Garlic Chicken Pasta and Three Cheese Garlic Chicken Pasta
BySeveral of you have requested this Garlic Chicken Pasta recipe when you’ve seen it on my menu plans. I put off posting it because I was still tweaking it. I THINK I’ve got it the way I like it now!
I like this Creamy Mac and Cheese recipe so much that I finally tried using the same method of cooking the pasta in the milk for this new recipe too. Aha! Now I like it.
Garlic Chicken Pasta
2 cups cooked chicken, cut into bite sized pieces (great way to use up leftover chicken)
1 clove garlic or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (or more if you like lots of garlic)
1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 1/2 cups whole wheat pasta
3 cups whole milk
3 Tablespoons butter
1/2 t. sea salt
grated parmesan cheese
In a skillet, saute chicken and garlic in olive oil. Turn to low heat to keep warm. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a big pot with the milk, butter and salt. Stir almost constantly, especially as the pasta is becoming tender and the milk is beginning to boil. Cook and stir over medium heat until pasta is tender and the starch from the pasta has thickened the milk, creating a creamy sauce. Stir in the chicken and serve immediately…sprinkling parmesan cheese on each serving.
To make this recipe into Three Cheese Garlic Chicken Pasta:
Follow recipe as above, except before adding chicken to cooked pasta…remove from heat and add 1/2 cup shredded white cheddar and 3 oz. cream cheese. Stir until cheese has melted…add chicken and serve with parmesan cheese.
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This post is linked to Frugal Fridays .
Huh, I just so happen to have some chicken in the fridge, just waiting to fulfill its destiny. :>) Thanks, Laura!
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This looks delicious!
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Laura, that looks delicious. Thanks!
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Oooh…this looks YUMMY! Thanks for sharing, we will definitely be trying it out very soon. I scored a bunch of Smart Chicken for 0.99/lb (WOOHOO!)and have been needing some new chicken recipes.
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That looks very good! I think I will be trying that soon!
Chris
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Looks soooooo good! I’m going to try it before the week is out!
Do I have to measure the pasta and milk? I’ve never measured pasta before. Usually I just put some in a pot to make up.
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Laura Reply:
September 30th, 2009 at 8:13 am
You don’t have to meausre necessarily…just make sure there is enough milk to cover the pasta. The measurements I gave are just guidelines.
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Looks so good, I will be putting this on the list for next weeks menu plan! Thanks!
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Oooooh; that looks good. In fact, that looks like dinner tonight! lol
Thanks. :)
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Whoa- cooking pasta in milk- I have never ever heard of that. I’ll bet its fantastic!
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Ok, thanks! I wasn’t sure, since you won’t be draining the milk.
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Me either, this will be a first for me too!
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I made this today for my husband and he really enjoyed it. We didn’t have any leftover chicken, so I substituted shrimp and it was great! Thanks for the recipe.
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yummmmmmmmmmm!!!! I just made this for lunch!
I was soooooo skeptical about the milk and pasta together. But it worked out!
I think I made more of an alfredo sauce tho. I was trying to get it seasoned and the salt just wasn’t doing it lol. So I added cracked pepper, garlic powder, and the parm cheese when it was done (before serving). After adding the parm cheese, it was perfect!
I’m off to make the chicken… I was so skeptical, that I didn’t do the chicken with it lol, just in case I didn’t like it, or it didn’t work out.
Laura, would this work w/spaghetti… more like angel hair pasta?
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Laura Reply:
October 19th, 2009 at 9:17 pm
This does work with spaghetti, but it’s a little harder to stir it since the noodles are so long. Once they soften up though, it works just fine!
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We just tried this recipe tonight… and my hubby & I loved it! I used sharp cheddar, simply b/c I couldn’t find white cheddar anywhere in the store (and was way too tired to look very hard-lol). Even with that difference, we enjoyed it! Hopefully will try with white cheddar sometime too!
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This might be my family’s favorite meal now. Thanks Laura!!!
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My family thought this recipe was okay, but it needed some spice. We still haven’t figured it out…..
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I love the idea of cooking the pasta in the milk! What a time saver :)I use brown rice noodles though, you think that would still work? I don’t care for the taste of whole wheat pastas. Ooh, I can taste it now w/some broccoli or asparagus as a side!
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Theresa C Reply:
May 30th, 2010 at 7:06 pm
So I tried it w/brown rice pasta…and it worked great! It takes a little longer to cook, but it tasted awesome :)
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Laura Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 7:09 pm
Glad to know it worked! Yay!
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So do you boil the milk by itself and then add the pasta (like you do with water), or just put everything in at the beginning? Can’t wait to try this!
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Laura Reply:
July 7th, 2010 at 9:32 am
No, go ahead and put the milk and pasta in together and let it cook as the milk heats.
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I have never cooked pasta in milk, but it turned out great. I agree about making broccoli or asparagus to go with it. Would even be good to add peas or corn to the pasta and chicken.
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WOW!!! This is going into my monthly rotation menu! Thanks so much!
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I just made this tonight and it was a big hit! My husband loved it. Thank you – the milk trick is awesome.
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