Chicken and Chorizo Pasta
This Chicken and Chorizo Pasta is made with juicy pan fried chicken and a creamy tomato sauce. It's quick, easy and absolutely bursting with flavour! Makes 4 big portions.
Servings: 4
Cost: £4 / $5
Equipment
- 12" Frying Pan & Wooden Spoon
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Large Pot (for boiling pasta)
- Pasta Tongs
- Aluminium Foil (to keep chicken warm)
Ingredients
Chicken
- 2x 5oz/150g Chicken Breasts, take out the fridge 15mins or so before needed (see notes)
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 tsp Dried Italian Herbs
- 1/4 tsp EACH: Garlic Powder, Salt, Black Pepper
Chorizo Pasta
- 12oz / 350g Linguine, or long-cut pasta of choice
- 1x 24oz/700g jar of Tomato Passata (pureed/strained tomatoes in US)
- 5oz / 150g Chorizo, sliced into thin rounds (see notes)
- 3/4 cup / 75g Sun Dried Tomatoes, finely diced
- 1/2 cup / 125ml Heavy/Double Cream, at room temp
- 1 medium Onion, finely diced
- 1 tsp Garlic, finely diced (approx 1 large clove)
- 1 tbsp finely diced Fresh Basil, (can sub 1 tsp dried basil)
- 1 tbsp finely diced Fresh Parsley, (can sub 1 tsp dried parsley)
- 1/2 tsp Smoked Paprika
- Salt & Black Pepper, to taste
- Olive Oil, as needed
- Parmesan, to serve (optional)
Instructions
- Coat the chicken in 1 tsp Italian seasoning, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, salt, black pepper and 1 tbsp olive oil. Fry both sides over medium heat for 4-5mins, or until golden on the outside and white through the centre (with the juices running clear). Timings will depend on the thickness of the chicken. Place to one side to rest in a bowl and cover with foil to keep warm. When ready, slice into thin strips, ensuring you slice at an angle and against the grain.
- Add a dash of oil to the pan if needed, then add onion and fry until soft and golden. Add in sun dried tomatoes, chorizo & garlic and fry for a few more mins until the chorizo starts to release oil and crisps slightly.
- Pour in passata and swill the jar out with a splash of water. Stir in cream, then add basil, parsley, smoked paprika and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Give it a stir then reduce to a gentle simmer for 15mins. This is important to marry the flavours and thicken the sauce.
- Add pasta to salted boiling water and cook until al dente.
- Once the sauce has thickened and the pasta is cooked, use pasta tongs to transfer the pasta straight from the pot into the sauce. Toss to combine, adding a splash of the leftover starchy pasta water to thin out the sauce if needed.
- Add sliced chicken on top, then serve up with any leftover fresh parsley and parmesan if you're using it. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
a) Chicken Breast - If your chicken breasts are particularly thick, consider slicing them both through the centre to create 4 thinner breasts (just so they cook evenly). You could also cover in cling film and bash with a rolling pin to flatten slightly. In all instances, cooking times will vary depending on the thickness of the breast, so just be vigilant as you cook.
b) Oil - The 1 tbsp is enough to fry the chicken, after that I usually add around 1 tsp extra to fry the onions. When you fry the chorizo it will release more oil. Depending on the variety of chorizo, it may release a lot of oil. A couple of tsp's worth is fine, but anything over I would drain away some before pouring in the tomato passata.
c) Chorizo - I use regular cured Spanish chorizo, but you could use raw chorizo (including ground chorizo). Just fry it off after the onions until piping hot and a little crisp, then add in the sun dried tomatoes/garlic, fry them off for a couple of mins then continue with the recipe.
d) Calories - based on sharing between 4 people, using 1 tbsp + 1 tsp olive oil, all the chorizo fat and no parmesan.
Nutrition
Calories: 607kcal | Carbohydrates: 45.53g | Protein: 35.4g | Fat: 32.86g | Saturated Fat: 13.271g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3.157g | Monounsaturated Fat: 13.735g | Trans Fat: 0.007g | Cholesterol: 155mg | Sodium: 1132mg | Potassium: 1367mg | Fiber: 6.5g | Sugar: 13.59g | Vitamin A: 2600IU | Vitamin C: 26.4mg | Calcium: 130mg | Iron: 5.6mg