Chicken Ricotta Pasta

5 from 1 vote

This chicken ricotta pasta has a delicious creamy ricotta cheese sauce, with fragrant herbs and a pinch of spice. Perfect as a family weeknight dinner!

Prep Time10

Cook Time25

Total Time35

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American, British

Servings: servings

Calories: 425kcal

Author: Claire

Equipment

Ingredients

8 ounces pasta
2 tablespoon olive oil divided
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts diced into bite-size pieces
½ onion diced
3 garlic cloves minced
1.5 cups kale stems removed, diced
1 cup chicken broth
½ cup ricotta cheese
½ teaspoon dried thyme divided
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
salt
black pepper optional
fresh thyme leaved to garnish

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Cook your linguine (or other pasta) in salted water until al dente. Reserve half a cup of the pasta water.
Season the chicken pieces with salt, black pepper and half the dried thyme. Drizzle olive oil in your skillet and cook the chicken pieces for 5-6 minutes or until lightly browned, and with an internal temperature of 165F using a meat thermometer. Set aside on a plate.
If the skillet is dry, add a touch more olive oil. Cook the diced onion for 4-5 minutes until softened, add the garlic and cook for a few more minutes. Tip in the kale and pour in the chicken broth. Bring the heat up so you are at a very light simmer and cook for 3-4 minutes, so the kale is wilted. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to lift the brown bits from the bottom of the skillet.
Reduce the heat and stir in the ricotta cheese, along with the remaining thyme and nutmeg. Season with salt. Keep stirring so the ricotta melts into the broth and reduces slightly.
Add the chicken pieces and pasta to the skillet and use tongs to coat them in the sauce. Pour in a little of the reserved pasta water, and keep stirring so the sauce is silky and smooth and coats the pasta (add more pasta water until you have the consistency you like). Season with more salt and black pepper, if using, to taste. Use tongs to transfer the chicken pasta to your serving bowls and garnish with fresh thyme leaves.

Notes

I use linguine for this ricotta chicken pasta recipe, but you can use other types of pasta such as penne or fusilli. Gluten free pasta alternatives can also be used.
No need to clean the skillet after cooking the chicken - the brown bits will add extra flavor to the sauce.
Don't forget to reserve the pasta water to make the ricotta sauce!
Nutritional information is auto-generated and should be understood to be an estimate.

Swiss Interest Group Histamine Intolerance

All ingredients score 0 on the SIGHI list, with the exception of:

pasta (wheat) and kale, which score 1.
white onion scores 0, but regular onion scores 1 and as a liberator.
garlic, which scores 1 with a note, 'In small amounts, usually well tolerated after cooking'.
nutmeg, which scores 1 with a note, 'Small amounts are well tolerated'.
chicken broth will depend upon ingredients used and preparation method. Homemade vegetable broth can be used as a swap.
black pepper, which scores 2 with a note, 'Small amounts are tolerated'.

Nutrition