy.
- Heavy cream: if you would like to make this a little lighter, swap the heavy cream with half and half.
- Make it spicy: if you want it spicy, you can add in some chili flakes to your creamy pesto chicken pasta.
- Pasta: feel free to swap the penne pasta to another pasta of your choice.
- Turn this into a cheesy casserole: add everything into a casserole dish, top off with a ton of shredded cheese, and broil until the cheese has melted and browned.
Tips and Notes
- You want to make sure you cut your chicken breasts to the same size for this recipe so they’re cooked through evenly.
- Your chicken is done once its internal temperature has reached 165F. You can use an instant thermometer to quickly check for doneness.
- Feel free to add some vegetables if you’d like! Try spinach, broccoli florets, frozen peas, asparagus, mushrooms, or green beans.
- Make sure you are cooking the sauce on a low heat, avoid boiling the sauce as it can cause it to separate.
- Top it off with a little bit of lemon juice for a bright tangy flavor if you’d like.
FAQs
Store any leftover chicken pesto pasta into an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days. When reheating, you can microwave the pasta or reheat it low and slow on the stovetop.
You can freeze this chicken pesto pasta recipe if you’d like. Once it’s cooked and cooled, transfer the pasta into a freezer safe container. When ready to eat, thaw it in the fridge overnight and reheat slowly on the stove top. Add a splash of milk to the pan to help keep the pasta from drying out.
You can use any pesto of your choice. The Kirkland brand from Costco is my go-to. Anything made fresh and in sold in the fridge at the stores are much better options that jarred pesto. You can also use a homemade pesto if you have some.
Any pasta works but usually you want to use something with grooves or pockets to hold up more sauce with every bite. Fusilli, Cavatappi, and Rotini are good options.
Pesto has a very strong flavor. The recommended ratio is 3 oz. of uncooked pasta for every 3 tablespoons of pesto sauce. But it’s all a matter of preference.
What Can I Serve With this Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta?
Here are some sides you can pair with your pesto chicken pasta. Here’s some ideas:
- Garlic Butter Mushrooms
- Cheesy Broccoli Bites
- Roasted Garlic Bread
- Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots
- Best Grilled Vegetables
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Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 3 cups penne pasta, dry, uncooked
Chicken
- 1.5 lbs. chicken tenderloins , cleaned and cubed
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
- 2 tbsps. olive oil
Creamy Pesto Sauce
- 2 tbsps. butter, salted
- 2½ tbsps. all purpose flour
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1½ cup chicken broth, low sodium
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
- 3/4 cup pesto sauce, more or less to taste
- ¾ tsp. basil, dry
Instructions
- Cook pasta al dente according to package instructions.
- Salt and pepper the chicken cubes.
- Bring a large nonstick skillet to medium heat. Add in the olive oil and pan sear the cubed chicken for 6-8 minutes until golden brown on the outside. Remove the chicken and set aside in a bowl.
- In the same skillet, melt the butter and then add in the flour. Whisk to blend well into a creamy mixture.
- Gradually add in the chicken broth while whisking to prevent any clumps. Add in the heavy cream, salt, pepper, dry basil, onion and garlic powder. Simmer on medium low heat for a few minutes until the sauce thickens up a little.
- Once the sauce thicken up a little, add in the pesto sauce and the grated parmesan cheese. Mix well to get a smooth and creamy consistency.
- Return the drained and cooked pasta to the creamy sauce and mix to coat well, then add in the cooked chicken. Mix everything together well. Simmer on low heat and cover to cook for about 5 more minutes.
- Remove from heat and garnish with some fresh basil leaves and serve.
Notes
- You want to make sure you cut your chicken breasts to the same size for this recipe so they’re cooked through evenly.
- Your chicken is done once its internal temperature has reached 165F. You can use an instant thermometer to quickly check for doneness.
- Feel free to add some vegetables if you’d like! Try spinach, broccoli florets, frozen peas, asparagus, mushrooms, or green beans.
- Make sure you are cooking the sauce on a low heat, avoid boiling the sauce as it can cause it to separate.
- Top it off with a little bit of lemon juice for a bright tangy flavor if you’d like.
This was very yummy and easy to make! I actually cooked the pasta in the skillet when I added the chicken broth. I ended up needing to add a few cups extra water to cook the pasta, but it turned out great! I also made it gluten free by using gluten free penne, gluten free flour for the roux, and gluten free chicken broth. Also it made a ton! We will be eating this for days. I did also need to add a bit more salt. This was great and we will be making it again. I think I may even make it into a pasta bake by putting it in a casserole dish and topping it with mozzarella and broiling it. I also want to try making it in the instant pot. Very yummy!
Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for leaving a review.