This easy Spicy Chicken Pasta recipe is loaded with tender chicken, spaghetti, and spicy tomato pasta sauce. It's one of the best chicken pasta recipes; it's simple, quick, tasty, and ready in 30 minutes!
If you love easy pasta recipes, I suggest you to try out our Salmon and Prawn Pasta, Tofu Pasta, and Mushroom Pasta recipes.
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Running out of a fast and delicious family meal recipe? Try this easy Chicken Pasta! Made with simple cupboard-friendly ingredients, anyone can simply make it at home.
This easy pasta dish is perfect for busy weeknights, light lunches, or quick dinners. It's a simple classic tomato pasta dish with a kick of chilli flavour. You'll love the tender chicken strips and spaghetti noodles coated with delicious spicy tomato sauce.
Ingredients
Following is a quick guide; please scroll down to the recipe card for measurements.
- Chicken: Suggest using boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts. I use chicken breasts in this recipe.
- Pasta: Use any of your favourite pasta noodles, dried or fresh.
- Tomato passata
- Cheese: Add classic pasta cheese, Parmesan (Parmigiano-Reggiano) or your choice of cheese, freshly grated hard cheese.
- Fresh parsley
- Garlic & onion
- Olive oil
Seasonings
- Italian herbs seasonings: Italian herbs seasoning mix: dried rosemary, thyme, basil, oregano, marjoram, and sage.
- Dried chilli flakes: for a kick of heat.
- Chicken bouillon
- Salt & pepper
Variations
- You can swap the chicken breast for chicken thighs, prawns, sausage, chorizo, or meatballs.
- Instead of tomato passata, you can use finely chopped tinned tomatoes or skinned deseeded fresh tomatoes.
- Although I used spaghetti noodles in this recipe, you can swap them for penne, fusilli, linguine, or tagliatelle. Most pasta works well with this recipe.
- If you prefer less tomato sauce, you can add sun dried tomatoes instead of tomato passata.
Top Tips
- Cook pasta according to the packet instructions, but do not overcook it, as you need to toss it with spicy tomato sauce.
- Don't forget to add salt to the pasta boiling water. Adding salt creates the pasta seasoned itself.
- Reserve one cup of starchy pasta boiling water and later add in the tomato sauce. It helps to thicken the sauce and also helps to stick the pasta and sauce together.
Instructions
- Cook pasta: boil pasta in salted water according to packet instructions. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water for later use. Drain the water and set it aside. Meanwhile the pasta is cooking you can prepare the chicken and tomato sauce.
- Stir fry chicken: Heat the pan into medium heat, drizzle olive oil and stir fry the chicken strips for 2-3 minutes until slightly brown. Remove from pan and set it aside.
- Make tomato sauce: In the remaining pan, drizzle a bit more olive oil, saute the chopped garlic for few seconds. Follow with the onions and cook until the onions are soft and tender. Then add the chilli flakes and stir for few seconds.
- Next add the tomato passata, Italian herbs mix, salt, black pepper and chicken stock cube. Pour the reserved pasta water in, stir well and bring it to simmer.
- Place the pasta, along with cooked chicken strips. Combine chicken and pasta with tomato sauce.
- Sprinkle grated cheese and finely chopped parsley and stir it well. Turn off the heat and transfer to serving plate.
- To serve: Top with freshly grated parmesan cheese and finely chopped parsley.
Storage & Reheating
To Store: If you have any leftovers, keep them in an airtight container in the fridge. They last for up to 3-4 days. Please be aware that pasta tastes best when freshly cooked; it might lose its texture if you keep it in the fridge for too long.
Do not recommend freezing because the texture and flavour might be changed when you freeze or reheat it.
To Reheat: You can reheat them in the microwave or stovetop until piping hot. Add a splash of water and toss well with the pasta before reheating, as the pasta absorbs water and can dry out easily.
Serving Suggestions
Serve it with garlic bread, Honey Butter Fried Chicken, Garlic Butter Prawns, breadsticks, roasted carrots, steamed vegetables, any of your favourite salads or sides.
FAQs
You can add extra vegetables like mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini, onions, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, and carrots.
You can add heavy cream ( double cream ) if you prefer creamy spicy chicken pasta.
This dish is medium spicy. Control the heat by reducing the crushed chilli or adding more dried and fresh chilli peppers or paprika powder according to your taste.
Instead of Mixed Italian herbs and dried chilli pepper, you can add Cajun seasoning or chipotle seasonings mix, which has a bold, spicy flavour made with cayenne pepper, paprika, garlic, onion, and dried herbs.
More Spicy Pasta & Noodles
If you've enjoyed this spicy chicken pasta recipe, please share your feedback in the comments and give me star 🌟 ratings!
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📖 Recipe
Spicy Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 300 g Chicken breast About 10.5oz, Boneless skinless chicken thigh/breast cut into thin strips
- ¼ tsp Salt
- ¼ tsp Black pepper
Pasta & Tomato Sauce
- 150 g Spaghetti Any dried/fresh pasta, penne, fusilli, or linguine ( about 5.5 oz)
- 3-4 cloves Garlic Finely chopped/minced
- ½ Brown onion Finely chopped
- 1 tsp Crushed chillies Dried red chilli flakes
- 350 g Tomato passata About 12oz
- 1 tbsp Italian herbs Dried Italian herbs mix or oregano
- 2-3 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 Chicken stock cube Or vegetable stock cube ( see details in note )
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
- 20 g Parmigiano-Reggiano about 0.7oz, Freshly grated
- 1-2 tbsp Parsley Finely chopped
Instructions
- Season the water with 1-2 teaspoon of salt. Cook the spaghetti/pasta in the boiling water according to the package instructions. Save 1 cup of pasta boiling water for later use. Meanwhile the pasta is cooking you can prepare the chicken and tomato sauce.
- Heat the pan in medium heat, drizzle 2 tablespoon of olive oil and stir fry the chicken strips for 2-3 minutes until slightly brown. Remove from pan and set it aside.
- In the same pan, drizzle more oil and saute the garlic for a few seconds until fragrant. Follow with the onions and cook until the onions are soft and translucent. Add dried chilli flakes and stir for a few seconds.
- Next add the tomato passata, ½ cup pasta water, Italian herbs, salt, pepper and chicken stock cube. Stir well and bring it to simmer.
- Now place the cooked pasta and chicken strips and combine well with the tomato sauce. Sprinkle grated cheese and chopped parsley and stir it well.
- Turn off the heat and transfer to serving plate. Garnish with grated cheese and chopped parsley.
Video
Notes
- Italian herbs mix: consists of dried basil, oregano, thyme, marjoram, rosemary, etc. If you don't have it in hand, you can add dried oregano.
- Chicken stock cube: Add chicken or vegetable stock cubes to bring more rich umami flavour. If you don't like the stock cube, swap it with stockpots or a tablespoon of sugar to balance out the sauce. Or add chicken broth/stock instead of pasta water in the sauce.
- Dried chilli flakes: Add dried red chillies for a hint of heat, or you can substitute it with cajun seasoning.
- How to reheat? Simply reheat it in the microwave or stovetop until piping hot. If the pasta is too dry, add a splash of water and toss well before reheating.
Davy says
Excellent and easy.
Khin says
Thanks Davy, so glad that you enjoyed it.
Jay Jay says
Really tasty.....As good as any restaurant....
Khin says
So happy that you enjoyed this recipe, Jay Jay! Thanks for sharing feedback.
Shamima says
I love your idea of using crushed chilli to make the spicy chicken pasta. I normally add chilli powder to spice up the dish. I will try your version of pasta recipe. Thank you so much.
Khin says
Thank you so much for trying my recipe and let me know how it turns out.