Creamy Chicken Bacon Penne (Print)

Tender chicken and smoky bacon in a garlic-Parmesan cream sauce with penne. Rich, comforting, and ready in just 40 minutes.

# What You Need:

→ Pasta

01 - 12 oz penne pasta

→ Meats

02 - 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced
03 - 5 oz bacon, chopped

→ Dairy

04 - 1 cup heavy cream
05 - 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
06 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

→ Vegetables & Aromatics

07 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
08 - 1 small onion, finely diced
09 - 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

→ Pantry & Seasonings

10 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
11 - 1 tablespoon olive oil

# Steps:

01 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook penne according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water, then drain and set aside.
02 - Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add chopped bacon and cook until crispy, approximately 5-6 minutes. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside. Discard all but 1 tablespoon of bacon fat from the pan.
03 - Season chicken slices with salt and pepper. Add olive oil to the skillet, then add chicken. Sauté until golden and cooked through, about 5-7 minutes. Remove and set aside.
04 - In the same skillet, melt butter. Add diced onion and cook until translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
05 - Pour in heavy cream, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Bring to a gentle simmer, then stir in Parmesan cheese until melted and sauce thickens. Add reserved pasta water gradually if needed to achieve desired consistency.
06 - Return cooked chicken and bacon to the skillet. Stir in fresh parsley. Add drained penne and toss to coat evenly with sauce. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.
07 - Transfer to serving dishes immediately. Garnish with extra Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley if desired.

# Top Tips:

01 -
  • Everything cooks in one skillet after the pasta is done, so cleanup is mercifully simple.
  • The bacon fat left in the pan adds a smoky depth you can't get any other way.
  • It tastes like something you'd order at a restaurant but costs a fraction of the price.
  • Leftovers reheat beautifully with a splash of milk or cream to loosen the sauce.
02 -
  • Don't dump all the pasta water at once, add it slowly because you can always thin the sauce but you can't thicken it back up easily.
  • Let the cream simmer gently, not boil hard, or it can break and turn grainy instead of smooth.
  • Slice the chicken thin and even so it cooks at the same rate, thick pieces will be raw in the middle while thin ones dry out.
03 -
  • Use a large skillet so everything has room to cook evenly and the sauce doesn't get crowded.
  • Grate your Parmesan fresh from a block, it melts smoother and tastes sharper than the pre-grated kind.
  • Reserve more pasta water than you think you'll need, it's your secret weapon for adjusting the sauce consistency.
  • Don't rinse the pasta after draining, the starch helps the sauce cling to every piece.
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