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A spoon of Sun-dried Tomato & Chicken Pasta
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Sun-dried Tomato & Chicken Pasta

Course Main Course
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 6
Author Sarah Mir

Ingredients

  • 16 oz Pasta (one box - I used Penne)

Chicken

  • ¾ lb Boneless Chicken cut into bite sized pieces
  • ¾ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • ½ tsp red chilli powder
  • 1.5 tbsp olive oil

Pasta Sauce

  • ½ cup minced onion
  • 5-6 cloves garlic
  • 1 tsp red chilli flakes (or less)
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 1 ½ cup cream
  • ¾ cup sun-dried tomatoes (jarred kind, drained of oil)
  • 2 cups spinach (chopped)
  • 1 cup mozzarella or monterey jack

Finishing Touches (optional, but recommended)

  • 2-3 tbsp Chopped Basil
  • Parmesan Cheese (grated)
  • Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

Instructions

Chicken

  • Mix the chicken with the seasonings and olive oil and set aside. I usually do this on the chopping board I used for the chicken.

Pasta

  • Bring a large pot of generously salted water to boil, then add the pasta and boil as per package directions. You can start the sauce while this happens
  • Reserve one cup of pasta water before draining

Sauce

  • Heat a saute pan on medium high heat and add the chicken pieces in one even layer, cook for two minutes on each side and remove from the pan
  • Without wiping the pan add a little olive oil (if needed) and saute the onions, garlic, and red chilli flakes on medium heat until the onions are translucent.
  • Take care not to burn the garlic. Turn the heat down if it starts to darken too quickly.
  • Add the sun-dried tomatoes to the pan and cook for a minute.
  • For a smooth sauce remove most of the sauce ingredients from the pan and blitz them in a mini blender with one cup chicken stock
  • Pour the mix back into the pan, add the chicken and bring to a simmer
  • Turn the heat off and add one cup of the cream, the spinach, and the cheese
  • Mix with your cooked pasta and adjust the consistency with the remaining half cup cream and the pasta water
  • Now taste and adjust seasoning per taste.
  • Top with Basil and Parmesan and enjoy with warm garlic bread and a side salad.

Notes

  • I have used both Mozzarella and Monterey Jack in this recipe to good effect. If you have neither available you can use Parmesan and a little Cream Cheese to delicious effect. Just reserve a little extra pasta water to thin the sauce out
  • The kind of pasta you use will affect the sauce so I do not recommend large pasta shells