Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta is comfort food that will leave you full and happy! This creamy, savory parmesan sauce is loaded with chicken and bacon, is topped with green onions and is served over your favorite pasta! It is a meal that will please a crowd!
What ingredients are needed to make Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta?
You will need: cooked linguini pasta (or your favorite kind of pasta), chicken, heavy whipping cream, fresh grated Parmesan cheese, cooked bacon bits, green onions (optional). Seasonings that are needed are: Creole seasoning, garlic powder, and season salt.
NOTE: Salt and pepper are added to taste and are not in the photo above. You will also need a little bit of oil to cook the chicken in and that is not in the photo above!
The Sauce for Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta
This recipe makes a rich and creamy sauce.
It is made with heavy whipping cream, Parmesan cheese and seasoning.
For the seasoning I love Creole seasoning. Creole seasoning is very savory with a bit of kick. It is usually a blend of garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, dried oregano, salt black pepper and cayenne pepper. Creole Seasoning has some spice to it so this sauce can be more spicy if you add more Creole seasoning.
I also like to add a little garlic powder and seasoning salt to this pasta sauce.
Chicken and bacon are added to the sauce making this sauce so insanely delicious. I could eat it with a spoon and ditch the pasta!
The great thing about the sauce is you can add more parmesan cheese, seasonings or leave out any of the seasonings you may not like!
The Chicken and Marinade
The recipe calls for chicken. I slice my chicken breasts in to thin strips.
Tip from the Butcher Man: if the meat (chicken in this case) is slightly frozen it is much easier to cut into thinner strips! So if your chicken breast is a bit on the frozen side (softer on the outside edges but frozen in the very center), use that to your advantage and cut the strips as thin as you need. This is also works great if you are wanting to slice/filet your chicken breast in half lengthwise for a thinner breast to grill or bread. Sometimes when the breast is not frozen its harder to get an even cut through the meat, or harder to slice thin. This works for beef too!
In a small dish you will take some of your heavy whipping cream and mix it with some Creole seasoning. You will marinate the chicken for at least an hour in this mixture.
NOTE: Creole seasoning can be a bit spicy. It will add just a touch of flavor to the chicken; but the seasoning along with the chicken in the heavy cream will help the chicken cook up juicy and tender with the perfect amount of flavor.
Then pour this over your chicken and let it marinate for at least an hour. 2-3 hours is even better.
I use a zip top bag and put my chicken in it. Then I pour the heavy cream marinade over it.
Make sure all of the chicken is covered with the heavy whipping cream marinade.
Seal the bag, place it in the fridge and let it marinade for at least an hour (2 to 3 hours is ideal).
Other Prep
While the chicken is in the fridge I prep the rest of the ingredients.
I cook my bacon.
I grate my parmesan cheese.
I chop my green onions for serving over the pasta. (Green onions are totally optional but so yummy.)
And I cook my pasta.
I also start a batch of dough for Homemade Breadsticks, homemade French Bread or Garlic Knots. We always have some type of bread with this dish!
Pasta for your Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta
I prefer to use linguine pasta. I like that it is not as thick as fettuccine but still has a larger flat surface for the pasta sauce to cling to.
You can use any type of pasta you like. Angel hair, bow tie or rotini are great options as well.
Making the Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta
In a large skillet, over medium-low heat cook your chicken pieces in a little bit of olive oil (or any type of oil). Just dump the chicken in the pan with any extra marinade from the bag.
Cook the chicken until it is no longer pink and reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Take the chicken out of the pan and set it aside.
Return the skillet/pan back to the heat and pour the rest of your heavy whipping cream in the pan.
The sauce takes a little bit of time to thicken as it heats. Be patient and keep whisking it.
Once the sauce starts to thicken and bubble, add your parmesan cheese. Whisk it into the heavy whipping cream until melted. Your sauce should be thicker.
Next add your Creole Seasoning, garlic powder, season salt and salt and pepper to taste.
Adjust the seasoning to your liking. This sauce is savory, so I recommend to start out with less seasoning and then add a little at time, tasting as you go until it gets to the point you like it.
NOTE: The chicken and bacon will add a bit of flavor/salt so I suggest seasoning it to your liking only to the point where it is a bit “under-seasoned” than you would normally like. Then add the chicken and bacon and adjust the seasonings after!
Add your cooked chicken to the sauce with the bacon.
TIP: Now that the chicken and bacon has been added and may have made the sauce a little more salty and seasoned; taste the sauce now and adjust as needed!
The sauce is ready!! It is the perfect creamy pasta sauce with chicken and bacon.
Serving the Creamy Pasta
Cover your pasta with the yummy Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta Sauce.
Then top it with green onions. (Optional)
We love to eat our pasta with Homemade Breadsticks or Garlic Knots.
That’s it-simple, rich, comforting and oh-so-good!
Leftovers
This pasta is great for leftovers.
The sauce will thicken pretty fast after removed from the heat but should thin right back out when reheated. Whisk it together so the cream and seasonings are mixed well. If it is too thick, add a little milk.
This pasta sauce can be stored in the fridge in a tightly sealed container for about 4 days.
Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta is comfort food that will leave you full and happy! It is a meal that will please a crowd!
If you liked this recipe please take the time to leave a comment and a star rating below! Also, don’t forget to follow me on Pinterest, Facebook and Instagram!
For some other tasty pasta dishes try my Chicken Bacon Alfredo Pasta Bake, my Slow Cooker Penne Pasta, my yummy Alfredo Sauce, or Easy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce.
Also try my Creamy Chicken Bake that is served with rice!
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Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound linguine pasta, cooked see notes
- 1 pound chicken breast, cut into strips see notes
- 1/2 pound bacon, cooked and chopped
- 1 tbsp canola oil, vegetable or olive oil *for cooking the chicken
- 6 green onions, chopped (optional) *for serving, added at the end
Creamy Sauce Ingredients
- 1 quart heavy whipping cream *1/3 cup will be used for marinating the chicken
- 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated (more to taste) *fresh grated parmesan cheese preferred
- 2 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 /2 to 1 tsp seasoning salt *start with 1/2 tsp and then add more to taste
- 1/2 tsp or more to taste Creole Seasoning *this is for the sauce, separate from the marinade below
- salt and pepper, to taste *optional
Chicken Marinade
- 1/3 Cup heavy whipping cream *taken from the quart of heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp Creole Seasoning
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to the directions on the package. Set aside.
- Take 1/3 cup of the heavy whipping cream from the quart and put it in a small dish or measuring cup. Add 1 tsp of the Creole Seasoning and whisk it together. This is the chicken marinade.
- Place chicken strips in a zip top bag (or a container with a lid). Pour the heavy whipping cream marinade over the chicken. Make sure the chicken is covered fully by heavy cream. Seal the bag or cover the dish. Let the chicken marinade in the fridge for at least 1 hour. 2-3 hours is ideal.
- While chicken is marinating, chop onions, cook bacon, grate cheese and prepare everything else.
- After chicken has marinated, heat oil in a large skillet on medium-low heat. Add chicken and cook until chicken is done and starting to brown. Remove chicken from pan and set aside.
- In the same large skillet over medium-low heat (wipe out any extra oil or burnt chicken- some seasoning is great left behind), add the rest of the heavy whipping cream. Whisk until it thickens.
- Add the parmesan cheese, whisk until melted and incorporated.
- The amounts of the seasonings are an suggestion!Add the garlic powder, season salt, Creole seasoning and some salt and pepper (optional) to taste. You can adjust the seasoning at this point to taste, but I recommend waiting until the bacon and chicken is added because they will add some additional salt/flavor. **Start out with the sauce “under-seasoned” and then adjust after bacon and chicken is added.
- Add the cooked chicken and bacon into the sauce. NOW adjust the seasonings as needed to your liking.
- Serve immediately over cooked pasta! Top with green onions if desired. The sauce will thicken pretty fast after taken off the heat but should thin right back out when reheated. If it is too thick, add a little milk.
Notes
I recommend starting out with the amounts of seasoning the recipe calls for when you season your sauce. Then adjust the seasonings AFTER you have added the chicken and bacon as they will add some additional salt/seasoning to the sauce when you add them.
You can store this pasta sauce in the fridge for up to 4 days. Heat it slowly in the microwave or on the stove, stirring it as it heats.Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should only be used as an approximation.
I love pasta and will have to try this!