Chicken Alfredo Penne Pasta

This Chicken Alfredo Penne Pasta recipe made with homemade Alfredo sauce cooks in one pot for an easy meal perfect for busy weeknights. Your whole family will love this delicious dinner! Best of all, it takes less than 30 minutes to make!

I just love one pot meals, especially on busy weeknights! This creamy chicken Alfredo penne pasta recipe is the stove-top version of one of our favorite Instant Pot recipes — Instant Pot Chicken Alfredo. It’s quick, easy, and you only have 1 pot to clean!

So last week, I made One Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce and my One Pot Creamy Chicken Pasta. Then, the family requested that I make a one-pot Alfredo pasta, and here it is!

Even though this is a quick chicken dinner, I like to make Alfredo sauce from scratch using heavy cream. It’s just as easy as making chicken Alfredo with jarred sauce but tastes even better — promise!

Personally, I like to use penne pasta when I make chicken Alfredo in one pot or in the pressure cooker. It’s just a little easier to manage than fettuccine, although you can definitely use longer noodles if you want.

Ingredients

You only need a few simple ingredients for easy chicken Alfredo pasta. You can find them in your grocery store if they’re not in your pantry or fridge:

• Olive oil
• Boneless skinless chicken breasts — cubed
• Sea salt
• Garlic powder
• Ground black pepper
• Box penne pasta 
• Water
• Heavy cream
• Butter 
• Ground nutmeg — enhances the flavor
• Parmesan cheese — grated
• Italian seasoning — optional

How to Make Chicken Alfredo Penne Pasta

To make one pot chicken Alfredo, cut your chicken into cubes. Then, season chicken and cook in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat to medium-high heat until it’s no longer pink.

Next, add your uncooked pasta and water or chicken broth. Cover and cook until the penne starts to get soft, stirring every so often.

You just want to make sure the pasta doesn’t stick together.

Add the butter and heavy whipping cream and a pinch of nutmeg. Nutmeg is traditionally used in white sauce, and it just adds to the overall flavor.

If you’re not a fan of nutmeg, don’t worry — You don’t really taste it.

Stir in grated Parmesan cheese, and cook the chicken pasta uncovered until the pasta is done.

You can add more cream for a thinner sauce if you want. This recipe is super easy to customize!

The creamy Alfredo sauce thickens as it cools, and it sticks to the chicken and pasta perfectly. Tastes amazing, too! You can garnish the chicken Alfredo with a little fresh parsley and more Parm for extra flavor.

You guys — My entire family absolutely loved this one pot chicken pasta dish. In fact, they said it was even better than the Instant Pot Alfredo, which is quite a compliment!

What to Serve with Chicken Alfredo

Serve this creamy chicken Alfredo with your favorite green vegetables or fresh greens.

• Broccoli — You can add fresh broccoli florets before the pasta finishes cooking or serve it on the side.
• Peas — Just stir frozen or thawed peas into the pasta right before it’s ready to serve.
• Spinach — Stir into the pasta before serving.
• Salad — Arugula is a nice complement to mild Alfredo, but any green salad works here.
• Garlic bread — The classic side for all pasta main dishes!

How to Store and Reheat

Store leftover chicken Alfredo in an airtight container in the refrigerator, where it’ll last for 3 to 4 days.

For longer storage, freeze leftovers in a freezer safe container.

Reheat individual portions in the microwave. For larger portions, you could reheat on the stove, though the microwave is probably easier.

Variations and Substitutions

There are a couple ways to customize this delicious meal to your tastes.

Instead of water, add chicken broth, or a mixture of both, for a little bit of extra flavor.

If you don’t want to make homemade Alfredo sauce, just use your favorite jarred sauce.

Similarly, feel free to use rotisserie chicken or already cooked chicken breasts instead of cooking it with the pasta. Just cook the pasta alone and add the chicken when it’s done.

I like penne noodles, but any kind of pasta will woke for this recipe. If you’re going to use a longer pasta, such as fettuccine, I would recommend breaking the noodles in half, just so that they don’t clump up.

This One Pot Chicken with Alfredo sauce recipe is the best way to make this classic dish in your own kitchen. It’s a go-to easy weeknight meal in my home!

If you’re looking for easy chicken Alfredo penne pasta recipes, I hope you’ll like this one!

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Published in 2019 and updated in 2022.