Garlic Parmesan Chicken Pasta
This parmesan chicken pasta recipe is comfort food that’s perfect for special occasions, busy weeknights and everything in between. With juicy chicken breast, roasted garlic and a rich and decadent cream sauce, this meal is simple but refined.
The roasted garlic elevates this dish and is totally worth the extra oven time. Roasting garlic brings out an incredible flavor you can’t get with raw garlic. The bbq gives the chicken a smokey charred flavor that complements the buttery roasted garlic and if you have the time, I suggest doing both.
There’s no right or wrong when it comes to noodles. I used penne pasta because I love when extra sauce gets between the noodles and each bite is full of all the flavors. Choose whichever noodle brings you this type of joy. Or whatever’s in your pantry.
Pair this creamy pasta with garlic bread, roasted veggies or rocket fennel and pear salad and your meal is complete.
Why you’ll love this recipe:
- Made with simple ingredients.
- 10g of protein per serving.
Ingredients and Substitutes:
These are the main ingredients and substitutions. See the recipe card below for the full ingredients list and instructions for Garlic Parmesan Chicken Pasta.
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts: chicken thighs, pre-cooked chicken, steak, shrimp, sausage, or ground meats.
- Penne Pasta: all types of pasta are yummy in this dish but my favorites are the shorter varieties, such as rotini pasta. With shorter noodles you get a little bit of everything in each bite.
- Fresh Garlic: we’ll be roasting the garlic for this recipe. If you don’t want to do that, add 2-4 minced cloves to the butter while making the sauce. Roasted garlic has a much more muted flavor than raw garlic so be sure not to add a full clove of raw garlic or you might be kicked out of your house for the night.
- Butter: butter adds great flavor and richness to the creamy sauce but you can substitute it with olive oil or coconut oil.
- Half and Half: this recipe calls for fat-free half and half. You can substitute with heavy cream, full-fat half and half or whole milk. If using heavy cream this sauce will be incredibly thick. I suggest using a splash of milk or chicken stock with the cream to thin it out.
- All-Purpose Flour: used to create the roux. You can use arrowroot powder, cornstarch or gluten-free flour.
- Grated Parmesan Cheese: I would not omit this one. The cheesiness of this sauce is perfect with just 1/4 cup. If you need extra cheese, add it on top at the end.
Variations
- I love adding fresh spinach when you add the cooked noodles to the sauce. It adds a little nutrition and some color and really completes the dish.
- Add some red pepper flakes prior to serving for some heat.
- For a similar high-protein chicken dish, try marry me chicken pasta with sun-dried tomatoes.
Dietary Modifications
- For gluten-free, use a gluten-free noodle and gluten-free flour for the sauce.
- I don’t suggest making this dairy-free, as it has a lot of dairy ingredients in it.
How to make this garlic parmesan chicken pasta
Step 1: roast the garlic
Leaving the garlic intact, cut the tip off so that the garlic is showing on the top. Drizzle with olive oil and wrap in foil. Place on a baking sheet with the cut side up and roast at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 30-40 minutes until golden brown on the inside. Once the garlic is done roasting, remove the garlic from the foil and squeeze out the roasted garlic cloves. Mash with the back of a fork and save for your sauce.
Step 2: cook the chicken
While the garlic roasts, pound the chicken breasts to 1/2″ thickness with a meat pounder. To avoid this step buy thinly cut chicken breast.
Season the chicken with garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. BBQ on medium heat until cooked through, approximately 4-5 minutes on each side. The cooking time will vary based on the thickness of your chicken. You can also pan sear, air fry or bake. Cut cooked chicken into pieces.
Step 3: boil the pasta
When the garlic has approximately 10 minutes left of roasting time, start the water for your noodles. Cook noodles according to the package directions.
Step 4: make the creamy sauce
Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the butter. Cook until melted. Once melted, add the roasted garlic and simmer for one minute while stirring so the garlic does not burn. Add flour to the garlic butter mixture and mix together well to create your roux.
Slowly add the half and half and whisk until the roux is completely mixed in. Simmer for a few minutes to thicken. Remove from heat. While the pan is off the heat, add the cheese and whisk together until melted. Add salt and pepper to taste. You can also add a dash of nutmeg for extra flavor.
Step 5: combine and serve
Add the cooked pasta noodles to the sauce and mix well to combine. Add the chicken pieces to the dish or serve on top. Top with fresh parsley for garnish.
Expert Tip!
To avoid having to tenderize the chicken yourself, purchase thin slices of chicken breast. We want the chicken uniform in size so it cooks evenly and ensures tender, juicy chicken.
Recipe FAQs
You can serve this chicken pasta by itself, with a side salad, roasted vegetables or my Air Fryer Carrots and Potatoes.
Roasting garlic is something every chef (and non-chef!) should utilize. Roasted garlic elevates a dish like no other! Using a knife cut the top off the head of garlic leaving the protective leaf on. Drizzle with olive oil and place the bottom down on foil. Wrap the foil around like a heresy’s kiss and place it on a baking sheet in the oven. Roast the garlic for 30-40 minutes until the cloves are golden brown and your house smells like a gourmet kitchen. Remove the garlic from the foil and using a heat pan simply squeeze out the soft cloves. If the cloves do not pop right out then the garlic is not done roasting. Use the garlic in the sauce for this garlic parmesan chicken pasta and you will not be disappointed.
Check out some of our other easy weeknight meals!
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Garlic Parmesan Chicken Pasta
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Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs. chicken Breast, raw
- 10 oz. penne pasta, uncooked
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
Creamy Roasted Garlic Sauce
- 1 head roasted garlic
- 2 Tbsp. butter
- 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 1 1/3 cup fat free half and half
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg (optional)
- salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
Roast the garlic
- Leaving the garlic in tact, cut the tip off so that the garlic is showing on the top. Drizzle with olive oil and wrap in foil. Place on a baking sheet with the cut side up and roast at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 30-40 minutes, until golden brown on the inside.
For the chicken
- While the garlic roasts, pound the chicken breasts to 1/2" thickness with a meat pounder. To avoid this step, buy thinly cut chicken breast.
- Season the chicken with garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper and barbeque on medium heat until cooked through, approximately 4-5 minutes on each side. You can also pan sear, air fry or bake. See note.
Pasta & Sauce
- When the garlic has approximately 10 minutes left of roasting time, start your water for your noodles. Cook noodles according to the package directions.
- Remove the garlic from the foil and squeeze out the roasted garlic cloves. Mash with the back of a fork and save for your sauce.
For the sauce
- Heat a large pan over medium-high heat and add the butter. Cook until melted. Once melted, add the roasted garlic and simmer for one minute while stirring so the garlic does not burn.
- Add flour to the garlic butter mixture and mix together well to create your roux.
- Slowly add the half and half and whisk until the roux is completely mixed in. Simmer for a few minutes to thicken and remove from the heat.
- While the pan is off the heat, add the cheese and whisk together until melted. Add salt and pepper to taste. You can also add a dash of nutmeg for extra flavor.
- Add the cooked pasta noodles to the sauce and mix well to combine.
- Slice the cooked chicken into strips and add to the dish or serve on top. Top with fresh parsley for garnish.
Notes
- Do not bake chicken and garlic at the same time. If baking your chicken, do so either before or after your garlic roasts.
- Nutritional information is an estimate and will vary with substitutions.
- Use any type of noodle.
- Use rotisserie chicken to make this easier.
I have made this several times, but it had been awhile. After dinner tonight my husband said, “Yeah this definitely needs to go in the rotation more often!” Haha! This recipe is AMAZING – my son and husband even had seconds, and I’ve got leftovers for lunch tomorrow! Delicious. (And roasting the garlic in the oven makes the whole house smell incredible too lol!)
My picky 3 year old will eat this and I feel like that tells you how good it is! We make it once a week and the whole family loves it! It’s high in protein which is just the cherry on top!!
What is the serving size for this?
I portioned it out and got about 233g of pasta/chicken per serving.
Made this tonight for my family and a guest and all but one loved it! (He’s a picky 12 year old so we won’t count his vote!) easy and relatively quick to make. I followed all the steps but didn’t roast the garlic as I already had minced garlic to use. Leftovers will go fast (what little there was) and everyone agreed this will go in the regular rotation!
I have made this recipe a few times and my husband and adult son loved it. I was not sure there would be English for me.
Haha!! That’s awesome! Thank you!
This tasted like a 2000 calorie cream sauce. Don’t skip out roasting the garlic. It’s worth the wait! This will be a regular rotation in my meal prep!
SO happy to hear that!