Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta
Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta is luscious and fresh, with a hint of lemon and chunks of tender chicken. This easy chicken piccata pasta recipe comes together in about 30 minutes for a simple yet elegant dinner any night of the week.
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 8 oz. linguini pasta thin linguini preferred
- 1 tbsp. butter
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- fresh chopper parsley for garnishing
Chicken
- 1½ lb. chicken tenderloins 1 inch cubes, or use breast
- ½ tsp salt
- 3 tbsps all purpose flour
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp garlic powder
Lemon Sauce
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup chicken broth low sodium, or pasta water
- 4 cloves garlic fresh, minced
- 2 tbsp. lemon juice
- ¾ tsp black pepper or less to taste
- ¾ tsp onion powder
- ¾ tsp garlic powder
- ¾ tsp salt
- ½ cup parmesan cheese grated
- ¼ cup fresh parsley chipped
Instructions
- Cook pasta al dente according to package instructions.
- In a bowl, season the chicken with all the chicken ingredients.
- In a large shallow nonstick skillet, add the olive oil and butter. Sear the chicken tenderloins for 4-5 minutes on each side until full cooked and golden brown in color. About 8-10 minutes.
- Remove the chicken and set aside. Cover with foil wrap. Once it cools down, cube the chicken up into chunks.
- In the same pan, add the butter. Sauté the minced garlic and spices until fragrant. About 20 seconds.
- Add in the heavy cream and broth. Mix to deglaze the pan. Simmer on low heat until the sauce thickens up a little then add in the parmesan cheese. Simmer for a few more minutes until the sauce thickens up well.
- Add in the cooked pasta, chopped parsley and lemon juice. Mix everything well together. Cook for 5 minutes on low heat and then remove from heat.
- Garnish with some grated parmesan cheese, chopped parsley and lemon wedges if desired and serve.
Notes
- Cook the pasta to al dente as it will continue to cook slightly when added to the sauce.
- Reserve some of the pasta water to loosen the sauce if necessary.
- Cook the chicken tenders whole and chop them into chunks just before serving.
- To save even more time, use leftover or rotisserie chicken instead.
- Add lemon zest to the sauce for even more lemon flavor.
- Heavy cream is rich, but you can use half and half. The sauce won't be as creamy.
- Toss in some fresh herbs just before serving.
Nutrition
Calories: 744kcal | Carbohydrates: 53g | Protein: 50g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 195mg | Sodium: 1157mg | Potassium: 963mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 1660IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 221mg | Iron: 2mg