Chicken Alfredo

I remember the first time I tried a proper Alfredo sauce, it blew my mind. The real deal Alfredo is nothing like what I remember eating as a kid - the type of thing that came in a jar, or in a sachet you added milk and water to.

This is a very rich dish, there's no getting around it. But sometimes, you just need to 'let your hair down' and enjoy life. It's not like you need to have a massive bowl of creamy pasta either - although I challenge you to limit your portion size - if your will power is better than mine, a small portion of this paired with a nice green salad and a crisp wine would make for a very enjoyable (and easy!) evening.

Alfredo is perfect for when you don't have much in the fridge - the sauce only requires cream, butter, garlic and cheese. It looks, and tastes fancy, but this is truly a beginner friendly recipe and you'll end up with a restaurant-quality result.

Once you try this recipe, you'll never want to use the jarred sauce again.

What is Alfredo sauce?

Alfredo sauce is made from butter, garlic, cream and parmesan cheese. Make no mistake - this is not remotely Italian style of cooking - this is Italian-American food at its finest.

Chicken alfredo ingredients

• Cream - thickened or heavy cream works best, but you can sub for light cream if you'd rather. The result won't be as rich but it will be lower calorie.
• Butter - use pure butter (not a butter blend) for best results.
• Parmesan - use the best quality parmesan you can afford, ideally a Parmigiano Reggiano aged for 24-36 months. Grate it yourself, because pre-grated cheeses often have anti-caking agents which will make the sauce gritty. Don't use the parmesan dust that comes in a container!
• Garlic - optional, but this takes the sauce to the next level.
• Parsley, chilli flakes, salt and pepper - used to finish the sauce to your tastes.
• Pasta - The go-to pasta for Alfredo sauce is fettuccine. Feel free to sub in your favourite pasta type, but where possible use a bronze cut pasta because it holds the sauce better.
• Chicken breast with rub - use your favourite rub, or if you don't have one just use salt & pepper. I like to cut this at a slight angle and place on top of the pasta - but don't use a chicken thigh because it's too fatty for the pasta.

How to make Chicken Alfredo

1. Cook the chicken - Preheat your pan to a medium heat. Apply the spice rub of your choice to one side of the chicken (1). Place a little oil in the pan and then place the chicken in the pan, rub side down. Place spice rub on the other side of the chicken while the first side cooks (2). Turn occasionally and cook until golden and cooked through. If you're not confident in cooking the chicken at the same time you are making the sauce, you can hold the cooked chicken in an oven set to 70C.

   

2. Boil water for pasta - bring water in a large pot for the pasta to the boil. Salt according to packet instructions.

3. Start sauce - melt the butter in a pan over medium heat (1). Add the garlic and sauté for 20 - 30 seconds until golden (2).

   

4. Cook pasta, add cream - place the pasta in the water. Slowly add the cream to the butter, stirring while doing so.

   

5. Cook sauce - bring the cream to a simmer then reduce heat to holt it at a simmer. You don't want to boil the cream because it might split. Continue simmering the cream until the pasta is about 2 minutes from "al dente" - this should take about 7 minutes for most pasta varieties - refer to the al dente time on your pasta packet to help you.

6. Add cheese - just before adding the pasta, scatter the cheese over the cream sauce. Stir to combine.

7. Move pasta to sauce - using tongs or a spider, move the pasta to cream sauce. It's fine to bring some water over, but don't bring across too much. Reserve the remaining pasta water.

   

8. Finish cooking pasta - finish cooking the pasta in the cream sauce for another 2 minutes. While it's cooking, turn the pasta with tongs or a pasta fork every 20 seconds or so to thoroughly combine with the Alfredo sauce. If you need to thin the sauce, add a little of the reserved pasta water and stir to thin out. Taste and adjust seasoning before serving.

9. Serve - place the Alfredo in a bowl or plate and then slice the chicken into bite sized pieces, at an angle. Place the chicken over the pasta and then scatter chilli flakes and parsley over it. Finish with some more parmesan cheese and some freshly cracked pepper.

Tips

• Don't get held up waiting for the chicken to cook. Cook the chicken first, or give it a good head start, and then hold it in the oven at 70C to keep it warm.
• A sprinkle of chilli really pulls the dish up a level.
• Use the best parmesan - ideally a 24-36 month aged Parmigiano Reggiano - you can afford. Don't use pre-grated cheese, it will make the sauce grainy.
• If your sauce is too thick, loosen it with a little water that the pasta was cooked in or some tap water. A little goes a long way though, so add slowly and stir well.
• Half your chicken breast and then flatten to an even thickness using a meat mallet, heavy pan, or something similar. This will help the chicken to cook quickly and without drying out.

Adding some vegetables

If you want to add some vegetables to bulk the sauce out and add some nutrition, here's what I'd suggest:

• sliced mushrooms - cook them slowly in the butter.
• broccoli or broccolini - blanch, steam or sauté and then stir through at the end.
• spinach - add at the end and stir through so the residual heat wilts it.
• peas - stir through some frozen peas while the pasta is emulsifying in the cream.

Can I use a different type of cheese?

Parmesan is the traditional cheese used in Alfredo, but you can try using a good aged cheddar or similar hard cheese - it works well.

Adding wine?

I really like to add wine to my pasta. If you want to do so, after sautéing the garlic, add 1/2 cup wine and reduce it down before adding the cream.

What to serve with Chicken Alfredo

Here's what you can serve with Chicken Alfredo:

• A green salad - even just simple dressed leaves - works well with this and helps cut through the richness of the Alfredo sauce.
• Steamed vegetables.
• Not enough carbs? Try some garlic bread.

Chicken Alfredo

5 from 2 votes

Sam Knight

Cream-pasta pasta Chicken breast Italian-American cuisine

Prep	Cook	Total
10 mins	15 mins	25 mins

Serves 4

Made with a creamy, buttery, cheesy and garlicky sauce, this is arguably the ultimate creamy pasta, topped with slices of pan seared chicken.

• 600g chicken breast halved and flattened
• Cajun seasoning or your favourite rub - see note 1
• 90g butter unsalted, don't use a butter blend
• 500ml cream ideally 'thickened' or 'heavy' - see note 2
• 150g freshly grated parmesan plus more for dusting, don't use pre-ground cheese - see note 3
• 4 garlic cloves, minced optional but recommended
• 400g fettuccine pasta or your favourite variety
• Salt and pepper, to taste

To serve

• Parsley, finely sliced
• Freshly cracked pepper
• Parmesan cheese
• Chilli (aka red pepper) flakes

Steps

1. Cook chicken - rub your spice blend of choice into both sides of the chicken breasts. Cook over a medium heat until cooked through. The rest of the recipe only takes about 10 minutes, so if you're not confident with your timings you can hold the chicken in a 70C oven until you're ready to eat.

2. Boil pasta water - add water to a large pot and bring to the boil. Salt according to packet instructions.

3. Start the sauce - In a pan over a medium heat, melt the butter. Add the garlic and sauté for 20-30 seconds until fragrant.

4. Cook pasta, add cream - add the pasta to the boiling water. Slowly add the cream to the garlic butter, stirring while doing so.

5. Cook sauce - bring the cream to a simmer then reduce heat to holt it at a simmer. You don't want to boil the cream because it might split. Continue simmering the cream until the pasta is about 2 minutes from "al dente" - this should take about 7 minutes for most pasta varieties - refer to the al dente time on your pasta packet to help you.

6. Add cheese - just before adding the pasta, scatter the cheese over the cream sauce. Stir to combine.

7. Move pasta to sauce - using tongs or a spider, move the pasta to cream sauce. It's fine to bring some water over, but don't bring across too much. Reserve the remaining pasta water.

8. Finish cooking pasta - finish cooking the pasta in the cream sauce for another 2 minutes. While it's cooking, turn the pasta with tongs or a pasta fork every 20 seconds or so to thoroughly combine with the Alfredo sauce. If you need to thin the sauce, add a little of the reserved pasta water and stir to thin out. Taste and adjust seasoning before serving.

9. Serve - place the Alfredo in a bowl or plate and then slice the chicken into bite sized pieces, at an angle. Place the chicken over the pasta and then scatter chilli flakes and parsley over it. Finish with some more parmesan cheese and some freshly cracked pepper.

Notes

1. Chicken rub - I like to use a cajun seasoning, but use whatever favourite rub you have. Don't have one? Just use salt and pepper.
2. Cream - if you're watching calories, you probably don't want to cook this dish. But if you do anyway, feel free to use a lighter cream. The texture will not be as good but it will be healthier.
3. Cheese - pre-ground cheese has anti-caking agents to prevent clumping. This will affect your sauce and make it grainy.
4. Leftovers - store in the fridge for 2-3 days and reheat in the microwave on low to medium power.