Chicken Tenders in a Sun Dried Tomato Sauce with Rigatoni Pasta

by | Sep 9, 2022

This is quick week night dinner without a lot steps and can be made in one deep sauce pan and one pot for cooking the pasta. Makes for very satisfying dinner with juicy chicken and pasta in mild cream sauce.

Yields4 Servings
 1 lb rigatoni pasta
 1 –2 pounds organic boneless chicken breast tenders
 Salt and fresh ground pepper
 3 tbsp olive oil
 4 garlic cloves roughly chopped
 1 tsp sweet paprika
 ¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes (this can be omitted if you don’t want spice to the dish)
 -7 whole sun dried tomatoes on oil finely chopped.
 1 cup heavy cream
 1 cup half and half cream
 1 cup reserved pasta water
 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil plus more for garnishing the finished dish
 1 cup shredded Fontina cheese
 ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more to sprinkle on individual servings
 Salt and pepper to taste
 Chopped fresh parsley & Shaved Parmesan pieces for serving.
1

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, season both sides with salt, pepper and paprika.

2

Heat a large sauté pan on medium heat, once the pan is hot add the olive oil, and the seasoned chicken tenders to the pan. Cook the tenders 5 minutes per side, only turn once so the chicken develops a golden color. Sprinkle the crushed red pepper flakes.

3

Meanwhile boil the water, season with salt and cook the pasta just until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water.

4

Add the sun dried tomatoes, heavy cream, half & half cream, and pasta water to the pan with the chicken tenders, increase the heat to medium high and cook until the creams come to a light simmer.

5

Add basil to the pan and stir in and simmer for a couple of minutes.
Drain the pasta and add it to the sauce, gently fold in the shredded Fontina and then the Parmesan cheese and let simmer for 2 minutes so the pasta can absorb some of the sauce and thicken.

6

Transfer to a large serving bowl, add some shaved Parmesan strips and the reserved chopped basil. Serve table side with extra grated Parmesan cheese for individual serving options.

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Category

Ingredients

 1 lb rigatoni pasta
 1 –2 pounds organic boneless chicken breast tenders
 Salt and fresh ground pepper
 3 tbsp olive oil
 4 garlic cloves roughly chopped
 1 tsp sweet paprika
 ¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes (this can be omitted if you don’t want spice to the dish)
 -7 whole sun dried tomatoes on oil finely chopped.
 1 cup heavy cream
 1 cup half and half cream
 1 cup reserved pasta water
 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil plus more for garnishing the finished dish
 1 cup shredded Fontina cheese
 ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more to sprinkle on individual servings
 Salt and pepper to taste
 Chopped fresh parsley & Shaved Parmesan pieces for serving.

Directions

1

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, season both sides with salt, pepper and paprika.

2

Heat a large sauté pan on medium heat, once the pan is hot add the olive oil, and the seasoned chicken tenders to the pan. Cook the tenders 5 minutes per side, only turn once so the chicken develops a golden color. Sprinkle the crushed red pepper flakes.

3

Meanwhile boil the water, season with salt and cook the pasta just until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water.

4

Add the sun dried tomatoes, heavy cream, half & half cream, and pasta water to the pan with the chicken tenders, increase the heat to medium high and cook until the creams come to a light simmer.

5

Add basil to the pan and stir in and simmer for a couple of minutes.
Drain the pasta and add it to the sauce, gently fold in the shredded Fontina and then the Parmesan cheese and let simmer for 2 minutes so the pasta can absorb some of the sauce and thicken.

6

Transfer to a large serving bowl, add some shaved Parmesan strips and the reserved chopped basil. Serve table side with extra grated Parmesan cheese for individual serving options.

Notes

Chicken Tenders in a Sun Dried Tomato Sauce with Rigatoni Pasta
IngredientsDirections