Easy garlic parmesan chicken pasta recipe for a healthy dinner

So this happened by accident, not gonna lie. I had chicken sitting in the fridge that needed to be used before it went bad, half a box of pasta in the cupboard, no cream anywhere in the house. Grabbed milk instead because what else was I gonna do. Didn’t expect much honestly. But it turned out really good, like surprisingly good, and now it’s just… the dinner. The one I make on the nights I have zero energy but still don’t want to order out again.

It’s creamy but it doesn’t sit heavy on you after, which I think is the whole reason it stuck around. No cream, just milk and broth and a proper amount of parmesan. Takes maybe half an hour if you’re not distracted by your phone the whole time like I usually am.

One pan for the chicken, one pot for the pasta. That’s really it.

Easy Garlic Parmesan Chicken Pasta Recipe (30-Minute Dinner)

Easy garlic parmesan chicken pasta recipe for a healthy dinner made in just 30 minutes with simple ingredients — no heavy cream needed. A quick, comforting weeknight dinner the whole family will love.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Servings: 4

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

Chicken part:

• 2 large chicken breasts chopped into small pieces
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• ½ tsp paprika
• salt and pepper half tsp each
• 2 cloves garlic chopped

Pasta part:

• 12 oz pasta whatever you have honestly, I use whole wheat
• 2 cups broccoli or spinach if it’s in the fridge
• salt for the water obviously

Sauce part:

• 1 tbsp oil or butter
• 3-4 cloves garlic yeah, a lot, don’t cut it down
• 1 cup milk
• ½ cup chicken broth
• ¾ cup parmesan grated
• ½ tsp Italian seasoning
• pepper to taste
• parsley a little, for on top

Method

 

Step 1

1. Season the chicken Cut your chicken small. Smaller pieces cook faster and pick up the seasoning better. Mix it with the paprika, seasoning, salt, pepper, and garlic, and leave it sitting there while you sort the pasta water out. Ten minutes is fine, no need to marinate for hours.

Step 2

1. Cook the chicken Get the oil hot in a big pan, medium heat. Put the chicken in and just leave it alone for a bit — don’t keep stirring, it won’t brown properly if you do. Six or seven minutes, till it’s golden. Take it out, set it aside, don’t wash the pan.

Step 3

1. Boil the pasta Boil your pasta in salted water till it’s cooked but not falling apart. Scoop out about half a cup of that water before draining — small step, but it makes the sauce better later. Broccoli or spinach, if you’re using it, just toss it in with the pasta for the last couple of minutes.

Step 4

1. Start the sauce Same pan the chicken was in. Oil or butter, then garlic, thirty seconds max, just till it smells good. Don’t walk away here, burnt garlic ruins the whole thing.

Step 5

1. Build the sauce Broth and milk go in next, let it warm up. Then parmesan, slowly, stirring so it melts instead of clumping. Season it. If it’s too thick, splash in the pasta water.

Step 6

1. Bring it together Chicken goes back in, pasta goes in, mix it all together, let it sit another minute on low heat. Parsley on top, extra parmesan because why not.
2. That’s dinner, honestly.

stuff I’ve picked up along the way

1. Whole wheat pasta fills you up more. Vegetables like spinach, mushrooms, or bell peppers don’t change the taste much but make you feel a little better about the meal. Fresh grated parmesan melts nicer than the bag stuff, worth the extra effort. If you want it lighter, use Greek yogurt for part of the milk, you genuinely can’t tell the difference.

Notes

This recipe works best with freshly grated parmesan — the pre-shredded kind doesn’t melt as smoothly and can make the sauce grainy. Also, don’t skip saving the pasta water; it’s a small step but it really helps bring the sauce together if it gets too thick.