Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta

My Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta is the definition of pure comfort food. I create a creamy, lemon-enhanced sauce, along with plenty of parmesan cheese, that perfectly compliments the tender chicken and hearty pasta.

Trust me, you’re going to want to put this 30 minute meal on repeat.

It’s creamy… it’s buttery… it’s smooth and silky… The Sauce… THE SAUCE IS THE KING HERE…

Those were the very first words on GypsyPlate, from our first recipe, Creamy Lemon Chicken. So, for our final recipe ever in our old kitchen, the one where GypsyPlate was born, we wanted to bring things full circle.

I’ve always been a huge fan of the original dish. As Alpana mentioned in that post, I’ve said that I could drink the sauce from my wine glass. And since I love pasta, this twist seemed perfect.

Ingredients

• Pasta – Just about any shape will work here. Alpana likes the way rigatoni photographs, so that’s what we used. It’s also great with long shapes like linguine or fettuccine.
• Chicken – I always use boneless, skinless thighs in my pasta dishes. They come out juicy and tender, without risk of drying out.
• Salt, pepper and paprika – To season the chicken before cooking.
• Butter – For sautéing the chicken, and it also adds great flavor to the sauce.
• Garlic – I use quite a bit in this recipe, it really enhances the dish.
• Chicken stock or broth – Better than Bouillon is my go-to.
• Heavy whipping cream – I said this pasta is easy and delicious, I never said low-cal!
• Thyme – This time I used dried because I didn’t have fresh on hand. If you do have fresh, use 1 tablespoon in place of 1 teaspoon dried.
• Lemon juice – Freshly squeezed, please.
• Parmesan cheese – Again, freshly shredded. The pre-shredded stuff doesn’t melt as well.
• Spinach – For a little veggie component.

Step-by-Step Instructions

First I get the pasta boiling in salted water, about 1 tablespoon of salt per gallon of water. When it’s al dente (it will cook more in the sauce), I drain it and keep it aside.

While that’s boiling, I cut the chicken into bite-sized chunks, season it with salt, pepper and paprika, then sauté it in butter until it’s cooked through. This takes about 10-12 minutes.

Next I add in the garlic and cook it for about a minute. Then I add the chicken broth, cream, thyme and lemon juice. I bring it up to a simmer, then stir in the cheese.

Once the cheese is melted and well incorporated into the sauce, I stir in the spinach and cooked pasta. I continue cooking for 3-4 minutes until the spinach is wilted.

That’s it, dinner is ready!

Variations

This pasta dish is really great on its own, but I can see some other veggies going in here as well. Think broccoli, peas or mushrooms.

Try replacing the chicken broth with white wine. Add it in on its own after the garlic, then reduce it for a few minutes before adding the cream.

How about adding sausage or shrimp? That would be excellent!

I hope you love this creamy lemon chicken pasta as much as I do. It’s a worthy last recipe from our original kitchen. And stay tuned, the other night we cooked our first recipe in the new kitchen, and it was amazing!

If you try this recipe, please leave a star rating and comment, we love to hear from you. And be sure to stay in the loop by subscribing to our newsletter or following us on Pinterest.

Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta, on our Gypsy Plate… enjoy!

More Creamy Pasta Recipes:
Marry Me Chicken Pasta
Pasta alla Norcina
Gigi Hadid Pasta
Espagueti Verde
Creamy Salmon Pasta
Jambalaya Pasta
Rasta Pasta

Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

My Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta is an easy 30-minute dinner that's so comforting and so delicious.

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Ingredients

• 8oz dried pasta (I am using rigatoni)
• 3 Tbsp butter, divided
• 1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite sized chunks
• 1 tsp paprika
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste
• 2 Tbsp garlic, minced
• ½ cup chicken broth or stock
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1.5 lemons, juiced
• 1 cup freshly shredded parmesan cheese
• 6oz fresh spinach

Instructions

1. Boil pasta in salted water to al dente according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
2. While pasta is boiling, melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet. Season chicken with salt, pepper and paprika, then sauté in skillet until it is cooked through, about 10-12 minutes.
3. Add in remaining butter, along with garlic. Cook for 1 minute.
4. Stir in broth or stock, cream, thyme and lemon juice. Bring to a low simmer, then stir in parmesan cheese.
5. Add spinach and pasta. Continue cooking until spinach is wilted, about 3-4 minutes.

Notes

1. Leftovers are good for 3-4 days. I keep them refrigerated in an airtight container, reheating on stovetop or in the microwave. The pasta does absorb some of the sauce, so I recommend adding a splash more cream or chicken broth when reheating.

Nutrition Information

Yield 4 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 783Total Fat 50gSaturated Fat 27gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 21gCholesterol 314mgSodium 1108mgCarbohydrates 29gFiber 3gSugar 4gProtein 58g

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.