Twelve ingredients and forty minutes, using one pot and one skillet.
The sauce is made in the pan the chicken browned in, and the chicken goes back on top in slices rather than being stirred through.
The Sauce Is Built Where the Chicken Browned
This is a stovetop garlic Parmesan chicken pasta: PAN-SEARED SLICED CHICKEN, PENNE AND A THICK STOVETOP PARMESAN CREAM. Every layer below happens in the skillet, after the chicken comes out.
The sear
Until 165°F in the thickest part1 1/4 lb CHICKEN BREASTS cut into THIN CUTLETS, 1/2 tsp SALT, 1/2 tsp PEPPER and 1 tbsp OLIVE OIL
SEARED OVER MEDIUM-HIGH UNTIL BROWNED AND 165°F, then RESTED AND SLICED INTO STRIPS. The browning left in the pan is the base of everything after it.
Butter and garlic
30 seconds2 tbsp UNSALTED BUTTER and 4 MINCED GARLIC CLOVES
Heat LOWERED first, then the garlic cooked just 30 SECONDS. Four cloves is a lot of garlic, and thirty seconds is what keeps it sweet rather than bitter.
Cream
2 minutes, gently1 cup HEAVY CREAM and 1 tsp ITALIAN SEASONING
SIMMERED GENTLY 2 MINUTES. The dried herbs are the flecks visible through the pale sauce.
Parmesan
3/4 cup FINELY GRATED PARMESAN
WHISKED IN UNTIL SMOOTH. This is what takes the sauce from cream to a coating thick enough to cling to penne.
Pasta and its water
12 oz PENNE, cooked AL DENTE, with up to 1/2 cup RESERVED PASTA WATER
TOSSED IN, LOOSENED WITH PASTA WATER AS NEEDED TO MAKE A THICK COATING SAUCE.
Then tasteThe pasta is PLATED and the BROWNED CHICKEN STRIPS FANNED OVER THE TOP with 1 tbsp PARSLEY - on top, as photographed, rather than stirred through. Cream-sauce leftovers are refrigerated promptly.
How to Make It
Penne cooked al dente, half a cup of water reserved
Cook the penne in salted water until al dente and reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water.
Chicken cut thin, seared to 165°F, rested and sliced
Slice the chicken into thin cutlets or evenly thick portions, season with half the salt and the pepper, and sear in the olive oil over medium-high heat until browned and 165°F. Rest, then slice into strips.
Butter and garlic, then cream simmered two minutes
Lower the heat, melt the butter and cook the garlic 30 seconds. Add the cream and Italian seasoning and simmer gently 2 minutes.
Parmesan whisked in, penne tossed and loosened
Whisk in the Parmesan until smooth. Toss in the penne, loosening with pasta water as needed to make a thick coating sauce.
Chicken strips fanned over the plated pasta, parsley on top
Plate the pasta and fan the browned chicken strips over the top. Finish with the parsley.
Why This Recipe Works
- Cutting the breasts into thin, evenly thick pieces lets them brown before the middle overcooks.
- Searing over medium-high builds the browned surface a slow cooker cannot produce.
- Thirty seconds is all the minced garlic needs in butter before the cream goes in.
- Whisking Parmesan in off a hard boil melts it smoothly instead of turning it stringy.
- Reserved pasta water carries starch, which loosens the sauce without thinning its flavour.
Ingredient Notes
- Penne
- Twelve ounces. The tubes hold a thick sauce, and the shape is part of what makes this dish.
- Chicken breasts
- A pound and a quarter, cut thin so they sear quickly and reach 165°F without drying.
- Heavy cream and Parmesan
- A cup of cream with three quarters of a cup of finely grated Parmesan, whisked in off the boil.
- Reserved pasta water
- Up to half a cup, added a splash at a time until the sauce coats rather than pools.
Success Tips
- Keep the pasta water; once it goes down the drain there is no way to loosen the sauce.
- Take the pan off the heat for a moment before the Parmesan goes in.
- Slice the chicken across its width so the strips stay wide enough to fan out.
Serving Ideas
Four plates of penne in a thick pale garlic Parmesan sauce, each fanned with browned chicken strips and finished with chopped parsley.
Frequently Asked Questions
Could I make this in a slow cooker?
No. The browned surface on the chicken is what this recipe is built around, and a slow cooker cannot produce it.
Can I add spinach or sun-dried tomato?
Not here. This version is pasta, sauce and chicken only, which is how it is photographed.
My sauce is too thick. What now?
Add the reserved pasta water a splash at a time over low heat until it coats the penne again.
