Pasta Dinner Recipes: One-Pot Creamy Pesto Chicken Penne in 25 Minutes

7 days ago

3 min read

Updated: 15 hours ago

One pot creamy pesto penne with shredded chicken, cherry tomatoes and spinach in a deep skillet

25 minutes, one pot, about $12 for four

The pasta cooks directly in the broth, which means the starch it releases has nowhere to go but into the sauce. That is the whole mechanism behind one-pot pasta, and it is why this ends up creamy with only half a cup of cream. Rotisserie chicken and jarred pesto keep it to twenty-five minutes and about twelve dollars.

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Why this one works

Cooking the pasta in the broth concentrates all the starch into the sauce instead of pouring it down the sink.
Pesto goes in off the heat. Boiled basil pesto turns dull brown and loses its perfume.
One pot, which on a weeknight is worth as much as the twenty-five minutes.

At a glance

Prep time: 8 min
Cook time: 17 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4 servings
Protein: 44g per serving
Calories: 782 per serving

Ingredients

The pot

2 tbsp olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
12 oz (340g) penne
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

To stir through

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3 cups shredded rotisserie chicken, about 1 lb (450g)
1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup basil pesto
3 packed cups baby spinach
1/2 cup grated Parmesan

To finish

Torn fresh basil
Extra Parmesan
Black pepper

Instructions

Soften the aromatics. Heat the oil in a large deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium. Cook the onion 4 minutes until translucent, then add the garlic for one more minute.
Add pasta and broth. Tip in the dry penne, chicken broth, salt and red pepper flakes. Stir once and bring to a boil.
Simmer the pasta. Drop to a steady simmer and cook uncovered for 11 to 13 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes so nothing catches on the bottom. The pasta should be al dente and most of the broth absorbed into a starchy, loose sauce.
Add the chicken and tomatoes. Stir in the shredded chicken and cherry tomatoes and cook 2 minutes just to heat through and soften the tomatoes slightly.
Cream, then pesto off the heat. Stir in the cream, then take the pot off the heat completely before adding the pesto. This is the one rule that matters — heat kills both the colour and the aroma of basil pesto.
Greens and cheese. Add the spinach and Parmesan and fold until the spinach collapses and the sauce turns glossy, about 1 minute. If it is tighter than you want, add a splash of hot water.
Serve. Finish with torn basil, more Parmesan and black pepper, and serve straight from the pot.

Notes and swaps

Stir every two minutes or so. One-pot pasta sticks to the bottom if left completely alone.
Sun-dried tomato pesto works beautifully here if you want a deeper, sweeter version.
Leftovers thicken considerably. Reheat with a splash of broth or milk.