EASY CHICKEN FETTUCCINE
An indulgent creamy chicken fettuccine with a few added veggies to make it a little more suitable for weeknights!
Lite cream cheese works really well as an alternative to cream in many savoury recipes. It’s lower in kilojoules and has more flavour too. Also great in anything mashed (try this pan fried fish)!
This is a really quick and easy meal that you can adapt to use up ingredients you have on hand. If you don’t want to serve with rocket on the side, try stirring through some baby spinach instead.
EASY CHICKEN FETTUCCINE
An indulgent creamy chicken fettuccine with a few added veggies to make it a little more suitable for week nights! Lite cream cheese is a great flavoursome alternative to cream.
Ingredients
CHICKEN FETTUCCINE
- 300 g smoked chicken breast (10.6oz)
- 250 g portobello mushrooms (8.8oz)
- 1 red capsicum
- 3 cloves garlic
- 300 g dried fettuccine (10.6oz)
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 tsp chicken stock powder
- 200 g lite cream cheese (7oz)
- 1 cup finely grated parmesan, divided (90g)
- 100 g baby rocket (3.5oz) (optional)
Instructions
PREPARE INGREDIENTS
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Meanwhile, dice chicken into 1-2cm (0.5in) pieces, slice mushrooms, finely dice capsicum and crush garlic. Reduce water to a simmer if it boils before you’ve prepped all the ingredients.
COOK FETTUCCINE
Add fettuccine to simmering water and cook for 10 minutes (stirring occasionally), until al dente.
While pasta cooks, melt butter in a large frying pan on medium. Add mushrooms and garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in chicken and capsicum and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Scoop out half a cup of pasta water and dissolve chicken stock in it. Add to frying pan, then stir in cream cheese until you have a smooth sauce. Stir in 3/4 cup parmesan and simmer for 2 minutes. Season to taste with plenty of cracked pepper (and salt, if needed).
Reserve half a cup of pasta water, then drain fettuccine and add to frying pan with a little of the pasta water. Toss gently until ingredients are mixed in and sauce has coated the pasta. Add more pasta water if needed.
SERVE
Divide pasta between warmed serving bowls and top with the remaining parmesan. Place a large handful of rocket on the side, if using. Parsley or chives make a nice garnish, if you have some on hand.
Recipe Notes
WINE MATCH: A Chardonnay.
GLUTEN-FREE OPTION: Replace fettuccine with your favourite gluten-free pasta and make sure you use gluten-free chicken stock powder.
INGREDIENT SWAPS / NOTES: You could swap smoked chicken for 250g / 8.8oz middle bacon (add diced bacon to the pan at the same time as the mushrooms to give it a bit longer to cook).
STORING AND REHEATING: Store individual portions in containers in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave. Add rocket just before serving, if using.
ALSO ON THE MENU
