Description
A comforting and gourmet-tasting dish featuring tender chicken and creamy lemon sauce served over your choice of pasta.
Ingredients
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (sliced in half horizontally)
- 8 oz pasta (fettuccine, linguine, or penne)
- 1 tbsp olive oil (for searing)
- Salt and pepper (to season chicken)
- 2 tbsp butter
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 tbsp lemon juice (fresh)
- 1 lemon zest
- 1 cup heavy cream (room temperature)
- 0.5 cup Parmesan cheese (freshly grated)
- Reserved pasta water (as needed)
- Fresh parsley (chopped, for garnish)
- Extra Parmesan cheese (for serving)
Instructions
- Begin by bringing a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until it reaches an al dente texture. Reserve half a cup of the pasta water before draining it and setting aside.
- Pat the chicken dry. Season both sides with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and sear the chicken for about 4 to 5 minutes on each side until golden and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and let it rest.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low in the same skillet. Melt butter and sauté the minced garlic for approximately 30 seconds.
- Pour in the fresh lemon juice and chicken broth, scraping any browned bits from the bottom. Let it simmer for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Lower the heat further and stir in the heavy cream and Parmesan cheese until the sauce is smooth, avoiding boiling.
- Add the cooked pasta and sliced chicken to the skillet, gently tossing to coat. Use reserved pasta water to adjust sauce consistency if too thick.
- Garnish with chopped parsley and extra Parmesan cheese before serving immediately.
Notes
For optimal creaminess, use room temperature heavy cream and add pasta water gradually to adjust sauce thickness as needed.
