Spicy Chicken Fennel Pasta

⏱ 30 mins 🍽 2-4 serving(s) 🌶 italian 🏷 One Dish Meal

This flavourful Italian one dish meal combines pasta with chicken and vegetables in a creamy sauce. The dish gets its distinctive taste from whole fennel seeds and a fresh serrano pepper, with the option to adjust the heat level. Cream cheese and crumbled feta create a rich, smooth coating for the pasta shells, chicken, broccoli and mushrooms. It serves two to four people and is ready in about 30 minutes.

Spicy Chicken Fennel Pasta

Ingredients

  • 2 cups dry medium pasta shells or 2 cups other pastas
  • 2 raw boneless chicken breasts, chopped into 1/2 to 3/4 inch pieces
  • 1 head broccoli, roughly chopped in 1 inch pieces
  • 3 button mushrooms, thickly sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 1 fresh serrano peppers or 1 other green chili pepper, finely chopped
  • 1/2 cup red wine
  • butter
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 teaspoon whole fennel
  • red pepper flakes
  • 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese or 1 (8 ounce) package 1/3 fat cream cheese
  • 2 -3 ounces crumbled feta cheese

Method

  1. Start by bringing water to a boil for the pasta in a medium pot. Once boiling, cook the pasta according to the package directions, then drain it and set it aside.
  2. While the pasta cooks, take a large pan or wok and melt 2 tbsp of butter. Once the butter starts to bubble, add the finely chopped garlic and serrano pepper.
  3. Immediately introduce the chopped chicken pieces, whole fennel seeds, and salt and pepper to the pan. Cook this for 1-2 minutes, stirring as you go.
  4. Next, add the roughly chopped broccoli and thickly sliced mushrooms to the pan. Cook for another 3 minutes, then pour in the 1/2 cup of red wine.
  5. Continue to cook the mixture for 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently, until the majority of the liquid has cooked off.
  6. Turn the heat down to low and add the package of cream cheese, stirring it gently until it melts fully into a smooth sauce.
  7. Add the drained pasta to the pan and stir everything together until well combined.
  8. Serve the pasta onto plates, finishing each portion with a sprinkle of crumbled feta cheese and red pepper flakes.

Nutrition (per serving)

Sodium871500 mg

Recipe details

CategoryOne Dish Meal
Cuisineitalian
Authorhighplainsdrifter