An easy, flavorful dinner recipe made in just 15-minutes. Made with dairy-free, basil pesto and gluten-free noodles, this creamy chicken pesto pasta makes the perfect weeknight meal.
Add more flavor and simplicity to your menu with this pasta dish. It's truly a healthy dinner recipe perfect for the whole family.
This creamy chicken pesto pasta makes the perfect weeknight dinner recipe! Thrown together in just fifteen minutes, this quick pasta recipe is great for busy days (like most of my dinner recipes).
Plus. you can use any leftover pesto (or make a double batch) and chicken to make chicken pesto pizzas the next time (this oregano pesto works well for that too!)
Cook once, eat twice<-- lessons from a Certified Nutrition Coach.
This creamy chicken pesto pasta feels comforting but comes out really light. And given that the pesto sauce doesn't contain parmesan, it's naturally gluten-free. Here are 15 other easy, gluten-free dinner recipes if you need some more ideas.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- A healthy version of a classic
- Allergy-friendly (dairy-free, gluten-free)
- Easy to make
- A speedy weeknight dinner
Ingredients You'll Need
One of the perks of this creamy chicken pesto pasta is that you probably have most of the ingredients on hand already! And because it's dairy-free, there's no parmesan cheese necessary.
Cooked chicken breasts: meal prep hack! Always cook more chicken than you need! Keep it in the fridge to make recipes like this creamy pesto easy.
Button mushrooms: the perfect addition to a pesto pasta. Slice them thinly so that they cook quickly.
Garlic: though the pesto sauce does have garlic in it already, cooking fresh garlic with the mushrooms brings out the flavor more.
Dairy-free, creamy pesto sauce: this fresh basil pesto is made without pine nuts and has the addition of spinach to boost up your veggie intake! Or, opt for this totally nut free pesto.
Soba noodles: also known as buckwheat noodles, they're super thin and cook in about 10 minutes.
How To Make Creamy Pesto Pasta
- Make the pesto if you haven't already. Combine all ingredients into a powerful blender and blend until smooth.
- Cook noodles according to package directions. Rinse and drain.
- Heat some oil in a pan over medium heat. Toss in the mushrooms and garlic. Sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes until just starting to soften.
- Add the chicken to the heat. Lower the temperature slightly and add the pesto sauce to the pan only to warm it (2-3 minutes).
- Assemble your dish. Place noodles into the bowl and top with pesto sauce. Swirl it around to combine it.
What Goes Well With Chicken Pesto Pasta?
Almost any salad recipe can be paired nicely with creamy chicken pesto pasta.
Likewise, while this recipe is very simple, there are a lot of ingredients you can add in! Sundried tomatoes, and roasted cherry tomatoes, both are wonderful options.
Dinner doesn’t have to be chaotic—this eBook gives you 20+ protein-packed meals ready in 30 minutes or less (even when the day’s already gone sideways)
Frequently Asked Questions About Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta
Homemade, dairy-free pesto works in place of sauce for almost anything. Use it as the base of a pizza, smeared onto a sandwich or as the dressing in a wrap with grilled vegetables.
Any vegetable will work in pesto pasta. Roasted cherry tomatoes, roasted cauliflower or even snow peas are great flavor additions.
Other Dinner Recipes You'll Love
- Teriyaki chicken thighs
- Slow cooker teriyaki chicken
- Slow cooker balsamic chicken
- Teriyaki chicken skewers
- German Pork Loin (slow cooker meal!)
- Stovetop venison stew
- 3 minute teriyaki meatballs
- Slow cooker Tuscan Chicken
- One pot chicken alfredo
- Easy cauliflower rice
- One pot sausage and tomato pasta
- 45 dinner ideas for busy nights
- 30 minute chicken fajita bowl
- 30 minute dinner ideas
- Easy, healthy dinners
Dairy-free Chicken Pesto Pasta
Video
Equipment
- Cast iron pan for cooking
- Mini food processor
Ingredients
- 1 cup creamy pesto sauce
- 1 tbs avocado oil
- 2 chicken breasts cooked
- 14 button mushrooms sliced
- 1 garlic minced
- Soba noodles for four
Instructions
- Make the pesto. Combine all ingredients into a powerful blender (like a vitamix) and blend until smooth.
- Boil water and cook noodles according to package directions. Rinse and drain.
- While the water for the noodles is boiling, heat some oil in a pan over medium heat. Toss in the mushrooms and garlic. Sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes until just starting to soften.
- Add the chicken to the heat. Lower the temperature slightly and add the pesto sauce to the pan only to warm it (2-3 minutes).
- Assemble your dish. Place noodles into the bowl and top with pesto sauce. Swirl it around to combine it and top with nutritional yeast or vegan parmesan cheese if you'd like.
Notes
- Nutritional info is calculated using store-bought pesto
- To make this recipe a 15-minute meal, the chicken must be cooked ahead of time. Grilled chicken cut up, or roasted, shredded chicken both work for the recipe. Likewise, the flavored chicken will work as well as most flavors will pair nicely with pesto sauce.
- Buckwheat noodles are prone to sticking together- especially in the fridge. So, only make as many as you need for dinner that night. Otherwise, you'll be eating clumps
Disclaimer:
Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data"
Nutrition
Pesto chicken pasta is a fast, simple, and utterly tasty dish! The soba noodles mean that you stay full but won't feel weighed down after eating which makes this meal perfect for a busy weeknight!
Ter says
That's a must try!!!! I can't believe how few ingredients it requires. I know I can do this one! May try it with zucchini noodles.
fitasamamabear says
So so simple! I honestly eat it all the time haha It makes for the fastest dinner ever- zucchini noodles would be yummy!
Crystal Lam says
I love pesto! I need to try this out asap!
fitasamamabear says
Pesto works for everything- so yummy! Enjoy 🙂
Olivia says
Mmmm that looks delicious, going to save this to try it out for dinner soon. will let you know how it goes!
fitasamamabear says
Sooo simple! And you can't go wrong with pesto.. or pasta haha let me know!
Farrah says
Pesto is one of my favorite things! 😀 This looks super good! Hope I'll get to enjoy it for dinner sometime this week! *-*
fitasamamabear says
Pesto goes on everything! I love it too 🙂
Megan Miller says
I might need more garlic but I love it! It's a good summer (end of summer) recipe!
fitasamamabear says
Haha I normally more for myself too! But Everyone else seems to like slightly less- garlic rocks!
Ophelia Tang says
I love Pesto with pasta. This chicken pesto pasta sounds delicious and simple to make. I would love to make it for lunch asap. Thanks for sharing.
fitasamamabear says
I'm a sucker for pesto pasta too! It's so simple but so tasty. Enjoy it!
La Shell says
Pesto is so intimidating to me I really want to try it but I'm yet to use it. Will have to check it out because I love chicken with pasta!
fitasamamabear says
Ah that's fair! To me pesto seems really fancy but it so simple to make- which is why I love it haha
Cori @ Sweet Coralice says
I love Chicken Pesto Pasta! This sounds super easy to make and that makes for a perfect dinner/lunch option ?
fitasamamabear says
Pesto pasta is awesome!! I love this one for a quick dinner- makes life easy 😀
Shelby S says
This comes out SO creamy it's perfect for hot days.