This is my own take on a chunky pomodoro sauce. I love to order pasta pomodoro when we go to Zio’s Italian Kitchen because it’s one of the lighter items on the menu, but it is always a bit bland so I end up adding extra olive oil, parmesan cheese and crushed red pepper flakes right to the bowl in the restaurant. I decided to create a similar dish at home and I have made it several times since, because it’s a huge hit in this house and whenever I’m preparing it, everyone gets ridiculously excited and says, “are you making that pasta with the chicken and tomatoes?” I’m the only one around here that knows anything about sauces or cooking, and I know they won’t remember anyway, so I just reply, “yes.” I know what they mean and they know what they mean and as long as they are happy, I am happy. That’s how it works!
My dish has a lot of extra flavor between the wine, capers, crushed red pepper flakes, fresh basil and fresh parmesan cheese. The dish is still pretty light, because there is no butter or cream and it is the perfect summertime pasta dish. It’s easy to multiply for a larger group and really doesn’t take long to prepare, but it tastes like it took a lot longer to make and is easy to transform into a vegetarian dish by just omitting the chicken.
Start by cutting boneless chicken breasts into bite-sized chunks seasoned with some salt, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes and sauté them in olive oil until they are cooked completely (no pink.)
While the chicken is cooking, chop up some basil and Roma tomatoes and grate some fresh parmesan cheese. It’s so important in this dish to use fresh ingredients. Fresh ingredients always make a difference, but especially in this particular dish. One of the greatest things about cooking yourself is that you know what you’re eating. You can control the quality and quantity of the ingredients.
Red, white and green. Reminds me of something. What could it be?
I’m stumped, I just can’t figure out what it is.
Anyway, remove the chicken from the pan and add more olive oil and crushed garlic and allow the garlic to soften, then add the white wine and cook until the wine reduces by about half and add the chicken stock, tomatoes and capers and cook for about 2-3 minutes.
If you’re not familiar with capers, they are shaped like mini peas, but have a pickled flavor and they add such a great punch of flavor to this dish. I really enjoy them with pasta.
After the sauce is heated through, add the chicken back in and then add the cooked pasta, chopped basil and grated parm and toss until combined. I prefer to toss all of the ingredients together versus serving the pasta and then topping with the sauce.
I hope you enjoy this recipe! If you give it a try, please come back and leave a comment and snap a photo and tag #ketchumkitchen on Instagram.
Ingredients
- 3 tbl olive oil
- 4 Boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 1/4-1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (depending on your heat preference)
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 4 Roma tomatoes, chopped
- 1/3 cup capers
- 3 t/l fresh basil, chopped
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 1 package of raw spaghetti noodles
Instructions
- In a deep skillet, heat up 1.5 tablespoons of olive oil and add the chicken breasts, salt & pepper and crushed red pepper flakes on medium-high heat. Cook the chicken until it's cooked thoroughly (no pink in the middle.)
- Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package directions. Remove when they are cooked to al dente, drain and set aside.
- Meanwhile, chop up the tomatoes and basil and grate the parmesan cheese and set aside.
- After the chicken is cooked completely, remove it from the skillet and add the remaining olive oil and sauté the garlic until softened. Add the white wine and cook until reduced to about half. Add the chicken stock and cook for about 2 more minutes then add in the tomatoes and capers and cook for another 2 minutes. Add back in the chicken, pasta, basil and parmesan cheese and toss until combined.
Nutrition Facts
Chicken Pomodoro Pasta
Serves: 6 servings
| Amount Per Serving: | ||
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 626.62 kcal | |
| % Daily Value* | ||
| Total Fat 22.33 g | 33.8% | |
| Saturated Fat 6.36 g | 30% | |
| Trans Fat 0.12 g | ||
| Cholesterol 83.27 mg | 27.7% | |
| Sodium 738.75 mg | 30.8% | |
| Total Carbohydrate 60.95 g | 20% | |
| Dietary Fiber 3.47 g | 12% | |
| Sugars 3.82 g | ||
| Protein 40.16 g | ||
| Vitamin A 116.86 µg | Vitamin C 9.56 mg | |
| Calcium 217.8 mg | Iron 2.88 mg | |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Ketchum Kitchen
This looks soo amazing! I pinned this and definitely am going to make it for dinner this week! Thank you for sharing!!
xo Adriana – Daily Dose of Design
Thank you Adriana, you are so sweet! Let me know how you like it :). BTW – You just made my day!