Name: Marry Me Chicken Pasta | Creamy Tuscan Chicken Pasta
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 1 cup Penne Pasta (or pasta of choice); 2 boneless chicken breast; 1 tbsp cooking oil; 1 tsp butter; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1/2 onion, minced; 3 sun-dried tomatoes halves, chopped; 1 tbsp tomato paste; 1 cup heavy cream; 1 cup chicken stock; 1/4 cup parmesan cheese; fresh basil, for garnish; 1 tsp garlic powder; 1 tsp onion powder; 1/2 tsp dried thyme (or Italian herb of choice); 1 tsp red pepper flakes; 1/4 tsp salt; 1/4 tsp pepper

How to make the latest pasta dish to capture hearts – the creamy, dreamy Marry Me Chicken Pasta!

One of my guilty pleasures are Tiktok food trends! Well, most. Some are way too out there even for an adventurous foodie like me – hot chocolate in hot dog water? No, I cannot. But THIS Marry Me Chicken Pasta is a true exception, and one that I keep coming back to over and over again!

Marry Me Chicken Pasta is the unofficial Tiktok name of the creamy Tuscan Pasta. It’s called so because apparently making this for your partner is going to inspire a marriage proposal out of them… I don’t know about that, but I do know that this is DELICIOUS and takes less than 30 minutes to make!

Why People Love this Marry Me Chicken Pasta

Sweet, Savoury and Creamy: This dish combines sweet, savoury, and creamy elements in perfect harmony. The sun-dried tomatoes bring a delightful sweet tanginess to the sauce, while the chicken adds a savoury depth. The cream sauce ties everything together for a comforting, luxurious finish.
ULTIMATE Comfort Food: This dish has a cozy, comforting quality that makes it perfect for family dinners, romantic evenings, or special occasions. It’s a comforting embrace in a bowl.
Simplicity: Despite the gourmet appeal, this Marry Me Chicken Pasta / Tuscan Pasta is surprisingly simple to make. With just a handful of key ingredients and a relatively short cooking time, you can have a quality meal on your table in no time.

Key Ingredients for Marry Me Chicken Pasta

Pasta: This Marry Me sauce can work with a lot of pastas! I’m using penne here, and other pastas such as rigatoni, linguine, fettucine will work great.

Sun-Dried Tomatoes: The bulk of the flavour comes from the sun-dried tomatoes! The sun-dried tomatoes brightens the dish, adding a concentrated, sweet, and slightly tangy flavour that sets this dish apart. They are typically sold in halves, this recipe uses 3 halves, chopped in pieces. Feel free to use more for a concentrated flavour. There are paste versions of sun-dried tomatoes available (which may be labelled as pesto), you can use these in place of sun-dried tomatoes. For this recipe, use one tablespoon’s worth of the sun-dried tomato paste.

Cream Sauce: The creamy sauce is the glue that binds all the elements together. It’s made with heavy cream, chicken broth, and Parmesan cheese.

Spice Blend: This is optional, but it will elevate the dish! A simple combination of garlic and onion powder, dried herbs (I used dried thyme, but you can use other dried herb such as dried rosemary, basil or oregano, or even easier, just use Italian herb seasoning!), chilli powder, salt & pepper will pull the entire dish together.

Chicken: Chicken breast or thigh fillets, is the main protein used for their tender texture and mild flavour.

How to make Marry Me Chicken Pasta

1. Prepare the Ingredients

Start by combining the dry spice seasoning in a box.

Seasoning the chicken breasts with half of the spice blend on both sides. Keep the rest of the spices for later.

TIP! For quicker cooking, slice the chicken breast lengthwise, or midway through, so you get a thinner piece of meat.

2. Cook the Chicken

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
Add the chicken breasts and cook for about 4-5 minutes on each side until they’re golden brown and cooked through.
Once done, remove the chicken from the skillet and set it aside. Allow to rest for 10 minutes, or while you’re cooking the pasta. Option to slice chicken.

3. Cook the Pasta

While chicken is cooking, cook the pasta for efficiency! Cook pasta a minute less than the suggested cooking time. Be sure to keep track of the time so you don’t end up with overcooked pasta.

4. Prepare the Cream Sauce

In the same skillet, melt butter and add onions and minced garlic. Sauté for a minute until fragrant. As you’re sauteeing, scrape the bottom of the pan with your spatula to combine any residual spices from the chicken to combine. That’s all flavour!
Add in the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and tomato paste and stir to combine. Option to drizzle in the oil the sun-dried tomatoes are soaked in.
Pour in the heavy cream, chicken broth, and the rest of the spice blend, stirring to combine.

5. Add the Pasta

Once the sauce starts bubbling, add cooked pasta, and grated parmesan. Stir to combine until the sauce is smooth and creamy. If needed, add some pasta water for easier stirring.
Once combined, pasta is done! Immediately turn off the heat.
Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.

6. Assemble the Dish

Add back the chicken on top of the pasta.
Arrange the sliced chicken on top of the pasta.
Garnish with fresh basil leaves, and more parmesan.

TIP! Wiggle the chicken slightly into the creamy sauce to enjoy a creamier finish.

7. Serve and Enjoy

Serve your Marry Me Chicken Pasta on a special plate or dish.

How to Level Up Marry Me Chicken Pasta?

Not a fan of chicken? Use salmon!
Bump up the nutrients by adding a handful of spinach or mushrooms!
Turn this into a one-pan recipe by cooking the pasta straight into the sauce! I prefer cooking them separately for the sake of efficiency – I cut some minutes by cooking the pasta and chicken at the same time. If I have a bittt more time, I’d simply add more stock to the sauce, and let the pasta cook straight in the sauce.

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