Garlic Butter Chicken & Pea Pasta (Print)

Tender chicken pieces, sweet peas, and curly pasta in a rich garlic butter sauce. Comforting and family-friendly.

# Ingredients:

→ Chicken

01 - 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
02 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
03 - 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
04 - 1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herbs, optional

→ Pasta & Vegetables

05 - 12 ounces curly pasta such as fusilli or rotini
06 - 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
07 - 2 tablespoons olive oil

→ Garlic Butter Sauce

08 - 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
09 - 4 garlic cloves, minced
10 - 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
11 - 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
12 - Zest of 1 lemon
13 - 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
14 - 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
15 - Salt and pepper to taste

# Directions:

01 - Cook pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta cooking water, then drain in a colander.
02 - While pasta cooks, season chicken pieces with salt, pepper, and dried Italian herbs.
03 - Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken pieces and cook 5 to 7 minutes, turning occasionally, until golden and cooked through. Transfer chicken to a plate.
04 - Reduce heat to medium. Add butter to the same skillet. Once melted, add minced garlic and red pepper flakes; sauté 1 to 2 minutes until fragrant but not browned.
05 - Add thawed peas and return cooked chicken to the skillet. Stir to warm through for about 1 minute.
06 - Add cooked pasta, Parmesan cheese, lemon zest, and lemon juice to the skillet. Toss everything together, adding reserved pasta water a little at a time until the sauce lightly coats the pasta.
07 - Remove from heat and stir in fresh parsley. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed.
08 - Transfer to serving dishes immediately. Garnish with extra Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley if desired.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • Everything comes together in one skillet after the pasta is done, so cleanup is faster than ordering takeout.
  • The garlic butter clings to every twist of the curly pasta, and the lemon keeps it from feeling heavy.
  • Kids actually eat the peas without complaint when theyre coated in butter and Parmesan.
  • It tastes like youve been cooking all day, but youre done in half an hour.
02 -
  • Dont skip reserving the pasta water, its the secret to making the sauce creamy without adding cream.
  • If you cook the garlic too long or over too high heat it turns bitter, so keep the heat medium and stir constantly.
  • Cutting the chicken into smaller pieces means faster cooking and more surface area for browning, which adds flavor to the whole skillet.
03 -
  • Use a skillet thats big enough to toss the pasta without it spilling over the sides, it makes mixing everything so much easier.
  • Grate your Parmesan fresh and add it off the heat so it melts smoothly instead of clumping into strings.
  • Taste the pasta water before you drain it, if its well salted, you may not need to add much more salt at the end.
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