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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.
I made this last night and was extremely disappointed. Like others said, it was bland. My fiance said it definitely needed pepper. I feel like I oversalted it and he still added salt on his plated dish, and he never salts anything. The sauce was nowhere near thick and creamy. In fact I didn't even add the pasta water because the sauce never got thicker than water. I did add extra half and half and cheese in the hopes of thickening it up to no avail. Maybe I should have tried cornstarch. But the sauce didn't coat the pasta at all. It just sat in the bottom of the pan, again, no thicker than water. I definitely will not be making this one again.
Best pasta ever! Try if
Absolutely delicious! It looked great and tasted even better. I will definitely be using this recipe again.
I have never commented on a recipe before but this one was too good to pass up! Made this for my boyfriend last week and he is already asking me to make it again!! I myself am not a huge pasta eater but this made me a believer for sure; absolutely delicious! Thanks so much!
Please can anyone recommend a uk alternative for half & half?! Thanks ☺️
Heavy cream and milk
I used 2% milk but left out the water used to thin the sauce.
I made this and my family loved it!!
I make this tonight. My husband loves Italian food best of all and he is very critical of Italian food. It has to be good. This was a wonderful surprise! You have to follow directions. Sauteing the garlic and Sun Dried tomatoes in the Sun Dried tomato oil is different, but the results are tender, flavorful chicken, a delicious, creamy cheesy sauce that is eye appealing, as well as a treat to the pallot. Next time I make it I plan to add fresh, sliced button mushrooms. I also plan to thin tonights leftovers (which we will have tomorrow) with white wine.
Renee, so glad you and your husband enjoyed this dish! And, I love your idea of thinning the leftovers with white wine - it's very Italian or French (or both) 😉
Julia this was amazing! I followed the recipe exact and me, my husband and two teenage sons went gaga over it!!! I wouldn't add anything or change anything it is absolutely perfect!! Thank you for a great dinner!!
Kelli, thank you so much for such a super positive comment! 🙂
I'm excited to try this recipe tonight, but don't happen to have any half & half (or cream) on hand. What are your thoughts on subbing with unsweetened almond milk? Thanks!
If you substitute half and half with almond milk, the sauce will not be thick enough to coat the pasta. My suggestion would be to use just a small amount of almond milk so that even though it will still make the sauce too runny, at least there wouldn't be too much liquid, and a small amount of almond milk will still coat the pasta, even though quite thinly.
I made this last night with the following modifications: Sauteed the sundries tomatoes with sliced baby bella mushrooms for about 10 minutes and added the garlic during the last minute or so. Before sautéing the chicken, seasoned it with salt, pepper, and paprika. Sauteed for about ten minutes before putting the now chopped up veggies back in. Added the 1/2 & 1/2 and got it simmering, then removed the pot from the heat and added the cheese. Splashed in some white wine to thin the sauce and add flavor. Added fresh basil, and cooked gluten free noodles. Next time I might double the 1/2 & 1/2 and cheese (and add more of everything else) depending upon how many I want to serve. I found this dish very flavorful, especially with the dried red pepper added. I'd hesitate to add bacon because I think it would overcome the flavor profile of the dish.
Great tips - thank you! I agree about bacon - I was thinking about adding it too but bacon does overwhelm other flavors, so it would be a completely different dish if you add it.
Made this for dinner last night and it was a huge hit! I added mushrooms, spinach and a handful of grape tomatoes to the garlic/sun dried tomatoes and sautéed everything for a few minutes. I also used 1% milk instead of 1/2&1/2 because that's what I had in the design! Fantastic! Thanks for the recipe, it will be a go to!
Mushrooms, spinach, grape tomatoes - yum! Great additions! You used the milk in the same amount as half and half, and the sauce wasn't too thin?