Chicken Alfredo Pasta

12 Servings
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes

Chicken Alfredo Pasta is always a family favorite. The pasta is topped with creamy, cheesy sauce and tender chicken breast for a filling, tasty dish.

Alfredo Pasta is a delicious dish you can find at any of your favorite Italian restaurants, but rich alfredo sauce, pasta, and chicken are perfectly easy to make yourself. You can have this indulgent, comforting Dinner Recipe ready in just 20 minutes! For more surprisingly simple Italian dishes try making Chicken Parmesan or Bolognese next.

Chicken Alfredo Pasta serving on plate

CHICKEN ALFREDO PASTA

When you need a dinner that’s filling, easy, and family-friendly, you can’t go wrong with Chicken Alfredo. It’s a great recipe to make for a big group because if you need a little extra food, you can always just serve everyone some extra pasta. The rich Alfredo Sauce is also a favorite with kids so this is sure to be a hit with the whole family.

Chicken Alfredo Pasta cooked chicken on cutting board

Chicken Alfredo Pasta gets most of its taste from the ultra-creamy sauce. Alfredo Sauce is made with heavy cream and Parmesan cheese. It coats the pasta and chicken making the whole dish creamy and cheesy.

Chicken Alfredo Pasta sauce in saucepan

Of course, the pieces of chicken breast make the dish more filling and add flavorful, healthy protein. The recipe is already quite easy, but it’s even quicker if you already have cooked chicken. Try making this dish as a way to use up leftover Chicken Breast. That way you’ll only have to cook the pasta and make the Alfredo sauce. Then break the chicken into pieces and reheat it before adding it to the pasta dish.

MORE PASTA RECIPES

TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST CHICKEN ALFREDO

  • Pasta: Start the recipe by cooking the pasta 1 minute shy of what the box says until they’re just al dente. Drain the noodles and set them to the side while you prepare the rest of the recipe.
  • Chicken: Slice chicken into 4 thin fillets. Then season each filet with salt and pepper. Add a little olive oil to the base of a skillet over medium-high heat, then add the chicken to brown it. It should only need a 6-8 minute cook time for each side. You might have to do this in batches depending on how big of a pan you have. Remove the chicken from the pan once it’s browned and set it to the side.
Chicken Alfredo Pasta serving on plate
  • Alfredo sauce: Put a saucepan over medium heat and add the butter and garlic. Whisk in the heavy cream and bring it to a light simmer. Cook it for 3 minutes while continuing to stir it often. Add the grated parmesan cheese and black pepper. Stir the cheese in until it melts and the sauce thickens.
  • Assemble: Cut the chicken into thin pieces and toss it into the pan with the sauce and pasta. Toss the mixture together, then garnish it with extra parmesan cheese and parsley before serving.
close-up of Chicken Alfredo Pasta serving on plate

VARIATIONS ON CHICKEN ALFREDO PASTA

  • Pasta: Although fettuccini pasta is what’s typically used in Chicken Alfredo Pasta, you can use other kinds of past in the recipe. Try using linguine, spaghetti, rigatoni, or penne pasta.
  • Chicken broth: Add to the taste of the pasta by cooking it in chicken broth instead of regular pasta water. If you use chicken broth instead of pasta water, you have to be very careful not to overcook the pasta. You could also just use salted water for some extra flavor.
  • Add-ins: For some extra flavor and texture try cooking up some sliced mushrooms, broccoli, spinach or onions to go into the Chicken Alfredo.
  • Seasonings: Experiment with the flavor by adding herbs and spices like fresh parsley, freshly ground black pepper, oregano, basil, rosemary, or red pepper flakes.

MORE CHICKEN RECIPES

HOW TO STORE CHICKEN ALFREDO PASTA

  • Serve: Don’t leave Chicken Alfredo Pasta at room temperature for more than 2 hours.
  • Store: Let the dish cool completely, then put it in an airtight container to store in the fridge. It will stay good for 2-3 days.
  • Freeze: Properly sealed, you can also freeze Alfredo for up to 3 months.
Chicken Alfredo Pasta serving on plate

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Chicken Alfredo Pasta

Chicken Alfredo Pasta is always a family favorite. The pasta is topped with creamy, cheesy sauce and tender chicken breast for a filling, tasty dish.
Yield 12 Servings
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Dinner
Cuisine Italian
Author Sabrina Snyder

Ingredients
 

  • 1 pound fettuccine pasta
  • 2 chicken breasts , boneless and skinless
  • 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

Alfredo Sauce:

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 2 cloves garlic , minced
  • 3 cups Parmesan cheese , shredded
  • 1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
  • Parmesan cheese and parsley , for garnish

Instructions

  • Cook pasta 1 minute shy of directions on the box, then drain and set aside.
  • Butterfly the chicken into 4 thin fillets.
  • Season with salt and pepper.
  • Add olive oil to a large deep skillet on medium-high heat.
  • Cook on each side for 6-8 minutes until well browned, then remove from the pan.
  • Add butter and garlic to a medium saucepan on medium heat.
  • Whisk in heavy cream and bring to a simmer.
  • Cook for 3 minutes, stirring often.
  • Add in Parmesan cheese and black pepper, stirring until cheese is melted and the sauce has thickened.
  • Cut the chicken into strips, add back into the pan.
  • Add pasta to the pan and toss well.
  • Serve with additional Parmesan cheese if desired and garnish with parsley.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 512kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 34g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Cholesterol: 148mg | Sodium: 565mg | Potassium: 284mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 1049IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 340mg | Iron: 1mg
Creamy Chicken Alfredo Pasta collage

About the Author: Sabrina Snyder

Sabrina is a professionally trained Private Chef of over 10 years with ServSafe Manager certification in food safety. She creates all the recipes here on Dinner, then Dessert, fueled in no small part by her love for bacon.

Sabrina Snyder is a professionally trained personal and private chef of over 10 years who is the creator and developer of all the recipes on Dinner, then Dessert.

She is also the author of the cookbook Dinner, then Dessert – Satisfying Meals Using Only 3, 5 or 7 Ingredients, published by Harper Collins.

She started Dinner, then Dessert as a business in her office as a lunch service for her coworkers who admired her lunches before going to culinary school and becoming a full time personal chef and private chef.

As a personal chef Sabrina would cook for families one day a week and cook their entire week of dinners. All grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning was done along with instructions on reheating. As a private chef she cooked for private parties and cooked in family homes in the evenings for families on a nightly basis after working as a personal chef during the day.

Sabrina has been certified as a ServSafe Manager since 2007 and was a longstanding member of the USPCA Personal Chef Association including being on the board of the Washington DC Chapter of Chefs in the US Personal Chef Association when they won Chapter of the year.

As a member of the community of food website creators Sabrina Snyder has spoken at many conferences regarding her experiences as a food writer including the Indulge Food Conference, Everything Food Conference, Haven Food Conference and IACP Annual Food Professionals Conference.

Sabrina lives with her family in sunny California.

Dinner, then Dessert, Inc. owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this site unless authorization is given. Read my disclosure and copyright policy. This post may contain affiliate links.

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Comments

  1. This is my ultimate go- to recipe for chicken Alfredo. My kids always go so crazy for this dinner and love having it the next day! I usually add some broccoli and baby carrots for some veggie action for the kiddos and they absolutely love it!

    1. This chicken alfredo recipe is a crowd favorite! My friends even asked for the recipe so I gladly sent it!

  2. This pasta recipe was so filling and satisfying! Fam loves it. The chicken was so tender and juicy and the sauce was so creamy and cheesy. New go-to recipe!

  3. This is the fifth recipe of yours I have tried and all of them including this one is a winner! This was fairly easy to make too for a non-cook like me. I no longer hunt for recipes elsewhere. You have a site with recipes for success. Thank you for that.

  4. I love the food I have found on your page Keep the good recipies coming have love the one I tried. Judy