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Chicken Mozzarella Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes - Italian-inspired dinner with the best homemade creamy pasta sauce! The sun-dried tomato pasta sauce is made from scratch using basil, red pepper flakes, garlic, paprika, cream, and shredded Mozzarella cheese.
I am a huge fan of pasta, and some of the most popular pasta recipes on this site include this chicken mozzarella pasta that you are reading right now, creamy chicken pasta with bacon, and pesto chicken pasta. One thing all these pasta recipes have in common is that they use creamy, comforting sauces.
If you want to try chicken pasta that is more refreshing, without the creamy sauce, I whole-heartedly recommend family favorite chicken pasta with spinach and tomatoes or super flavorful Italian sausage pasta.
Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta with Chicken
- This recipe features sun-dried tomatoes and basil. Both ingredients are popular in Italy and in the Mediterranean region.
- The most prominent flavor in this recipe is the homemade sun-dried tomato sauce. The sauce is made from scratch by combining cream with shredded Mozzarella cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, basil, and red pepper flakes.
- Cooked chicken and penne pasta are then smothered in this delicious creamy Mozzarella pasta sauce. There is enough sauce to coat every single bite.
Ingredients for sun-dried tomato sauce
- 3 garlic cloves
- 4 oz sun-dried tomatoes
- olive oil
- salt
- paprika
- basil
- 1 cup half-and-half (or ½ cup heavy cream + ½ cup milk)
- 1 cup Mozzarella cheese, shredded
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
How to make sun-dried tomato sauce
- In a large skillet, cook 3 cloves of minced garlic and 4 oz of chopped sun-dried tomatoes in 1 tablespoon of olive oil on high-medium heat for about 1 minute.
- Add ½ cup of heavy cream + ½ cup of milk (or 1 cup of half-and-half) to the same skillet and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer.
- Add 1 cup of shredded Mozzarella cheese.
- Simmer and stir until the cheese melts and forms a creamy pasta sauce.
- Add 1 tablespoon of dried basil, paprika, and at least ¼ teaspoon of red pepper flakes. Stir to combine.
- Season with about ¼ teaspoon of salt.
Cooking Tips
- Use either sun-dried tomatoes without oil or sun-dried tomatoes in oil (in a jar). Note: if using sun-dried tomatoes in oil (in a jar), make sure to drain sun-dried tomatoes from oil, before using them.
- Sprinkle a small amount of paprika over the chicken before cooking - it adds flavor as well as the color to the dish.
- Make sure to reserve some pasta water as you will DEFINITELY need it to thin out the cream sauce.
- Feel free to increase the amount of spices for this recipe: basil, red pepper flakes, paprika. This will make the sun-dried tomato sauce even more flavorful!
- Make sure to season the chicken mozzarella pasta with just the right amount of salt. That means you might have to add more salt. Salt will enhance the flavors of basil and sun-dried tomatoes.
How to Make Chicken Mozzarella Pasta
1) In a large skillet, on medium heat sauté garlic and sun-dried tomatoes in the olive oil. Remove the sun-dried tomatoes from the skillet.
2) Season sliced chicken with salt and paprika.
3) Add the chicken to the skillet and cook on high heat.
4) Add back the sun-dried tomatoes. Add half-and-half and shredded Mozzarella cheese.
5) Bring the mixture to boil, then reduce to simmer and stir the sun-dried tomato sauce until the cheese melts.
6) Add spices: basil, crushed red pepper flakes, salt.
7) Add cooked and drained penne pasta and stir to combine.
More recipes featuring sun-dried tomato pasta
- Creamy Shrimp Pasta with Mozzarella Sauce features shrimp instead of chicken.
- Asiago Chicken Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Spinach - this sun-dried tomato pasta is made even more flavorful with the addition of Asiago cheese and spinach.
- Scallop Pasta features scallops - another protein you can use in place of chicken in a recipe that is otherwise very similar to this one.
- Creamy Mozzarella Pasta with Smoked Sausage is a great choice if you want to make the same pasta with sausage.
- Sun-Dried Tomato and Mushroom Pasta is the meatless version of this recipe.
Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta with Chicken and Creamy Mozzarella Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 garlic cloves , minced
- 4 oz sun-dried tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 lb chicken breast tenderloins , sliced
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- 1 cup half and half (or use ½ cup heavy cream + ½ cup milk)
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese , shredded (do not use fresh Mozzarella, use pre-shredded Mozzarella)
- 8 oz penne pasta (for gluten free, use gluten free brown rice pasta)
- 1 tablespoon basil
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ cup reserved cooked pasta water or more
- ¼ teaspoon salt to taste
Instructions
- In a large skillet, sauté garlic and sun-dried tomatoes (drained from oil) in 2 tablespoons of olive oil (reserved from the sun-dried tomatoes jar) for 1 minute on medium heat until the garlic is fragrant.
- Remove the sun-dried tomatoes from the skillet, leaving the olive oil.
- Add sliced chicken (salted and lightly covered in paprika for color) and cook on high heat for 1 minute on each side. Remove from heat.
- Cook pasta according to package instructions. Reserve some cooked pasta water. Drain the pasta.
- Slice sun-dried tomatoes into smaller pieces and add them back to the skillet with chicken.
- To make creamy pasta sauce, add half-and-half (see substitution for half-and-half in the Recipe Notes section below) and Mozzarella cheese to the skillet, and bring to a gentle boil.
- Immediately reduce to simmer and cook, constantly stirring, until all cheese melts and creamy sauce forms.
- Add cooked and drained pasta to the skillet with the cream sauce, and stir to combine.
- Add 1 tablespoon of basil, and at least ¼ teaspoon of red pepper flakes. Stir to combine.
- If the creamy sauce is too thick: Add about ½ cup of reserved cooked pasta water to the skillet to thin it out. Do not add all of pasta water at once - you might need less or more of it.
- Season the chicken pasta with salt and more red pepper flakes, to taste, if needed. Let it simmer for a couple of minutes for flavors to combine.
- Note: Make sure to salt the dish just enough to bring out of the flavors of basil and sun-dried tomatoes.
Notes
- What is half-and-half? Substitute ½ cup of milk + ½ cup of heavy cream for 1 cup of half-and-half.
- If using sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil (in a jar), make sure to drain sun-dried tomatoes from oil, before using them. Reserve 2 tablespoons of this drained olive oil.
- Do not use fresh Mozzarella. Fresh Mozzarella is usually sold as a large ball or small balls in a brine or water solution. Do not shred fresh Mozzarella. Use pre-shredded Mozzarella cheese sold in bags.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
This recipe was originally published in October 2014 and updated in 2018.
Hi Julia; I tried this recipe tonight and it was ok, but as Enne stated above; it was bland, had no creaminess to it (and I added 2 cups of grated cheese). I would make my cheese/cream sauce in the pan before adding pasta, then chicken. The good thing was I served it to 2 very picky people, one being a teenager...they both gave it an O-K, but also came to the same conclusion. Add a more flavourful cheese, add copious amounts of bacon and reduce the amount of tomatoes. And the reason I say that is in Canada (where we are) everything is metric, so it was hard to resort back to "old school" and figure out the imperial vs metric measurement system. So all in all, the recipe is a keeper but I'll change it up a bit as well. Also, one last thing, what the heck is a chicken tender??
Kimberly,
Often when I cook, I find that undersalting a dish can really take away from flavor. I do not like oversalted dishes nor do I like undersalted ones. That was the case with this dish. I think adding just the right amount of salt to bring out the already strong flavors of basil and sun-dried tomatoes is key to making this dish not bland and successful! In this dish, the more salt the better!
Regarding the creaminess - in Canada you must have a finer Mozzarella cheese 🙂 because the Mozzarella cheese I used thickened my sauce so much I had to use pasta water to water it down. 🙂
Chicken tenders is what it said on the package of chicken I used - I am guessing it's soft tender parts of chicken that are not part of a whole chicken breast. In general chicken tenders taste and look like chicken breasts (white chicken meat), they are just cut in stripes.
Probably the bag of shredded mozzarella you got in the US had cornstarch added to it to keep it separated and that helped to thicken your sauce. Here in Italy it's super hard to find preshredded mozzarella so I used fresh and didn't need hardly any pasta water. I am originally from the US though so I knew it wasn't going to work exactly the same ahead of time. Husband loved this but I wanted a bit more tomatoes lol. Still a keeper 😉
Chicken tenders are chicken breasts cut into smaller pieces. Like chicken strips. I get shredded mozzarella from Costco and I know it isn't mixed with anything but they are large shreds I guess and I always find when using it in a sauce I need to thin it out too.
Chicken tenders are a single muscle underneath the chicken breast, it's long and relatively thin naturally. It's more tender than the breast meat.
I made this dish for my boyfriend and both he and I loved it!
Jsan, thank you! So happy you both liked it! 🙂
Easy and delish! Made this for dinner and we loved it. Used julienned cut sun-dried tomatoes which made it very easy. Didn't have chicken tenders but cut-up 1 lb chicken breast. This is a keeper and we're thinking of adding marinated artichokes next time ;). Thanks for the great recipe!!
Jody, you're very welcome! I am glad you liked the recipe. Adding artichokes is a great idea - they are perfect for this sauce.
Made this tonight with kale cooked in a bit of olive oil, then added marinated artichokes, used 12 ounce box of GF penne, only used 1 cup of mozzarella cheese, and half cup of parmesan, also cut up chicken breast, and used more pasta water alongside of half and half, was awesome! Thanks for inspiration!
Just found this on Pinterest and so glad I came over to get the recipe, some of my favourite ingredients all together - printed and pinned 😀
Thank you, Annie - yes, these are some of my most favorite ingredients, too!
Just made this and it is delicious!!!
Thank you Kelly! Glad it came out great for you!
Just cooked this last night, everyone was a fan. Followed the recipe and it turned out perfect, so yummy.
Kassee - so glad everyone around you loved it! 🙂
Looks delicious. I'm going to try it with smoked mozarella to amp up the flavor.
Wow, smoked Mozzarella sounds SO GOOD! Where do you buy it? Maybe I just don't see it and need to pay more attention when shopping next time. 🙂
I think this looks incredible! I would love to be at your house around dinnertime. : ) I recently started using some sundried tomatoes for pasta and I love the punch of sweet intense flavor.
Thank you Monica! 🙂 I love sun-dried tomatoes and pasta. It makes the recipe taste so ... Italian - love it!
How many calories does this dish have?
Just a few things. I did wind up making this recipe tonight, and it was bland, and too oily. It's a good base recipe, but not enough to stand on its own. First of all, I wasn't able to achieve this creamy sauce. There was simply too much oil in the skillet from the sundried tomatoes. By the time I added the cream and mozza, I realized I should have removed it. Rookie mistake. But the pasta is way too oily. Another thing is that the recipe is bland. Mozarella is a boring cheese in general. I didn't really get any pleasant aroma coming from it. In fact, the pasta just didn't emit any aroma at all aside from the tomatoes. I managed to rescue this recipe with the follow things:
1. Adding more cheeses. Specifically, asiago, romano and parmesan. Mmm.
2. Bacon and mushrooms.
Unfortunately, the pasta was still extremely greasy, but it was very tasty after the additions at least. I urge people to modify this recipe to their own tastes. 🙂
Hi Enne, I am glad you were able to enjoy the pasta after the changes you made.
Regarding the greasiness - did you read my instructions that said to use only 2 tablespoons of oil from the jar? That would've resolved your greasiness problem right away! Of course, if you just dump sun-dried tomatoes together with all of the oil into the skillet - the recipe would be too oily. 🙂
I find that salting the dish with just the right amount of salt makes it very flavorful, especially when using flavorful ingredients such as basil and sun-dried tomatoes which are quite flavorful on their own. A little salt goes a long way. Mozzarella is an understated cheese, which is exactly why it's used here with strong flavored ingredients like sun-dried tomatoes and basil.
By the way, I updated the recipe to reflect your comment and make it more clear re: draining the oil from the tomatoes and adding salt, basil, etc.
I made this tonight and it was lovely! I used GF pasta and rather than using sun dried tomatoes packed in oil - I used the plain dry version (bought a 3 oz bag and used half). I soaked them for about 30 min. In warm water first. I amped up the garlic flavor by using 5 cloves and used a decent amount of red pepper as well as added 1/4 c parmesan; even with these "extras" it was still a bit bland until I got the salt addition right - then it was quite yummy! I will definitely make this again:-) I am now looking forward to seeing the rest of your recipes as I just found this on pinterest! Thanks for an easy, delicious, weeknight meal!
Less fat is perfect for people with heart conditions..... Thanks for sharing as I have never used Sun dried tomatoes before, I can't wait to try it!!
Omg I made this tonight and followed your instructions to a T. And it was not only simple but ohhhh sooo very yummy 😉 and my Italian husband LOVED it. He wants me to make another batch so he can bring some to work tomorrow. Thank u so much.
I found that the sun dried tomatoes didn't have hardly any oil in them, and my pasta wasn't greasy at all. The flavor is actually good, however I don't like the hardened chunks of the tomato - luckily most of them sorta absorbed into the dish so not too shabby.
I have found that some brands tend to be tougher than others (I think the larger tomatoes pieces have less toughness) but either way I have found that cutting them up helps with that quite a bit. It also helps to let them spend some time in liquid of some sort to absorb of course. I know what you mean about the tough/chewiness they can have but love dishes with sun dried tomatoes.
You're only supposed to add a little of the oil from the tomatoes and if you don't get aromas from the sauteed garlic something is wrong with your sniffer, I made this tonight and it was delicious, not oily at all and the whole house smelled like an Italian restaurant, the whole family loved it, I always add my own seasoning so was not bland ay all, you have to make it your own by tasting as you go, thanks for a sharing the recipe I will be making it again.
ooooooooooooh I love pasta and Italian food! This dish looks seriously packed full of deliciousness!
Thanks, Kayle!
oooh julia this sounds incredible! i will have to try it soon!
Yes, it was delicious!
I thought it would have tasted differently than it did. It had plenty of zing - I actually liked it - however it was a different taste - I believe this sort of food falls into the "acquired taste" category. The family didn't like it. It was pretty expensive to make, so it was nice to try. Thank you for the recipe.
Not sure whats so expensive in this recipe. The chicken and mozzarella would be the most costly of ingredients but nowhere close to what I would consider "expensive" and I use food stamps lol
The jar of sun dried tomatoes cost almost 6 bucks at my store, and it was the cheapest jar. So that would probably be what she is talking about. I know I cringed a bit to buy the jar but thought it would be worth it to try. WHen you are cooking on a budget a 6 dollar element can feel pricey (when it isn't even the protein) but hey, no one is forcing anyone to do this recipe so if it is too costly-don't do it! lol
LMAO...REALLY? YOU USE FOOD STAMPS! THAT'S WHY IT'S NOT "EXPENSIVE" TO YOU
Dollar Tree and Biglots usually carry sundried tomatoes . No need to pay more. You can substitute boneless thighs.. taste the sauce before you add the pasta.. a quick fix for crappy alfredo sauce or a cheesy white sauce is to add part of a jar of spaghetti sauce .. to make a pink sauce....
You can also get a huge jar of sundried ties at Costco or WalMart 6 dollars and that will last you for a while...that is, unless you are like me and like eating them as snacks! This jar is like 36 ounces.
It really is not that expensive as these should be things you should have in your pantry. Besides the sun-dried tomatoes of course. I don't like them, so I just used a small can of fire roasted tomatoes that I got at Aldi for about a dollar. Works the same and I prefer the taste. It's a very subtle cheese flavor. The key is how your season it. It's definitely something I will be making again as my fiance, who is wary of all things cream sauce, loved it!
Use canned fire roasted tomatoes & frozen thawed chicken if needed. I "splurge" and buy fresh chicken when I know the chicken isn't going into an enchilada or shredded in any other way though. My family won't eat it unless it's good and juicy.
Why don't you shop around instead of being lazy. 6 dollars? That's not expensive to begin with, but improvise maybe?
That was rude. I live in a small town. One grocery store. Maybe the $6 was all she could get to easily. That jar of tomatoes gets more expensive when you have to drive all over town looking for it. Geez.
Yeah @Jay! That was very rude. I live in a moderately big city and i have the hardest time finding some ingredients sometimes, after driving around from store to store for 2 hours and sitting on the phone calling places just to see if they have it, buying that $6 is probably the only thing worth it. So i dont think calling her LAZY was very nice.
All the delicious sun-dried tomatoes making me miss summer, oh so much 😀
Love sun-dried tomatoes!
All those sun dried tomatoes are calling my name!!!! This looks so delicious, Julia!
Yummmm
Just made this for dinner and OMG it was delicious! I will be making this again
I do love..so I Pinned:)