Chicken Spaghetti

Looking for a lighter twist on your favorite weeknight dinner? My quick Chicken Spaghetti has a ton of flavor, without any guilt.

Spaghetti is my favorite type of pasta. Maybe it’s that childhood nostalgia of twirling those noodles. Meat Spaghetti is one of the most common meals from our kitchen, and sometimes we get a bit more motivated and make Spaghetti and Meatballs.

But after all that holiday feasting, it’s time to cut back on the calories a bit. That’s where chicken spaghetti comes in.

Ingredients

• Pasta – As the name implies, I use spaghetti. You can use other shapes if that’s your preference (Alpana is all about rigatoni).
• Ground chicken – This recipe is pretty hard to screw up, except for one thing: Do not use ground chicken breast. I accidentally bought it once and the result was dry, squeaky (yes, squeaky) meat. I use 93/7 lean.
• Olive oil – For cooking the chicken. Use extra virgin if you love that olive oil taste, which I do, or light for a more tomatoee flavor.
• Garlic – Yes, in case you hadn’t noticed, this is our favorite ingredient.
• Crushed red pepper – You can leave it out if you want, but we like a touch of heat.
• Marinara sauce – Secret food blogger admission: I usually just use a good quality jarred sauce. If you’ve got those chef vibes going, make up a batch of our San Marzano Sauce.
• Italian seasoning – For a little boost of flavor.
• Fresh basil – If you don’t have it handy, go ahead and make the recipe, but this really does take things up a notch.
• Salt – To taste, as always.
• Sugar – Also to taste. Depending on your marinara sauce, you may not need it at all.

Chicken Spaghetti Recipe

First, I heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat, then add in ground chicken, along with a sprinkle of salt. I cook the chicken, breaking it up with a spoon or spatula, until it is no longer pink.

Next, I add garlic and crushed red pepper, cooking for about a minute, until garlic becomes fragrant. After that, I stir in marinara sauce and Italian seasoning. I mix everything together well and simmer for about 15 minutes.

While the sauce simmers, I cook the spaghetti noodles in salted water until they are al dente, then drain them in a colander.

Once the sauce has had time to cook, I stir in fresh basil, cook for about a minute, then taste and adjust for salt and sugar.

Finally, I toss the cooked spaghetti into the sauce and serve immediately.

So, there’s your healthyish pasta to help you get back on track after the holidays. Serve it up with a nice Caesar or Greek Salad, and feel good about your dinner.

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Some more great pasta recipes:
Frutti di Mare
Gigi Hadid Pasta
Chicken Riggies
Kielbasa Pasta
Pasta e Piselli
Mexican Spaghetti
Jambalaya Pasta

Chicken Spaghetti

Yield: 6 servings

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Looking for a lighter twist on your easy weeknight dinner? My quick Chicken Spaghetti has a ton of flavor, without any guilt!

Print

Ingredients

• 8oz dried spaghetti
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1.5 pounds ground chicken (see note 1)
• salt, to taste
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• ½ tsp crushed red pepper
• 24oz marinara sauce
• 1.5 tsp Italian seasoning
• ¼ cup fresh basil, chopped
• sugar, to taste

Instructions

1. Cook spaghetti noodles in salted water until your desired doneness. Drain in a colander and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground chicken, along with a sprinkle of salt. Cook, breaking up with a spoon or spatula, until chicken is no longer pink.
3. Add garlic and crushed red pepper. Cook for about a minute, until garlic becomes fragrant.
4. Stir in marinara sauce and Italian seasoning. Mix well and simmer for about 15 minutes.
5. Stir in fresh basil. Cook for about a minute. Taste and adjust for salt and sugar.
6. Toss cooked spaghetti into the sauce. Serve immediately.

Notes

1. Be sure to use regular ground chicken (which is about 93% fat free), as opposed to ground chicken breast (which is 99% fat free). The latter is too dry for this recipe.
2. Depending on the natural sweetness of your chosen marinara sauce, you may not need any added sugar.

Nutrition Information

Yield 6 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 381Total Fat 19gSaturated Fat 4gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 13gCholesterol 124mgSodium 761mgCarbohydrates 22gFiber 3gSugar 7gProtein 30g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Welcome to GypsyPlate! I'm Alpana, former wordwide tour manager and professional caterer, now full time blogger. I love exploring cuisines from around the world, and my recipes have been featured on sites such as MSN, Parade, Brit + Co, CNET and AOL. You can explore my entire collection of sortable recipes in my Recipe Index or learn more about me here.