What’s not to love about chicken and pasta coated in a creamy tomato garlic sauce that takes just 30 minutes to make? This marry me chicken pasta earns its namesake and will become a fast favorite.
When you post recipes online for 14+ years, you see a few trends come and go. There was the stuffing cookies inside of brownies trend (which I’m not gonna lie, grossed me out), the kale-everything one, the Instant Pot craze and using cauliflower to make everything under the sun just to name a few.
I like to pride myself for not falling too heavily down any given one of them, but here I am today sharing a recipe that is definitely trend-adjacent.
Marry me chicken hit hard in the late 2010s and spinoffs started surfacing everywhere. The thing about me is if it blows up on TikTok (an app I don’t have and never will) or goes viral on Pinterest, it actually dissuades me from wanting to try it. So I didn’t, until recently when I sort of accidentally made this for dinner one night.
I was trying to throw together a quicker, easier and more Giada from the late 2000s-esque version of my sun-dried tomato pasta recipe when I ended up with this recipe. It was so good that I made a note with some estimated measurements and a promise to get this up on the blog only to realize weeks later when typing it all up that I made marry me chicken pasta without even knowing it.
I debated not sharing it because it’s not like it’s unique (you’ll find plenty of others out there), but settled on it being too great of a meal not to. Maybe you’re like me and never tried it not wanting to be part of the masses or maybe you want a dinner so good it could potentially inspire a proposal.
Either way, this 30-minute pasta dinner with juicy chicken doused in a creamy garlic sun-dried tomato sauce will quickly turn into a meal you’ll love and make many times.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Pasta – Use any pasta shape you like for this meal and substitute gluten-free varieties if desired. Penne, rigatoni and farfalle are all favorites.
- Chicken – You can use chicken breasts, boneless chicken thighs for more juicy flavor or leftover rotisserie chicken which makes this dinner even faster.
- Garlic – Minced fresh garlic is the main flavor component of the pasta so I always recommend using fresh over jarred.
- Sun-dried tomatoes – You’ll want the ones packed in olive oil for this recipe as the oil helps to add more flavor.
- Chicken broth – This helps create the sauce and add depth of flavor.
- Cream – Heavy cream creates the decadent creamy texture of this dish. You can also use half and half or, swap some (not more than half) of it out with whole milk for a lighter meal.
- Parmesan cheese – Freshly grated parmesan is the icing on the cake to finish the pasta off in a rich way. Pecorino Romano is a great substitute as well.
- Fresh herbs – Before serving, garnish the pasta with some freshly chopped herbs such as parsley or basil to brighten it up.
How to Make Marry Me Chicken Pasta
You can find the full recipe with exact measurements and detailed instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. This is a quick visual run-down with step by step directions.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions. At the same time, cook the cubed and seasoned chicken in a skillet with olive oil until it’s golden brown on all sides.
- Set the chicken aside and add the sun-dried tomatoes and minced garlic to the same pan. Cook for a minute or two until very aromatic.
- Add the chicken broth to the pan and bring to a simmer.
- Lower the heat then pour in the heavy cream and parmesan. Cook for a few minutes until the sauce starts to thicken slightly.
- Return the chicken to the skillet and add the cooked pasta.
- Toss to combine and add a splash of reserved pasta cooking water to thin out the sauce if needed.
- Garnish with additional parmesan and top with freshly chopped herbs to serve.
My Pro Tips
Tips For Success
Marry me chicken pasta is incredibly easy and straightforward but here are a few best practice tips and suggestions to making it your own.
- Chop the chicken into uniform sized pieces no matter what cut you’re using so it cooks in the same time.
- Use freshly grated parmesan for better melting and blending into the sauce. Pre-shredded cheeses have additives to keep it from clumping together in the package, but this inhibits its melting ability.
- For more depth of flavor, add a tablespoon of tomato paste to the sauce when cooking the sun-dried tomatoes.
- Stir in some baby spinach or other leafy green for a vegetable boost and a pop of color.
- For a slightly thicker sauce, consider starting with a roux (1 tablespoon of flour and 2 tablespoons of butter) before you add the garlic and sun-dried tomatoes.
- Add a kick of heat with some red pepper flakes.
- Some have made this recipe with shrimp instead of chicken but creamy sauces with shrimp doesn’t appeal to me, try this garlic shrimp bucatini dish instead.
Leftover Storage
This isn’t a recipe that usually has any leftovers unless you make it for just yourself – no judging, I have.
Keep leftovers refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days.
Reheating is best done in the microwave with a splash of chicken broth or cream to loosen it up or, on the stove top in a sauce pan over low heat.
Whether this meal will snag you a spouse is up for debate, but it will become a tried and true favorite for an easy, comforting meal everyone will love.
More Creamy Pasta Dishes Like Marry Me Chicken
If you loved this dish, you’ll probably like one of these recipes too:
Creamy white bean pasta
Creamy pumpkin garlic pasta
Lemon ricotta pasta
Cottage cheese Alfredo sauce pasta or lightened up spaghetti Alfredo
Marry Me Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 ounces pasta, any shape you like
- 1 pound chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes, in oil, chopped
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, or Pecorino Romano
Instructions
- Cook the pasta in salted boiling water according to package directions. Drain and set aside, reserving ½ cup pasta water.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces and cook for 5–7 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. Remove and set aside.
- In the same skillet, add the minced garlic and sun-dried tomatoes. Sauté for 1–2 minutes until fragrant. Pour in the chicken broth and bring to a simmer for 2–3 minutes.
- Lower the heat to medium, stir in the heavy cream and grated Parmesan. Cook for 2–3 minutes until the sauce thickens slightly.
- Return the chicken to skillet. Add cooked pasta and toss to coat. If needed, add reserved pasta water a splash at a time to loosen the sauce.
- Plate up, garnish with extra Parmesan if desired and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
