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    Home > Meal Type > Main Dishes

    Garlic Butter Pasta with Garlic Chicken

    Updated: Oct 8th 2021 • Published: Nov 19th 2018 • 11 Comments

    Jump to Recipe SaveSaved! Pin Recipe
    pinterest image with garlic butter chicken next to the garlic butter pasta with text at the top
    pinterst image with a close up on the garlic butter chicken with text at the top

    This Garlic Butter Pasta with Garlic Chicken is easy to make and is packed with plenty of buttery garlicky flavors.

    The simple Italian pasta is cooked with a delicious garlic butter sauce and has no cream in it. Served with juicy grilled chicken breasts, topped with more garlic butter, this is a family friendly dinner.

    close up on the grilled chicken and the melting garlic butter

    This Garlic Butter Pasta with Garlic Chicken is a deceptively simple pasta dish.

    The chicken is flattened and then grilled over a high heat to keep it succulent and juicy. And the garlic butter cooks slowly whilst the pasta cooks.

    Jump Menu

    • How to flatten a chicken breast
    • Cooking the pasta
    • Serving Suggestion:
    • Garlic Butter Pasta with Garlic Chicken

    How to flatten a chicken breast

    To ensure the chicken cooks quickly and evenly you want to flatten the chicken out to one uniform thickness.

    To do this:

    • Lay the chicken breast on a sheet of plastic wrap or baking paper.
    • Cover with a second sheet of plastic wrap/baking paper.
    • Take a meat mallet/rolling pin/heavy based fry pan and gently bash the chicken.
    • Start at the thicker round end and move around the chicken breast until the whole thing is about ½ inch thick.
    • Repeat with the second chicken breast.

    Alternatively you can fillet the chicken to create to thinner slices.

    See this post for detailed description on how to fillet a chicken breasts - Honey Butter Pecan Chicken

    A sliced chicken breast next to a pile of pasta on a high rimmed black metal look plate

    Cooking the pasta

    As with so many pasta recipe on Sprinkles and Sprouts, make sure you reserve a cup of the pasta cooking water.

    This is how we create a smooth rich sauce without needed to add any cream or loads and loads of butter.

    Now I am not going to pretend there isn't butter in this dish! I mean it is Garlic Butter Pasta. But for 4 people there is only 1 stick of butter (115g) which isn't too bad for a butter sauce!!!!!

    Using the pasta water enhances the sauce and makes sure it coats every strand of pasta.

    It's the starch you see! As you cook pasta some of the starch leaches out into the cooking water. This is what helps the water to thicken up your butter sauce whilst still keeping it light and buttery.

    IT IS MAGICAL!!!! It's like a free ingredient! Plus it adds extra seasoning, assuming you have salted your pasta water well.

    And you should!

    Please please please salt you pasta water generously! And don't add any oil to the water. Lets talk about why?

    Why salt pasta water?

    When you add your pasta to boiling water, that is the only chance you have to season the inside of the pasta. Sure you can add extra seasoning at the end or to the sauce, but that will stay on the outside. Adding salt to the pasta water, means it move inside the pasta as the pasta absorbs the cooking water. Extra flavor guys!!!

    How much salt to add to pasta cooking water?

    I recommend adding 1 tablespoon of sea salt for 1 pound of pasta cooked in a 4 quart pot.

    This will flavour the pasta inside and out, making your end dish so much more delicious!!!

    If you are cooking significantly less pasta then you can reduce the salt, amount of water and size of the pan. But if it is just a small amount less (like this recipe) then I would use the same amount of water and the same amount of salt.

    Why you shouldn't add oil to the pasta water.

    Many people suggest adding oil to your pasta water to stop the pasta sticking together. It doesn't work. If you have ever added oil to water you know they don't mix, the oil just sits on top of the water. Your pasta may get a little oil on it as you stir, but not enough to stop it sticking together.

    The key to stop pasta sticking together is to cook pasta in a very large pot of water that is at a rolling boil.

    So the oil doesn't stop the pasta sticking together, but when you drain the pasta the oil will stick to the pasta and then this stops your sauce from clinging to the pasta! And we don't want that, that results in a pool of sauce with unsauced pasta on top. ie BAD 🙁

    To recap, generously salt your pasta water (1 tablespoon) and don't oil the water.

    head-on view showing the high rimmed plate of garlic butter pasta on a dark table with a brick wall behind.

    Serving Suggestion:

    Side: This garlic butter pasta is a rich dish so serve it with a crisp green salad topped with some thinly sliced raw mushrooms. Or roast some broccoli and serve that along side. That is the sensible option.....the indulgent carb option would be some garlic bread. (Guess which I choose!)

    Wine: This garlic chicken and pasta is perfect for pairing with a sparkling wine. A Prosecco would be perfect here. Alternatively a dry whites like Vermentino would be delicious.

    If you don't fancy a white then pick a dry rose like a Tavel rose.
    I am yet to find a red that works really well with this dish, most are overpowered by the garlic, but if you are dead set on a red wine then a full-bodied Shiraz can hold it's own.

    Or for something totally different, take a note from the Spanish and serve a Manzanilla or fino sherry with the pasta. it's unusual but it works.

    looking down on a sliced chicken breast with garlic butter next to a pile of garlic butter pasta on a metal place with a worn spoon

    Enjoy x

    For more Great Pasta Recipes try these:

    • Shrimp Chorizo Pasta
    • Creamy Rosemary Chicken Pasta
    • Roasted Cauliflower Pasta with Creamy Garlic Sauce
    • Pasta with Roasted Fennel
    • Creamy Saffron and Shrimp Pasta
    • Parsnip and Bacon Pasta
    • Black Truffle Pasta
    • Pork Stroganoff with Buttered Noodles
    • Pasta with Chicken Broth and Butter
    • See ALL PASTA RECIPES


    square picture showing the sliced garlic butter chicken next to the garlic butter pasta on a black metal effect plate
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    4.45 from 25 votes

    Garlic Butter Pasta with Garlic Chicken

    This Garlic Butter Pasta with Garlic Chicken is easy to make and is packed with plenty of buttery garlicky flavors. The simple Italian pasta is cooked with a delicious garlic butter sauce and has no cream in it. Served with juicy grilled chicken breasts, topped with more garlic butter, this is a family friendly dinner.
    Prep Time10 mins
    Cook Time10 mins
    Total Time20 mins
    Course: Main
    Cuisine: Italian
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 720kcal
    Author: Claire | Sprinkle and Sprouts
    For more great recipes follow me on PinterestFollow @sprinklessprout
    Need Metric Measurements?Use the options below to toggle between cups and grams (if relevant)
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    Ingredients

    US Customary - Grams
    • 1 stick salted butter
    • 6 garlic cloves
    • 2 chicken breast - skinless & boneless
    • 2 teaspoon garlic powder
    • salt and pepper
    • 2 tablespoon olive oil
    • 12 oz long pasta
    • 1 tablespoon salt
    • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

    Instructions

    • Melt the stick of butter over a low heat in a small pan.
    • Peel and chop the garlic finely.
    • Add the garlic to the butter and cook it over a very low heat. Don't let the garlic color.
    • Place the chicken on a chopping board and cover with a piece of baking paper or clingfilm.
    • Use the flat side of a meat mallet (or a heavy rolling pin) to flatten the chicken until it is ½" thick.
    • Season the chicken with salt and pepper and the garlic powder.
    • Heat the olive oil in a heavy based skillet.
    • Once it is hot, sear the chicken over a high heat. Cook for 2 minutes on one side and then flip and cook for a further 2 minutes or until it is just cooked through. Remove from the heat and tent with foil to keep warm.
    • Whilst the chicken is cooking bring a large pan of water to a boil. (4 quart sized pot)
    • Once the water is boiling, add 1 tablespoon of salt and add the pasta.
    • Cook the pasta until al-dente.
    • Reserve a cup of the pasta cooking water and then drain the pasta. Then return it to the pan.
    • Pour half of the garlic butter into the pasta, add ¼ cup of the pasta cooking water and then stir in the pasta. Cook over a medium heat until everything is well coated.
      Add more pasta cooking water if needed.
    • Slice the chicken and serve along side the pasta.
    • Drizzle the dish with the remaining butter and garnish with chopped parsley.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 720kcal | Carbohydrates: 66g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 34g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Cholesterol: 133mg | Sodium: 2084mg | Potassium: 644mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 820IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 38mg | Iron: 1.7mg
    Tried this recipe?Mention @sprinklesandsprouts or tag #sprinklesandsprouts

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Connor O'Loughlin says

      January 06, 2020 at 12:27 am

      5 stars
      I made this last night, and really enjoyed it. The only adaptation I made was a squeeze of lemon juice to balance out some of the richness.

      Did not disappoint, and very low effort cooking too which is very useful to have in the repertoire!

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        January 06, 2020 at 5:40 am

        Oh the lemon sounds like a great addition! So pleased you enjoyed it Connor 🙂
        Cx

        Reply
    2. Mark says

      December 15, 2019 at 8:22 am

      Hi, I might have missed a step but wondering ... why are we reserving a cup of the pasta cooking water but only putting 1/4 of a cup back in?

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        December 16, 2019 at 5:58 am

        Hi Mark, you reserve a whole cup, just incase you need to add a little more to the pasta. Depending on the pasta and how long it was cooked for some pasta can soak up the sauce more quickly.
        I'll update the recipe to be a bit clearer.

        Reply
    3. Judi H. says

      November 17, 2019 at 4:40 am

      Okay, never mind. Finally found the complete recipe. For some reason it wasn't showing up on my computer. Thanks

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        November 17, 2019 at 11:50 am

        Oh I am glad you found it.
        I hope you enjoyed the pasta 😀
        Cx

        Reply
    4. Judi H. says

      November 17, 2019 at 4:38 am

      I've never made a garlic butter sauce. I see how to cook the chicken and the pasta but how much garlic do you add to the butter? Was going to make this today but not sure how much is needed.

      Reply
    5. Brenda says

      December 28, 2018 at 8:54 pm

      4 stars
      Hi Claire,

      I was taught that adding oil to your pasta isn't used to stop the pasta from sticking together, but rather to stop the water in the pot from foaming and boiling over. It works!

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        February 22, 2019 at 2:35 pm

        Interesting, and great that it works. I go for using a very large pan for my pasta as cleaning the hob is not one of my favorite jobs.

        Reply
    6. Alexandra says

      November 21, 2018 at 11:04 am

      5 stars
      Garlic and butter - a match made in heaven! Add pasta and chicken? Well, it doesn't sound like it could get much better than this recipe. Beautiful! I cannot wait to try.

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        December 02, 2018 at 8:44 am

        Thank you
        And I couldn't agree more, garlic and butter are just the best 😀

        Reply

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