I’ve never tried making one-pat pasta before and I had my reasons. You know how we always drain the water after boiling pasta because… well, it’s full of starch? That is why I never made one-pot pasta. I always thought that cooking the pasta in one go without draining the water would result in a sticky starchy mess.
But today, I neither had the time nor the energy to boil pasta separately. So I figured I’d go for a one-pot pasta recipe and boy, did it come out absolutely delicious. I wanted something creamy, filling, and flavorful and this recipe is ALL of the above. It checks all the boxes, really!
You can play around with the spice levels to your liking, as this recipe packs a kick of spice and flavor. But you can absolutely reduce the amount of chili pepper used.
Check Out This 5-Ingredient Lemon Garlic Baked Chicken!
Why This One-Pot Spicy Spinach Pasta?
This recipe packs greens, carbs, and protein in a delicious creamy and saucy serving that will leave you wanting more. If you need more reasons to try this out, consider:
- It comes together in under 30 mins
- It only uses one pot
- It is super creamy and filling
Do I Have To Use Chicken?
Nope. You can skip the chicken entirely and opt for any other type of meat or protein. You can also choose to only make the pasta as well.
I used penne pasta for this recipe and I really loved how each individual pasta filled up with the creamy spicy sauce. You can use any pasta you like, but I would suggest using like penne, rigatoni or fusilli (essentially pasta with pockets/holes) so it can really hold all that saucy goodness.
One-Pot Spicy Spinach Pasta w/ Chicken
2
servings10
minutes30
minutesKeep your device screen on
Ingredients
- For the pasta
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp garlic paste
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp red chili paste
1/2 veg or chicken stock cube
2 cups of water
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp thyme
2 cups of dry pasta
2 tbsp cream cheese
2 cups of chopped fresh spinach leaves
- For the chicken
2 chicken thighs
4 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp garlic paste
2 tbsp olive oil (for cooking)
Directions
- In a pot over medium hear, add you olive oil and garlic paste. Stir well and cook for about a minute until the garlic is fragrant.
- Add the tomato paste, chili pasta, stock cube and water. You can also two cups of liquid stock instead of the stock cube and water. Cook for about 5 minutes until you have a well-combined mixture.
- Now add your chili pepper flakes, thyme, and pasta. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes.
- Cook for about 5 minutes until you have a well-combined mixture.
- While the pasta cooks, marinade your chicken thighs with lemon juice, red pepper flakes, coriander powder, salt, ginger powder and the garlic paste. Allow to rest for 10 minutes.
- Once your pasta is halfway cooked, add the cream cheese. Cover and let cook for another 5 minutes.
- In a separate pan, add some olive oil over high heat. Once sizzling hot, add your chicken thighs.
- Cook your chicken for about 2 mins on each side to get a nice sear. Now lower the flame to medium and let your thighs cook through.
- To your pasta, add your chopped spinach leaves and toss around well. Cook for another 3-5 minutes until the spinach wilts and combines with the rest of the pasta.
- Allow your chicken to cook for 12-15 mins making sure to not overcook them so they remain tender and juicy.
- Serve your one-pot spicy spinach pasta with your chicken and enjoy an explosively flavorful meal.
