Quick Garlic Parmesan Chicken (Printable version)

Tender garlic-infused chicken with Parmesan cream sauce and perfectly cooked pasta for a delicious dinner.

# What you need:

→ Poultry

01 - 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces

→ Pasta

02 - 10 ounces penne or rotini pasta

→ Dairy

03 - ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
04 - ½ cup heavy cream
05 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

→ Vegetables & Aromatics

06 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
07 - 1 small onion, finely chopped
08 - 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

→ Stock & Seasonings

09 - 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
10 - 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
11 - ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
12 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

→ Oil

13 - 1 tablespoon olive oil

# How to Make It:

01 - Warm olive oil and butter in a large deep skillet over medium-high heat.
02 - Add chicken pieces, season with salt, pepper, and half the Italian seasoning. Sauté until golden and cooked through, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.
03 - In the same skillet, cook onion for 2 minutes until softened, then add garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
04 - Pour in chicken broth, bring to a boil, then stir in uncooked pasta. Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, until pasta is al dente and most liquid is absorbed, approximately 10 to 12 minutes.
05 - Lower heat to low, stir in heavy cream and Parmesan until sauce is creamy and cheese melts.
06 - Return chicken to skillet, toss to coat, and heat through for 1 to 2 minutes.
07 - Stir in chopped parsley, adjust seasoning with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes if desired. Serve hot with extra Parmesan and parsley garnish.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • Everything happens in one pan, which means you're done before you know it and the cleanup is mercifully short.
  • The sauce is genuinely creamy and luxurious without any complicated technique—just cream and cheese doing their thing.
  • It's flexible enough to add whatever vegetables you have on hand, yet simple enough to execute perfectly when you're tired.
02 -
  • Don't use pre-shredded Parmesan cheese because the anti-caking agents create a grainy, clumpy sauce instead of that smooth, creamy dreaminess you're after.
  • The pasta finishes cooking in the broth, so don't cook it ahead of time—it needs to absorb all those flavors as it softens.
  • If your sauce looks too thin when the pasta is done, you can reduce it faster by turning the heat up slightly before adding the cream, and if it's too thick, a splash of reserved broth fixes it instantly.
03 -
  • Reserve a small cup of the broth before you pour it into the skillet, so if the sauce gets too thick at any point, you have liquid ready to thin it out instead of scrambling.
  • Brown the chicken properly and let it get golden edges before removing it—that's where the flavor lives, and it makes all the difference between good and genuinely delicious.
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