Tuscan Chicken Pasta Recipe

Name: Tuscan Chicken Pasta
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 12 oz penne; 1 1/2 lbs chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces; 1 tsp Italian seasoning, 3/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper; 2 tbsp oil from the sun-dried tomato jar; 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and sliced; 4 cloves garlic, minced; 1 cup chicken broth; 1 1/4 cups heavy cream; 3/4 cup grated parmesan; 4 cups baby spinach

Prep Time: 10 min Cook Time: 20 min Total: 30 min Servings: 6

Creamy Tuscan chicken pasta with spinach and sun-dried tomatoes

Tuscan chicken pasta is what happens when a cream sauce gets ambitions: seared chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, spinach, and parmesan clinging to every piece of penne. The sun-dried tomatoes are the flavor keystone — sweet, chewy, faintly smoky — and the oil they're packed in is liquid gold, so we sear the chicken in it instead of plain oil. Restaurant versions of this run twenty dollars a plate; yours takes thirty minutes and feeds six for about the same total.

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Ingredients

12 oz penne
1 1/2 lbs chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces
1 tsp Italian seasoning, 3/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper
2 tbsp oil from the sun-dried tomato jar
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chicken broth
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup grated parmesan
4 cups baby spinach

Instructions

Boil the penne to al dente in salted water; reserve a cup of pasta water.
Season the chicken and sear it in the sun-dried tomato oil over medium-high until golden and cooked, 6–7 minutes. Remove.
In the same pan, cook the garlic and sun-dried tomatoes 1 minute. Add the broth, scraping the browned bits, and reduce 2 minutes.
Stir in the cream and parmesan; simmer 2–3 minutes until it coats a spoon. Wilt in the spinach.
Return the chicken, add the penne, and toss with a splash of pasta water until the sauce hugs everything. Serve with more parm.

Ingredient Substitutions

Ingredient	Substitute	Notes
Penne	Rigatoni or fettuccine	Any shape with sauce-grip
Heavy cream	Half-and-half + 1 tsp flour	Lighter; whisk the flour into the cold liquid
Chicken breast	Shrimp	Sear 2 minutes per side; a spectacular variant
Spinach	Kale, stemmed and chopped	Add 2 minutes earlier to soften

Storage & Reheating

Refrigerate up to 3 days. The pasta drinks the sauce overnight — revive with a splash of broth or cream while reheating gently.

Freezing cream-sauced pasta is a last resort (2 months, expect some separation); reheat low and slow, whisking the sauce back together.

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes something “Tuscan” in American recipes?

The sun-dried tomato + spinach + cream + garlic combination. Actual Tuscany is mystified but the flavor profile earned its fame honestly.

Can I use dry-packed sun-dried tomatoes?

Soak them in hot water 10 minutes to soften, and use olive oil for searing since there's no jar oil. Oil-packed is better here.

How do I keep the chicken from drying out?

Bite-size pieces cook in 6–7 minutes — pull them the moment the last pink disappears. They also get a warm bath in sauce at the end, which forgives a lot.

Could this work in one pot?

Yes: after the broth, add 3 cups more broth and the dry penne, cover, and simmer 12 minutes before the cream step. One fewer pot, slightly starchier sauce.