Creamy lemon chicken pasta is an easy creamy, lemony, and garlicky pasta dish that you can make in under 30 minutes! This is a family-friendly recipe that will go on your weekly rotation.
This easy and flavorful dish combines my creamy lemon chicken and this lemon pasta sauce recipe. Both of these recipes are super popular on the blog, so I decided to create a recipe that combines the chicken and the pasta in the creamy lemony pasta sauce that you love!
This chicken pasta dish is so comforting, you will love the perfectly cooked pasta to al dente in the creamy lemony sauce, and the pieces of tender and buttery chicken flavored with just garlic, salt, and pepper. It’s also kid-friendly so your kids will love this too.
If you like creamy chicken dinners, try making this easy Boursin Chicken next!
The Ingredients
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
- Chicken: I usually use chicken breast that I cut into bite-size pieces, but chicken thighs can also be used here.
- Pasta: Any type of pasta works here. I used gluten free penne, but you can use any pasta that you like. Long or short pasta works!
- Olive oil and butter: Olive oil gives a great flavor to the chicken as it’s used to cook the chicken, and the butter is used to make the sauce buttery, rich, and creamy.
- Cream: I used heavy cream as it makes the best sauce, but you can substitute it with half and half to lighten the sauce up.
- Parmesan cheese: Don’t skip the parmesan! It flavors the sauce so well.
- Lemon: Use fresh lemon for the juice and the zest.
- Garlic: Minced garlic for the sauce.
- Cilantro for garnish.
How to Make Chicken Lemon Pasta
- In a saucepan, boil water, bring to a boil and salt it then cook the penne pasta according to the package instructions.
- In a large skillet, heat oil over medium high heat and add the chicken. Season with salt and pepper and cook the chicken for 4-5 minutes. If you have an instant read thermometer, the internal temperature of the chicken must register at 160°F.
- Move the chicken to the sides of the pan, and melt the butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook stirring for 1 minute. Add the cream and the parmesan, and whisk or stir until you get a smooth sauce. Add pasta water if needed to loosen the sauce and whisk again.
- Add the pasta, and mix everything together, the pasta with the sauce and the chicken. Taste the pasta with the sauce, and adjust seasonings to your preference.
- Garnish with extra parmesan cheese, chopped parsley, and lemon zest.
Top Tips
- Cook your pasta to al dente! This might be tricky if you’re using a gluten-free pasta as the cooking time greatly varies compared to wheat pasta.
- Do not overcook the chicken as there’s nothing worse than dry chicken! If you have an instant read thermometer then you can check the doneness by inserting the thermometer in the center of a chicken piece and it should register around 160-165°F (74°C).
- Reserve the pasta water to use for loosening the pasta sauce if needed.
- When reheating the pasta add a splash of water to prevent the pasta from drying out.
- When adding the lemon juice, start with just a small amount, taste the sauce and decide if you would like to add more. I usually started with 1 tablespoon, but remember once your add the pasta, the flavor will be diluted a little so if you feel like it’s too intense before adding the pasta, that is fine.
Storing Tips
Store the leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or in the oven, you will need to add a splash of water to thin out the sauce as it thickens in the fridge, this will also prevent the pasta from drying out.
I don’t recommend freezing creamy sauces as they change textures to grainy when frozen. I also found that the pasta can become mushy when it’s frozen and reheated with a creamy sauce.
Recommended Tools
- I love this stainless steel pan that you can see in my images and video. It’s a great pan and I use it all the time, plenty of surface area, and perfect for pastas, stir frys, cooking chicken, meat, etc.
- I use this saucepan for cooking pastas, it’s also great for rice, sauces, steaming veggies, and much more!
- A silicone spatula, I use this spatula for cooking all the time. It doesn’t damage my pots and pans as it’s not sharp, and it’s heat resistant so you can safely use it for cooking.
More Easy Pasta Recipes
- Baked feta pasta
- Creamy garlic shrimp pasta
- Creamy Alfredo pasta
- Chicken scampi with angel hair pasta
- Rasta pasta
- Penne arrabbiata
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta
Equipment
- Saucepan
Ingredients
- 12 oz 340g pasta any shape
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 chicken breasts about 1 pound/450 grams
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
For the creamy lemon sauce
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup parmesan grated
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley chopped, for garnish
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest optional, for garnish
Instructions
- In a saucepan, boil water, bring to a boil and salt it then cook the pasta according to the package instructions.
- In a pan, heat oil and add the chicken. Season with salt and pepper and cook the chicken for 4-5 minutes. If you have an instant read thermometer, the internal temperature of the chicken must register at 160°F.
- Move the chicken to the sides of the pan, and melt the butter. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the cream and the parmesan, and whisk or stir until you get a smooth sauce. Add pasta water if needed to loosen the sauce and whisk again.
- Add the pasta, and mix everything together, the pasta with the sauce and the chicken. Taste the pasta with the sauce, and adjust seasonings to your preference.
- Garnish with extra parmesan cheese, chopped parsley, and lemon zest.
Notes:
- The pasta that I used in this recipe is a gluten free pasta made from Maize flour. Use any pasta that you like (Gluten free or not).
- Cook your pasta to al dente.
- Reserve the pasta water to use for loosening the pasta sauce if needed.
- Add chili flakes to the sauce if you like a little bit of heat.
- Do not overcook the chicken as there’s nothing worse than dry chicken! If you have an instant read thermometer then you can check the doneness by inserting the thermometer in the center of a chicken piece and it should register around 160-165°F (74°C).
- When adding the lemon juice, start with just a small amount, taste the sauce and decide if you would like to add more. I usually started with 1 tablespoon, but remember once your add the pasta, the flavor will be diluted a little so if you feel like it’s too intense before adding the pasta, that is fine.
- Store the leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or in the oven, you will need to add a splash of water to thin out the sauce as it thickens in the fridge, this will also prevent the pasta from drying out.
Video
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Judy Johnson says
Can you use shrimp in place of chicken? Sort of like a shrimp scampi with pasta?
Diana says
I think that would be delicious!
Lauren says
Whoa. This is GOOD, and so easy!! I added some spinach in with the cream..it wilted quickly and tasted so good! This is a keeper!!!
Brooke says
So quick & easy to make! Surprised my mom with this recipe, thanks for letting me win warm brownie points! ☺️ #delicious
Jane Santora says
Excellent recipe! And so easy!
Diana says
Glad to hear you enjoyed it, Jane!