chicken pasta bake

Creamy Chicken pasta bake

Written by on in Main Course
Creamy Chicken pasta bake
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Creamy Chicken pasta bake

Recipe by GeeDeeCourse: Main CourseCuisine: europeanDifficulty: Medium
Servings

6

servings
Prep time

25

minutes
Cooking time

30

minutes
Calories

510

kcal
Total time

55

minutes

A truly scrumptious meal that can be prepared and cooked in under an hour. Full of flavour. Best make extra ‘cos they will come back for more.

Ingredients

  • 250 g penne pasta or your choice

  • 1 onion roughly chopped

  • 3 skinless chicken breasts cut into thin strips

  • 1 tbsp paprika

  • 2 tbsp olive oil

  • salt and freshly ground black pepper

  • For the Sauce

  • 50 g butter extra for sweating the onions and greasing

  • 50 g plain flour

  • 750 ml hot milk

  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard

  • 100 g Parmesan cheese coarsely grated

  • 2 large tomatoes blanched skinned and deseeded

  • fresh parsley chopped to serve

Directions

  • Preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/420°F/Gas 7.
  • Lightly grease a casserole dish
  • Mise en Place (Pasta, Onions Chicken and Tomatoes)
  • Bring a pot of salted water to the boil and place in the pasta. Use the pasta packet instructions for timing.
  • Meanwhile, place a knob of butter in a frying pan and add the chopped onion.
  • Sweat the onions off until soft and translucent. Do not overcook or allow to brown
  • Set aside
  • Blanch and skin the tomatoes
  • Remove the core from the bottom of the tomato. Make a cross in the top of the tomato with a sharp knife and plunge into boiling water for 15 seconds.
  • Remove the tomato from the water and plunge the blanched tomatoes into a bowl of iced water to bring back to room temperature.
  • You can now peel the skin away quite easily.
  • Cut the tomatoes in half through the equator (Around the middle) and with a teaspoon remove the seeds.
  • Roughly chop the peeled and seeded tomatoes and set aside
  • Once the pasta is cooked, drain and refresh under cold water and leave to drain in a colander.
  • Place the paprika and a little salt and pepper in a fairly large bowl and add the chicken strips. Mix well so as to coat the chicken well with the paprika.
  • Alternatively, place the chicken in a resealable freezer bag with the paprika and seasoning, seal the bag and shake it to coat the chicken.
  • Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large frying pan and quickly fry the chicken over a high heat for about 2 minutes until golden-brown and just cooked through.
  • Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside.
  • To Make the Creamy Sauce
  • Melt the butter in a large saucepan, (you will need room to add the pasta later) add the flour and mix together with a wooden spoon to form a roux.
  • Heat the milk to just below boiling
  • Allow the roux to cook out for 1 minute, then using a whisk, gradually add the warmed milk, whisking continuously over a medium/high heat to avoid lumps. and you have a nice smooth creamy sauce.
  • Let the sauce simmer for 3/4 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent it catching on the bottom, then stir in the mustard and half the cheese and season with salt and pepper.
  • Bringing the dish together
  • Add the pasta and onion to the sauce in the pan and stir together making sure it’s all well combined
  • Spoon half this mixture into the baking dish, spread the chicken over the top and spoon the remaining pasta and sauce on top.
  • Scatter over the chopped tomatoes and then top with the remaining cheese.
  • Place in the oven and bake for about 20/25 minutes until piping hot and golden-brown.
  • Finely chop a handful of fresh parsley and sprinkle over the top and serve

Recipe Video