Chicken Broccoli Pasta

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If you eat a lot of pasta at your house, you need to make this chicken broccoli pasta. Made with homemade cheese sauce, you won’t believe how simple it is to make.

We eat a lot of pasta at my house — probably at least once a week. That means that we have to look for a wide variety of pasta dishes so my husband and I don’t get sick of it but the kids will also eat dinner.

Enter this simple chicken broccoli pasta. We love it because it’s both filled vegetables that I know my kids will like and it has a deliciously creamy and easy cheese sauce.

While there are a few different components to this recipe, it’s actually quite easy to make. It will definitely be added to your regular rotation! 

Ingredients for chicken broccoli pasta

Full list of ingredients with quantities is located in the recipe card.

You’ll need:

Pasta – You can use whichever pasta shape you prefer for this recipe. Flat pastas like linguine or fettuccine are great, or you can use a shaped pasta like rotini, which will hold onto the sauce really well.

Chicken – Choose boneless chicken for this so it can be easily sliced and added to the pasta. Boneless skinless breasts are my recommendation here, but thighs can also be used, keeping in mind the dish will be a little richer.

Salt and pepper – For seasoning both the chicken and the sauce.

Oregano and thyme – A bit of these classic herbs is added to the chicken before cooking. You can swap in Italian seasoning blend. If using fresh herbs, remember that 1 teaspoon dried herb equals about 1 tablespoon fresh.

Broccoli – Fresh broccoli works best in this recipe, but frozen is fine too. You’ll need 8 ounces, or about 2 cups of florets.

Olive oil – For cooking the chicken and broccoli.

White wine – A little wine is used to delgaze the pan and start the sauce. You can swap in chicken broth to keep the dish alcohol-free.

Garlic – Don’t skimp on the garlic! You’ll need 4 cloves, which is about 1 heaping tablespoon of minced garlic.

Heavy cream – Also labeled as heavy whipping cream, this is the basis of the sauce. You can use half-and-half instead if you like.

Mozzarella – Use shredded low-moisture mozzarella, not fresh mozzarella.

Parmesan – Freshly grated parmesan, please! I buy a chunk at Costco and it lasts a long time.

Red pepper flakes – For a bit of heat in the sauce. 

How to make this recipe

First you’re going to get your pasta cooking. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Make sure to salt your pasta water. It should be about salty as the sea — I know, that sounds odd, but just remember that the water should taste salty! 

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. The total time will depend on the shape you’re using. Once done, reserve ½ cup of the pasta water, drain the pasta, and set aside.

While the pasta is cooking, we also want to cook the broccoli.

I love to roast the broccoli because it gives it a lot of extra flavor that taste really good with this pasta. You can also steam it or sauté it on the stove top.

To roast it set your oven for 400°F. Take your broccoli florets and mix them with a little bit of olive oil and toss with some salt and pepper. Spread the broccoli out in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for 15 to 20 minutes until nicely roasted. The broccoli should be a little caramelized on the bottom where the broccoli touch the pan, with a few crispy edges.

If you plan to steam the broccoli, you can do it over the pasta, but make sure to not do it for too long. Otherwise the broccoli will fall apart once you mix the broccoli and the pasta together. 

While the pasta and broccoli are cooking, cook the chicken. Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel, then season with salt, pepper, dried oregano, and thyme.

Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Cook the chicken for about 5 to 8 minutes per side or until it’s cooked through. 

It should be nicely browned on both sides and the internal temperature should read 165. If you’re not using an instant read thermometer for your meat you definitely should!

Set aside the chicken and keep warm. You can either place it in the microwave or set another plate inverted over the top of it so it stays warm while you make the sauce.

Now, using the same pan we’re going to make the sauce. 

Deglaze the pan with the white wine or the chicken broth, scraping up the bits on the bottom that they have stuck on. This is called fond and it adds a lot of flavor to the sauce so don’t skip the step!

Add the garlic and reduce the heat to medium. Stir to make sure you don’t burn the garlic, and simmer the wine to reduce it slightly.

Whisk in the cream, mozzarella, Parmesan, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Keep whisking to completely melt the cheese so it is smooth. Reduce heat to low.

Add the pasta and toss to coat, adding some of the reserved pasta water if the sauce seems too thick. The pasta water will thin it out and add some nice starch to the sauce, making it really luxurious in texture.

Sliced chicken into strips or chunks. Add it to the pasta and toss to coat, then add the broccoli as well tossing again. 

Serve with extra Parmesan cheese on top, along with more red pepper flakes or chopped fresh parsley.

Recipe suggestions

If you want to keep this dish vegetarian we have to do is skip the chicken or you could add in your favorite crispy tofu recipe.

Or for a little bit different flavor with the chicken try making this dish with my chicken scallopini. It is so flavorful and delicious — you’ll love the extra lemon flavor in the sauce.

If you want to make it spicy, try swapping in pepper jack cheese for the mozzarella, or add a pinch of ground cayenne pepper. Or, add a few dashes of hot sauce to the creamy sauce! 

Instead of broccoli, you could use roasted cauliflower, roasted asparagus, or even brussels sprouts. I love that this dish is such a comfort food classic, but you can always change it up depending on the seasons and your mood.

Need to save time? Just add some cooked rotisserie chicken instead of cooking the chicken from scratch.

What to serve with chicken broccoli pasta

Obviously, when you have pasta, you should have garlic bread! It’s so easy to make garlic bread home using my simple recipe, starting with a loaf of French bread.

If you want to go a little fancier, you can make garlic knots. Trust me, they’re still easy to make! You can also serve this dish with a salad or your favorite vegetable side.

If you want to serve wine with the dish, go with a nice white wine. You can use the same kind that you used for cooking the sauce!

Other pasta recipes you’ll love

Looking for more pasta dishes? Give these a try.

My American goulash is a classic that everyone loves. My kids clamor for it all the time!

You could also make stuffed shells, which seem like they’re so fancy but are actually quite easy. Plus they’re a great option to make in advance and freeze.

For another broccoli pasta dish, try this broccoli rabe pancetta pasta from Nutmeg Nanny.

This creamy chicken broccoli pasta is a great dish for the whole family. Give it a try!