Creamy Chicken Pasta in White Wine Parmesan Cheese Sauce will remind you of your favorite Italian dinner experience! Easy to make weeknight pasta dish to impress your family or guests. With only 30 minutes of total work, this dinner recipe is simple, ultra-fast and delicious! It almost sounds too easy to be as good as it is.
Juicy chicken, pasta in cream sauce and parmesan! A simple meal that is flavor packed in no time – everyone will be asking for seconds.
I think there’s nothing better than having a restaurant quality creamy pasta dish on the table within minutes. Especially when treating family and friends. They love a good comfort meal any night of the week!
Jump to:
- What wine to use for creamy chicken pasta
- Wine substitutes
- To make chicken pasta dairy free
- What kind of pasta to use
- What kind of chicken to use
- How to cook chicken breasts
- How to make creamy pasta sauce
- How to add cheese to creamy chicken pasta
- How to cook pasta
- Assembly of creamy chicken pasta
- Store, make ahead, refrigerate
- More chicken pasta dishes to enjoy
- Watch how to make Creamy Chicken Pasta in White Wine Parmesan Cheese Sauce
- Italian Chicken Pasta in Creamy White Wine Parmesan Cheese Sauce
What wine to use for creamy chicken pasta
Cooking with wine is easy if you just know how and what wine to use. I used dry Pinot Grigio white wine to make my creamy chicken pasta, which produced an excellent flavor for the sauce.
When cooking with wine, never use “cooking wine”. It’s loaded with sodium and lacks the unique flavor of the real wine. Cooking with a regular drinking wine will always give you a better tasting dish because the quality is much higher.
Chardonnay, Riesling or Pinot Grigio are also great wine choices to cook with. Italian chicken pasta dishes benefit greatly in flavor when the wine is added during the cooking process.
I love cooking with wine and have a large number of recipes on this website that are amazingly tasty and easy to make all thanks to wine. Using a good quality drinking wine is such an easy way to create a tasty creamy chicken pasta dish!
Wine substitutes
- Lemon Juice is an ideal substitute for dry white wine. Squeeze two wedges of fresh lemon into your sauce and add additional ½ cup of chicken stock.
- White Wine Vinegar is an great substitute for dry white wine. Made from white wine, it has many of the same flavor characteristics. Minus the alcohol. In this recipe use only a splash of vinegar + ½ cup chicken stock. Too much vinegar will curdle cream, therefore little is more here!
- Rice Vinegar – do not use it! A brave reader attempted it and the result was simply miserable. Trashcan! Thank you Evangelina for reporting back.
- I do not recommend Apple Cider Vinegar because it can be too strong of a substitute. A reader recommended to add ONLY a splash of it. Add more only if you desire a stronger flavor.
- Chicken or vegetable stock. You can substitute stock for white wine entirely if not a fan of vinegar.
- For extra flavor, try mixing a tablespoon of lemon juice per cup of stock.
To make chicken pasta dairy free
Use chicken broth instead. For those who do not want dairy, or want to make this pasta dish a bit healthier, skip the cream and use chicken broth instead. All you need to do is let the broth cook down a bit more.
What kind of pasta to use
I like to make my chicken pasta using spaghetti but your favorite variety will work just as well. Linguine, for example is always a popular option to make an Italian Chicken pasta. You can also substitute whole grain or whole wheat pasta for added nutritional value!
What kind of chicken to use
Use thin chicken breasts. This Italian Chicken Pasta recipe calls for 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts that are THIN.
If you can’t find thin ones, just butterfly thick ones. Tenderizing works too, even though I didn’t tenderize mine, just got thin ones from the store.
If you buy regular chicken breasts (those not labeled as thin), make sure to halve them horizontally. For example, 1 pound of large chicken breasts usually yields 2 of them. And when you half each you will get 4 nice thin chicken fillets.
How to cook chicken breasts
- First and foremost, paper towel dry the chicken. Chicken breasts that are excessively moist won’t brown evenly and beautifully.
- Then, in a large bowl, combine flour, salt, black pepper, garlic powder and Italian seasoning. I usually stir them well to blend and then use a fork or tongs to coat the chicken breasts in the flour mixture.
- Next, I add olive oil to a large skillet and set heat to medium-high. Once the skillet is hot, it’s time to place coated chicken breasts in the skillet and start cooking! Cook on medium high for 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Chickens will turn golden brown on both sides.
- IMPORTANT TIP! Make sure to turn the chicken only once between cooking! You will cook chicken breasts for a total of about 8-10 minutes. Turning only once. I repeat, turn the chicken just once.
How to make creamy pasta sauce
- Begin by melting butter in the pan, then add diced yellow onion and minced garlic cloves. Cook them on medium high until onions and garlic are translucent, about 2 minutes.
- Next add diced tomatoes and cook them until softened.
- Once you soften scallions and tomatoes, you will add flour to pan and whisk to combine. This will help thicken the sauce.
- Now add heavy cream, wine and seasonings!
- Lastly, bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce heat to simmering point.
How to add cheese to creamy chicken pasta
Once you reduce the heat, add ½ cup of shredded Parmesan cheese. It’s important to REDUCE THE HEAT before adding the cheese to avoid clumping
In order to incorporate Parmesan well, make sure to use a whisk. Or mix with a wooden spoon until you have a smooth mixture.
How to cook pasta
Cook pasta after you make the sauce so that pasta is fresh. Besides, when pasta is hot it can absorb the sauce very well making it so very tasty.
If you like pasta that is neither too hard nor too soft, always cook it Al Dente. You will drain, but not rinse the pasta in order for the sauce to stick. Drain, but do not rinse!
Assembly of creamy chicken pasta
- ADD COOKED PASTA to the skillet with the sauce and stir to combine on low heat for 2-4 minutes.
- ADJUST THE SEASONING! You should taste the sauce at this point and add more salt and seasoning if needed.
- RETURN COOKED CHICKEN BREASTS to the skillet on top of the pasta. Allow the skillet to warm up for an additional 5 minutes.
- SERVE CHICKEN either on top or next to pasta and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Store, make ahead, refrigerate
REFRIGERATE. Keep your chicken pasta refrigerated in an airtight container until ready to enjoy for up to 1 week.
MAKE IT IN ADVANCE. If you don’t plan to serve this creamy chicken pasta right away, you can make it in advance to serve later. In fact, the flavors will develop even more as it sits! However, keep in mind that the pasta will absorb a lot of the sauce. Therefore your dish will be less creamy if you make it in advance and store all the ingredients together.
The solution? Simply add more cream or chicken stock when reheating.
OMIT THE PASTA. Another alternative to keep the dish fresh would be to prepare everything except for the pasta. You can refrigerate it for up to 1 week and then cook the pasta fresh when you are ready to serve it.
More chicken pasta dishes to enjoy
Lazone Chicken Pasta
Bacon Alfredo Chicken Pasta
Pesto Chicken Pasta
Chardonnay Chicken Pasta
Watch how to make Creamy Chicken Pasta in White Wine Parmesan Cheese Sauce
Italian Chicken Pasta in Creamy White Wine Parmesan Cheese Sauce
Ingredients
For cooking chicken:
- 4 thin boneless skinless chicken breasts, (or 2 thick ones, halved horizontally and paper towel dried)
- ½ cup flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Pasta:
- 12 oz spaghetti
White Wine Parmesan Sauce:
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 small yellow onion (or use ½ onion), chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 small tomatoes, diced
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup white wine
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
- 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt, more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- PREPARING CHICKEN BREASTS: Make sure to cut chicken breasts horizontally to make them thin. Or, use thin chicken breasts to begin with. Paper towel dry the chicken.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, black pepper, garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Stir well to blend. Using a fork or tongs, coat the chicken breasts in the flour mixture by pressing into the mixture with tongs and then flipping the chicken over to coat the other side. Set aside.
- COOKING CHICKEN BREASTS: Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the skillet is hot, place flour coated chicken breasts in the skillet and cook for 4 to 5 minutes on each side, until golden brown on both sides and cooked through, turning once between cooking, about 8-10 minutes. Remove chicken from pan and set aside.
- SAUCE: Add butter, diced yellow onion and minced garlic cloves to pan. Cook on medium high until onions and garlic are translucent, about 2 minutes. Next add tomatoes and add1 tablespoon flour to pan. Whisk to combine.
- Now add heavy cream, wine, Italian Seasoning, salt and red pepper flakes. Bring mixture to a simmering point and then add ½ cup of shredded Parmesan cheese. Use a whisk or a wooden spoon and mix it in until you have a smooth mixture.
- COOKING PASTA Cook pasta according to your package instructions in salty water. I like pasta that is neither too hard nor too soft, so I always cook it Al Dente. Drain, but do not rinse.
- FINAL ASSEMBLY:Add cooked pasta to the skillet with the sauce and stir to combine on low heat for 2-4 minutes. Taste and add salt, if needed. Return chicken to skillet on top of the pasta and allow it to warm up for an additional 5 minutes.
- SERVE chicken either on top or next to pasta and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only. This information comes from online calculators. Although whatsinthepan.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
Video
And how about this amazing Cajun Chicken and Sausage Penne Pasta dish?
We also enjoyed this Chicken Spinach and Bacon Alfredo Pasta. By the way, you can easily make both recipes midweek!
I made this tonight with butternut ravioli and it was absolutely relish!! Thank you for sharing!!!
When making your pasta should you remove the sauce from heat or leave it to simmer?
I remove it from heat.
I found this recipe while browsing on Pinterest and decided to pin it because it looked fantastic. My mother decided to make it the other night, and usually, she never follows recipes, she always ends up just winging it! I, on the other hand, am a firm believer in following a recipe, especially the 1st time. She followed the recipe to the “T” and we were blown away by the results!! The sauce was delicious, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that it captured the “cream sauce” taste that I love (as opposed to any kind of red sauce), but it did not in any way feel as heavy as a traditional cream sauce or Alfredo. The spices & herbs in the breading for the chicken was so flavorful. We will most definitely be making this dish again… Next time, we’re trying it with penne or farfalle! If there is anything “negative” about this recipe (and it’s not a negative even, just more of a side note), is that the times listed for preparing and cooking are way off. The only way to make that time in my opinion is after you’ve made this at least a dozen times and even then, that’s pushing it. Or, I could just be REALLY slow…. Lol.
I’ll have to revise the time after this in depth review!!! Thank you so much and for the laugh!
LOVED THIS! I substituted tomatoes with roasted red peppers because I cannot eat tomatoes and used a Riesling. The dish was superb! Also used GF noodles 😉 Thank you!!
Sounds delicious with roasted red peppers!
Can you substitute milk for heavy cream? Or what would be a good substitution, if possible?
You can substitute with milk AND also add more butter. Otherwise the sauce will be runny. You can also add flour to thicken it. Or/and use extra cheese. But if you use half and half – it would be much easier – probably won’t even need to thicken it.
This dish was absolutely delicious!! I substituted milk and butter because I didn’t have cream but it still wowed my husband an guests!!! So yummy. A real keeper
Sounds like you nailed it Linda!
Would baby Bella mushrooms be a good substitute for the tomatoes?
They won’t provide the moisture that tomatoes do. If you don’t use tomatoes, add more liquid – just increase proportionally.
Is the wine flavor strong in the sauce? Don’t normally like to be able to taste it in sauce too much. Would you recommend cutting down if so?
You can smell it more while cooking than in the taste. If you find the smell overwhelming then reduce the amount of wine. But alcohol evaporates while cooking so you won’t taste it as much at all.
Is the calorie count per serving or for the entire dish? 985 seems high per serving?
This is per serving. It seems high because it has everything in it – carbs, protein and fats. I wouldn’t eat this every day, but once a week I do eat a high calorie meal, maybe even twice.
Could you use pork chops
Probably the thin ones might work. Might be a little chewy though, unless you pound them flat really well