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This simple one pot Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken Pasta is the perfect winter dinner. Quick, easy, hearty, and so delicious! Pan-seared Italian seasoned chicken in a creamy sun-dried tomato spinach sauce. Cooked together with rigatoni pasta for a quick dinner made in one pot. Truly one of those all-in-one dinners that everyone at the table will love. Great for a weeknight, but equally fancy enough to serve up at your next holiday dinner. You can’t go wrong with this Tuscan style pasta.
This December has been a special one in that four out of six of my brothers are here in Colorado all month. Normally, they’ll all come in the days leading up to Christmas, but with some snowboard events happening here all month long, the boys have been at home.
And when I say the boys, I mean Kai and Red. Well, Creighton is here too. I’m not exactly sure of his reasoning for being here all month. But I truly believe it’s because he misses Oslo when he leaves. And Trevor has been back and forth. I love having them home. Each one provides a little inspiration on any given day.
Lately, the boys have been requesting a lot of pasta and chicken. I’ve been making random dishes every night. But this one turned out so good that I wanted to recreate the dish and share it.
Everyone at the table loved this pasta. Even my dad, who’s not that into chicken and pasta, said the flavor was delicious.
And what do I love about this dish? Just how quick and easy it is to prepare!
The details
Seeing as this is a one pot recipe, it’s pretty straight forward. I start with the sun-dried tomatoes. I love using a jar of oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes. Not only are the tomatoes delicious, but I also use the oil from the jar to cook the chicken. The oil is always seasoned, so it adds even more flavor. Just make sure it’s extra virgin olive oil.
While I’m cooking the chicken, I season it with a homemade Italian seasoning blend…dried basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary and sage. Then I add smoked paprika and chili flakes. It’s a delicious mix and makes the chicken very flavorful.
Oh, and I add some parmesan too!
Once the chicken has cooked, add some water to make a paste. Then add the pasta and cook until the pasta is just al dente. Stir in a bit if cream, lots of spinach, the sun-dried tomatoes, and parmesan.
Add the chicken back to the pasta and toss everything until it is creamy.
I serve each bowl with extra parmesan and a squeeze of lemon. DELICIOUS!
It’s everything you’d expect out of a multi-step recipe, but all made in way less than an hour – and in one pot too. Simple, simple – and we love that.
You can serve this up on busy weeknights, but it’s equally great for holiday dinners with friends and family. I’m sure I’ll be remaking this over the holidays. My family members are slowly starting to make their way back to Colorado for Christmas (my remaining brothers and cousins), so this will be on repeat.
Looking for winter pasta recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Pesto Tortellini Zuppa Toscana
Creamy Roasted Garlic Butternut Squash Pasta
One Pot French Onion Pasta with Crispy Prosciutto
Basil Parmesan Pasta with Crispy Chicken, Prosciutto, and Arugula
Lastly, if you make this Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken Pasta be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken Pasta
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 519 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 (8 ounce) jar oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
- 4 teaspoons Italian seasoning (see note)
- 1 teaspoon paprika or smoked paprika
- red pepper flakes
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 medium shallot, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 pound short cut pasta
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 2 cups fresh baby spinach
- juice of 1 lemon
Instructions
- 1. Drain 3 tablespoons of oil from the sun-dried tomato jar into a large pot or skillet with sides. Chop the sun-dried tomatoes and set aside.2. Set the pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, 3 teaspoons Italian seasoning, the paprika, and a pinch each of red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Cook until golden brown, 5 minutes. Add 1/4 cup parmesan, cook another minute, then remove the chicken from the pot. 3. To the same pot, add the butter, shallot, garlic, and 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning. Cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add 3 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil, add the pasta, and cook, stirring often, until the pasta is al dente, 8 minutes. Stir in the cream, mustard, parmesan, spinach, and chopped sun-dried tomatoes. Slide the chicken and any juices left on the plate.4. Serve the pasta topped with lemon juice and fresh parmesan.
Notes
Italian Seasoning: Mix 2 tablespoons dried basil, 2 tablespoons dried oregano, 2 teaspoons dried thyme, 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, and 1 teaspoon dried sage. Store in a sealed container.
Can you use chicken broth instead of water
Hey Perry,
Totally, that will work well for you! Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xT
So good. I made this twice now and each time blown away by the flavor and ease of the recipe! This time around i only had spaghetti pasta and no spinach sadly but still turned out creamy and delicious. Everything else i stayed true to the recipe. Definitely adding this to our “go-to” recipes for a a weeknight or when we have guests over!
Hey Serene,
Awesome!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it turned out well for you:)
My family loved this including my picky kids! Quick, easy and delicious!
Hey Kim,
Awesome!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it turned out well for you:)
This was “knock your socks off” AMAZING! Followed the recipe exactly and it was perfect. Made this for a celebration dinner and was a huge hit! The sun dried tomato cream sauce is just divine! I recently received your cookbook and my daughter and I have been going page by page cooking up a storm. Your recipes have so much flavor, enjoying your book and the fun we’ve had cooking them.
Hey Sharon,
Wonderful!! Thanks so much for trying this recipe, I love to hear that it turned out well for you! Thanks so much for your kind message and making so many recipes! Have a great weekend:)
So good! Definitely agree with a lot of the comments – keep stirring and the 3.5 cups is fine but use the time on the pasta package and don’t assume the 8 min will work. My penne had a 13-15 min range and that was perfect. Did not need to drain any water. Loved this! I used ground chicken which I prefer for texture. Personally I like less pasta so next time I’d double the spinach and I’m going to play around with using half the pasta/water. So flavorful!
Hey Diane,
Wonderful!! Thanks so much for trying this recipe, I love to hear that it turned out well for you! Have a great weekend:)
I made this exactly as the recipe states and it came out absolutely amazing! Raving reviews from the entire family (even the lucky four year old)! I did add a little more salt than what the recipe called for, but i think the amount you need will differ on how salty your tomatoes are! Definitely making again!
Hey there,
Wonderful!! Thanks so much for trying this recipe, I love to hear that it turned out well for you! Have a great weekend:)
Made this and it’s amazing ! Key is to keep stirring the pasta. Also I didn’t use cream- I used 1% milk instead and it still turned out perfect. The Parmesan cheese helps thicken!
Hey there,
Happy Friday!😁 Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xx
Delicious. But based on the photos there definitely should be a step where water is removed. It’s really soupy. I followed all directions to a T. Was wanting a creamy pasta, not a soupy pasta. Also, “slide the chicken” is rather vague.
Hi George,
Thanks for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback. The water never needs to be removed, it should mostly all boil off, did you measure the water? Let me know how I can help! xx
I made this recipe tonight and love that it’s a simple recipe and utilizes one pot. Instead of chicken I used hot sausage and it turned out great. I’ll definitely add this to the dinner rotation.
Hey Meagan,
Happy Wednesday!! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe and sharing your comment, I love to hear that it turned out well for you! xx
This is a good one. It combines “not complicated” with “unique deliciousness”. It was a hit in my home.
Hey Helen,
Amazing!! So glad to hear that this recipe was tasty and thanks a lot for trying it out! xT
Hello!
The cream is not listed in the ingredients list !
Can you specify what kind of cream and how much??
Hi Wanda,
This recipe calls for 1 cup of heavy cream–it’s in the ingredient list:) Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Made this with chickpea shell pasta to increase the protein of the dish.
Cooked them separately
1 cup of water ish/ little corn starch slurry for thickness
Delicious meal prep!
Hey Nicole,
Happy Friday!! I appreciate you making this recipe and your comment, so glad to hear it was delish! xx
Made it exactly as the recipe said and it was so delicious!!! Definitely recommend!
Hi Lori,
Happy Wednesday!! ❄️ I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xT
So tasty! I made this EXACTLY as the recipe read, and I’m so glad I did. The 3.5 cups of water was perfect, and I cooked my pasta on medium heat for 9 minutes (as per the instructions on the bag). I think the issue that a lot of people had is that they didn’t stir their pasta or cooked it over too high of heat. I stirred my pasta near to constantly for the entire time it was cooking. Poured the heavy cream in once the pasta was Al dente. Will be adding this to our monthly rotation! Thank you – as always, your recipes are fun to make and delicious.
Hey Ali,
Happy Sunday!! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try and your comment, so glad to hear it was enjoyed! xT
5 stars! I added mushrooms and cooked the pasta in chicken broth. So easy and delicious!
Hey Kelleigh,
Amazing!! So glad to hear that this recipe was tasty and thanks a lot for trying it out! xT
This pasta is SO delicious (our toddler even loved it)! I cooked the pasta in a separate pot after reading the reviews and it worked great. Added about half a cup more cream, more Parmesan cheese, and an extra shallot too.
Hey Jenna,
Awesome!! So glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed and thanks so much for making it! Have a great weekend:)