Creamy Italian Chicken Pasta recipe, packed with flavor from spinach, garlic, and sun dried tomatoes, your family will gobble this easy dinner right up!
Love easy chicken dinners? This Buffalo Chicken Pasta ranks as one of our reader’s favorite recipes! And who can resist a plate of cheesy Chicken Tetrazzini??
Why this Recipe is best
Much like my Tuscan Garlic Chicken Pasta recipe, you’ll have tender chicken with a delicious, creamy tuscan sauce!
- Restaurant quality, made at home!
- Tender flavorful chicken
- Creamy sauce
- Made in a skillet for easy clean up!
Prep the Chicken
Place raw chicken breast into a bowl and pour milk and lemon juice over the top. Cover and refrigerate for 2-4 hours. You can also do this in the morning, so that it’s ready at dinner time!
PRO TIP: Did you know that soaking the chicken in milk and lemon helps it become more tender for cooking?
Step by Step Instructions
The crust.
When ready to cook, create your Italian chicken crust. In a pie plate, or shallow dish, combine flour, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and powdered sugar.
Drain chicken from milk marinade and dip into the flour, coating evenly.
Heat a large skillet with olive oil over medium high heat. Place chicken strips in hot skillet for about 3 minutes on each side. Remove and place onto a foil lined baking sheet.
Bake the chicken.
Bake chicken in 350 degree oven for about 18-20 minutes.
PRO TIP: If you smash your chicken with a meat tenderizer before dipping in coating, this helps it become the same thickness throughout, resulting in more even cooking.
Make the pasta and sauce.
While the chicken bakes, cook your linguine (or favorite pasta) according to package.
To make the sauce, using the same skillet as the chicken, add additional olive oil, scraping the bits from the pan. Over medium heat, add garlic and sun dried tomatoes to the pan, heat for several minutes.
PRO TIP: Skip the additional olive oil and use the oil from the sun dried tomatoes instead. Adds a rich flavor to the sauce!
Sprinkle 1 Tbsp cornstarch over the tomatoes, and mix thoroughly.
Add chicken broth, whisk until combined. Cook for about 5 minutes.
In a small bowl, mix remaining cornstarch with milk and whisk. Add to the broth and continue whisking while adding in the cream, spinach, salt, and pepper.
Turn heat to low and simmer until sauce thickens and spinach wilts. Add in parmesan cheese.
Stir and heat on low until chicken and noodles are done.
Serve in a large bowl and enjoy.
Serving Suggestions
This Garlic Bread is always a great side dish to pasta. Who doesn’t love a fluffy, flavorful bread? Dinner rolls are great for sopping up that extra sauce.
This Italian Salad is loaded with fresh flavor and the homemade Italian Dressing is zesty and flavorful! The perfect pairing to your weeknight meal.
Looking for a fresh bowl of homemade applesauce for dinner tonight? This Instant Pot Applesauce recipe is super quick and easy!
Don’t forget to finish the evening with a fresh batch of Rice Krispie Treats!
More Pasta Recipes
You’ll love this tangy, Lemon Garlic Pasta as a side dish with your favorite chicken or fish! Or enjoy it as your main entree in under 30 minutes!
Cajun Sausage Pasta is a delicious 30 minute dinner recipe! Colorful, spicy, and easy to make, you’ll want to put this dish on your menu!
Whether you’re looking for an easy weeknight meal or a dish to share at a potluck, this Chicken Pesto Pasta is your delicious answer! Packed with flavor from the homemade walnut pesto, you’ll love how tasty this easy dish is to eat!
Whip up this easy Instant Pot Spaghetti recipe packed with flavor and meatballs. Ready in minutes!
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More Chicken Recipes:
- Italian Chicken Casserole
- Cilantro Lime Chicken
- Orange Chicken
- Chicken Fettuccini Alfredo
- Chicken and Dumplings
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Italian Chicken
Creamy Italian Chicken Pasta recipe, packed with flavor from spinach, garlic, and sun dried tomatoes, your family will gobble this easy dinner right up!
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 Tablespoon powdered sugar
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 3 Tablespoon olive oil
For the sauce:
- 2 Tablespoon olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup sun dried tomatoes in oil, drained and finely diced
- 3 Tablespoon cornstarch, divided
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 3 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper (don’t skimp on this)
- 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated
- 1 box (16oz) linguine noodles
Instructions
- Place raw chicken breast into a bowl and pour milk and lemon juice over the top. Cover and refrigerate for 2-4 hours. You can also do this in the morning, so that it's ready at dinner time!
- When ready to cook, create your chicken crust. In a pie plate, or shallow dish, combine flour, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and powdered sugar.
- Drain chicken from milk marinade and dip into the flour, coating evenly.
- Heat a large skillet with olive oil over medium high heat. Place chicken strips in hot skillet for about 3 minutes on each side. Remove and place onto a foil lined baking sheet.
- Bake chicken in 350 degree oven for about 18-20 minutes.
- While the chicken bakes, cook your linguine (or favorite pasta) according to package.
- To make the sauce, using the same skillet as the chicken, add additional olive oil, scraping the bits from the pan. Over medium heat, add garlic and sun dried tomatoes to the pan, heat for several minutes.
- Sprinkle 1 Tbsp cornstarch over the tomatoes, and mix thoroughly.
- Add chicken broth, whisk until combined. Cook for about 5 minutes.
- In a small bowl, mix remaining cornstarch with milk and whisk. Add to the broth and continue whisking while adding in the cream, spinach, salt, and pepper.
- Turn heat to low and simmer until sauce thickens and spinach wilts. Add in parmesan cheese.
- Stir and heat on low until chicken and noodles are done.
- Serve in a large bowl and enjoy.
Notes
- If you smash your chicken with a meat tenderizer before dipping in coating, this helps it become the same thickness throughout, resulting in more even cooking.
- Skip the additional olive oil and use the oil from the sun dried tomatoes instead. Adds a rich flavor to the sauce!
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 695Total Fat: 37gSaturated Fat: 16gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 19gCholesterol: 169mgSodium: 1785mgCarbohydrates: 38gFiber: 2gSugar: 3gProtein: 50g
*Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietitian for special diet advice.
Creamy Italian Chicken Pasta recipe, packed with flavor from spinach, garlic, and sun dried tomatoes, your family will gobble this easy dinner right up!
Was wondering …. when is the chicken supposed to be cut up??
You can cut it anytime. We serve it whole and cut it as we eat it.
Hi.
In italy we don’t make chicken pasta.
Stop calling it “Italian”.
Riccardo you’re a dick. Let people enjoy good food.
As chef and proprietor of a top Italian restaurant in Europe (La Crema)… this is most certainly a traditional Italian recipe, deeply rooted in the dairy-citrus soaked poultry culinary traditions of both Toscana AND Piemonte.
It does indeed originate from a traditional Italian recipe.
As a pro tip I suggest replacing the cornstarch in the sauce with some of the pasta water and some Parmesan (or Pecorino) for an extra silky and creamy texture… you can add lemon zest as well; it adds depth and enhances the citrusy flavour of the marinated chicken.
Calling someone a dick is not very nice Bretta..
Those are great suggestions. I will try Meyer lemon zest as a supplement, which I usually pair with truffle oil.
About Riccardo, we should not be name calling… but it is kind of tragic he doesn’t even seem to know his own country’s cuisine. Perhaps he is actually just Italian-American.
I made it tonight for Iftar absolutely amazing thx for the recipe I appreciate for taking your time
I made it tonight for Iftar absolutely amazing thx for the recipe I appreciate
Can Oat, Almond, or coconut milk be used instead of regular milk?
Can I just use tomatoes? I understand the sun dried has a definite flavor but i’m stuck in the house and can’t get any right now!
Now is the time to use what you have 🙂
Is there something I can substitute the cream with? I dont have any cream and the store shelves are empty. Please any suggestions
Try yogurt. Different flavor but will do in a pinch.
You can make a heavy cream substitute by adding butter to regular milk.
I substituted broccoli for the spinach, since my little sister hates it. My mom and her loved it❤️ I’m 17 btw????
This is definitely not an easy or quick meal to make, HOWEVER, it is so delicious! Well worth the effort for a good size group.
Absolutely delicious, however it’s not a 5 min prep meal… not something you can cook in a hurry.
Agreed
The taste was great!! It was a little thick for me, so next time I’ll cut back on the cornstarch. I topped it with fresh tomatoes and fresh basil to and it was delicious.
Amazing, my family loved it !!!! Thank you for sharing!!
This sounds delicious but you advertised this as a 30-min meal when it’s really a 4.5-hour meal ?
I’ve made this on multiple occasions and it’s so delicious! My fiancé takes it to work as well and wants all the leftovers!
Honestly Aimee, you’ve shared a really scrumptious chicken recipe here and oh my gosh I’m totally drooling over it right now!
The cakes are so fresh, the recipe you made is so great and you have really clever hands, I really like the way you decorate them.
Loved this recipe! It was a crowd pleaser! Thank you for sharing.
Do you slice the chicken breast into strips before or after cooking? The recipe doesn’t mention when to cut up the chicken, but it is cut in the final pictures. Thanks!
I was wondering this too…
Has anyone substituted a milk alternative, like Almond milk, with the lemon to soak the chicken? I’d love to make this but we are dairy free and I don’t want to ruin it.
It sure was delicious. My husband loved it.
One thing I would like to point out is that it did not take 30 min but little over an hour and I am experienced cook . Otherwise great recipe thank you for posting it.