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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.
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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
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
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Can you make this recipe using roasted peppers instead of tomatoes? Still packed in oil. And can whole milk be substituted for heavy cream?
Thanks!
Hey Katie,
Sure, I bet the peppers would be delicious!! Yes, whole milk will also work for you. I hope you love this dish!
I used hot Italian chicken sausage and it gave it a yummy kick! Delicious!
Thanks so much, Jamie! Love to hear this recipe was enjoyed! Happy New Year!🥂🎆
Excited to try this one! Can you sub the heavy cream with coconut cream or would the flavors be off?
Thanks Kelsey! Sure, coconut cream would also work nicely for you in this recipe!
Happy Holidays!
Thank you for this amazing recipe! My husband thought I ordered this from a restaurant- the depth of flavor was incredible. I really appreciate you and your wonderful recipes. ❤️🎄❤️
Hey Robin,
Yay! Love to hear this dish turned out nicely for you, I appreciate you making it! Happy Holidays!
Excellent one pot meal!! I added some left over bacon and also delicious
Hey Jacqui,
Happy Sunday! So kind of you to try this recipe and leave feedback, I’m glad it was a hit!
I made this tonight for our family before our oldest son has to go back to college tomorrow. My husband said “it was restaurant” quality and both the boys gave it a 10 out of 10 !!! It was so delicious and felt like you were eating an elevated meal at home ! Thank you so much for providing such a delicious meal that I was able to provide my family tonight ! I will definitely be making this on repeat !
Hey Shannon,
Happy Monday! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe and your comment, so glad it was enjoyed!
Hi,
Looking to try this recipe this week. Sometimes to give the pasta extra flavour I boil in Chicken Broth/ Water mixture. Do you think it would be okay to do so with this? Also, in this particular recipe are you not draining any pasta water, and you’re keeping it all?
Hey Amanda,
Totally, chicken broth would be delicious here! Correct, no need to drain any water:) I hope you love this recipe!
This recipe worked very well and was flavorful. I’d give five stars for taste and cooking ease, except my rigatoni was very al dente at eight minutes and much of the liquid had cooked off. I’ll try a smaller pasta next time and perhaps add 1/2 cup more water. I also might add some salt along with the water.
Hey Lisa,
Thanks so much! I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe and appreciate the feedback! Happy Tuesday!
So good! I made it heathy – no cream and no butter – still delicious! I added jalepenos to give it a kick. It was great! Thanks!
Hey there,
Really appreciate you making this recipe and reporting back. Thrilled it turned out well!
Oh I’ll try that as my son has Alpha Gal so no dairy for him! Also I’m always looking for healthy versions! Thanks
Can you make this with gluten free pasta? If so, should you cook the pasta separately? Thank you
Hi Mary,
I would keep the recipe as written using GF pasta. I hope you love this dish, please let me know if you give it a try!
Love this recipe and how easy it is – and so delicious! It’s always a hit when I make it for others. To make it slightly more healthy, I sometimes sub olive oil for the butter and use half or less of the cream, with a little more water if I need extra moisture for the pasta, and it still turns out amazing.
Hey Kris,
Yay! Thank you so much for making this recipe so often. I am so glad to hear it is always enjoyed. Have a great week!
Not my favorite to cook
Hey Jack! So sorry you didn’t enjoy cooking this recipe! Let me know how I can help! xT
I made this with two other friends via Zoom. We all agreed that while the recipe seems to call for a lot of seasoning, it was absolutely warranted and made the dish. We did all note that it needed extra salt (particularly as you add all that water). We all agreed that we would add this to our rotation. It was easy, not a lot of cleanup (one VERY LARGE pan), and used ingredients that we easily sourced. It did take all three of us about 1.5 hours instead of the 45 minutes as advertised (including chopping time). One person swapped impossible sausage for chicken and the sauce held up well to a more flavorful protein. All in all a hit in three households at once!
Hey Elizabeth! Aw that’s such a fun idea to cook with friends via Zoom! So glad you enjoyed the recipe, and thank you for all of the input! It’s always so helpful to know what works best for people! So happy you loved the pasta, thank you for trying it out! xT
This was very good, very tasty. Only swaps I made were sweet onion for shallot and half and half for heavy cream. I used rigatoni pasta. I will make this a g ain.
Hi Kathy,
Awesome! Love to hear this dish turned out nicely for you, I appreciate you making it! Have a great weekend! T
so easy and delicious! kids enjoyed as well so double win!
Hi Elaine,
Awesome! I appreciate you trying this recipe and your feedback, so glad it turned out well. Have the best week! x