One-Pot Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta with Chicken
I think we can all agree that a one-pot meal just makes life easier. Less dishes, less steps, and less energy spent on dinner is always a win. This one-pot sun-dried tomato pasta with chicken will leave you so impressed with the amount of flavors you’re able to pack into a simple, one-pot meal. It’s creamy and cozy and delicious but full of veggies and protein as well! Warning – you might want to have it for dinner every single night after trying it. This recipe is originally from my May 2024 grocery series where I turned a $50 grocery haul into five meals, and now is one of my faves!
One-Pot Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta with Chicken Ingredient Notes:
Sun-dried tomatoes: These deeply flavorful tomatoes bring rich, savory, and slightly tangy notes that infuse the whole dish. Their concentrated taste balances beautifully with the creamy coconut milk and adds a Mediterranean-inspired twist to this one-pot meal.
Boneless chicken breast: Lean and high in protein, chicken breast serves as the main source of hearty, satisfying flavor. It’s seasoned generously with spices to ensure each bite is bold and well-balanced, and it’s pan-seared to lock in juiciness before being folded into the finished dish.
Brown rice rigatoni: A gluten-free alternative to traditional pasta, brown rice rigatoni has a firm texture that holds up well in one-pot meals. It soaks up the savory broth and creamy sauce as it cooks, adding chewiness and depth to every bite.
Coconut milk: Used in place of dairy, canned coconut milk provides a luscious, creamy base that blends seamlessly with the broth and spices. It mellows out the heat from chili powder and red pepper flakes while giving the pasta a silky, comforting finish.
One-Pot Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta with Chicken
4
servings20
minutes30
minutesI think we can all agree that a one-pot meal just makes life easier. Less dishes, less steps, and less energy spent on dinner is always a win. This one-pot sun-dried tomato pasta with chicken will leave you so impressed with the amount of flavors you’re able to pack into a simple, one-pot meal. It’s creamy and cozy and delicious but full of veggies and protein as well! Warning – you might want to have it for dinner every single night after trying it. This recipe is originally from my May 2024 grocery series where I turned a grocery haul into five meals, and now is one of my faves!
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Ingredients
1 pounds boneless chicken breast
1 teaspoon kosher salt, additional to taste
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
2 tablespoons olive oil (I used the oil from the sun-dried tomato jar)
1/2 large yellow onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, finely minced
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes
14 ounces brown rice rigatoni
3 cups low sodium chicken broth (can sub low-sodium vegetable broth)
3/4 cup canned coconut milk (about half of a 13.5 ounce can)
2/3 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
Directions
- Cover the chicken breast all over with the salt, ground black pepper, garlic powder, chili powder, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
- Heat the oil over medium heat in a large, deep skillet. Add the chicken and cook to an internal temperature of 165F, about 7 minutes on each side (cook time will depend on the thickness of the chicken). Remove from the skillet, cut into bite-sized pieces, and set aside.
- To the same pan, add the diced onion and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until translucent. Mix in the minced garlic and sun-dried tomatoes and cook until the garlic is aromatic and tomatoes are softened, about 2 minutes. Salt to taste.
- Add the dry pasta and stir to combine with the onions and tomatoes. Add the broth and coconut milk and, if needed, up to 1 cup of water to fully submerge the pasta. (See recipe notes)
- Cover the pan, reduce heat to medium low, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is al dente, 14 to 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the cooked chicken and basil leaves. Stir to combine. Serve immediately for best results.
Notes
- Storage: Refrigerate in a sealed container for up to 4 days. Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Pasta: Depending on the type of pasta you’re using, you may not need water. This recipe was developed using the Trader Joe’s brown rice penne, so if you’re using another pasta (especially a non-gluten free one), you might not need any of the water, or very little extra. I recommend starting with half a cup, then adding more in 1/4 cup increments as it cooks, as needed.
- Reheating: From refrigerator, microwave until warm, about 2 minutes. From frozen, thaw in the fridge for at least 8 hours or overnight, then heat as instructed.
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Sounds delicious, but I always skip any recipe with coconut milk or any dairy. (Husband doesn’t like it). Can I just leave it out? Thoughts?
Such a delish recipe! Loved this for a quick dinner 💕
This was delicious and super easy to make! 💕😋 One of my new favorites!
My family liked it and usually don’t like coconut milk either!
I was replying to Dale’s comment above☺️
This dish was so flavorful and easy to make! I made the chicken for my family but didn’t eat it myself, and it was still delicious!!
Yum! U gotta make this one
This dish was so good! Very comfort food and the whole family loved it!
You can sub cream or plant cream.
This was delicious. I used turkey breast cutlets instead of chicken as it’s an allergen. You can’t even taste the coconut milk (that from my super picky husband). Be careful how much liquid you add, I ended up having yo siphon some out. Leftovers for 2 lunches. Will make again!
This was SO good and so easy, full of flavor, definitely adding to the regular recipe rotation. The coconut cream sauces always surprise me with how great they turn out.
We loved it! Also was great heated up for lunch the next day!
This recipe was so so good!! I am obsessed with these series. The recipes are budget friendly but never lack in taste and always leave me full and excited to eat it for lunch the next day !! Thank you Jenn!
Way too much liquid left at the end which made it so the dish was quite bland, unfortunately. Not sure if maybe just leaving out some of the water and broth would have helped?
Hi Kayla! So sorry to hear that. I’m wondering if you used 14oz of pasta? And what kind of pasta did you use?
The same thing happened to me! I did use 16oz of regular pasta, but I would guess that there would be even less liquid! I also used heavy cream. Not sure if these things make a difference. I did end up added corn start to thicken the liquid and it finally turned into a sauce. But if you have any tips to avoid that next time they’d be greatly appreciated! Loved the chicken / pasta combo!
Yes! I used 14 oz of (regular) penne pasta and subbed half & half for coconut milk. Could that have been part of the issue?
You can use light cream instead of the coconut milk!
Usually stir clear of using coconut milk because the flavor usually too forward and that’s all I can taste. This is the 1st dish that I didn’t taste it. Quick, easy and super delish!!!! It’s going into rotation! Thank you
Delicious. Made the recipe exactly as is, then added spinach at the end. The extra sauce was the best part – creamy and flavorful without being heavy. Will make it again for sure.
Made this tonight & it was excellent! The four servings were HUGE, but I think it’ll be great for lunch tomorrow.
First step did not distinguish between garlic powder and minced garlic, and using regular pasta resulted in soupy sauce that didn’t thicken.
Is there a reason you developed the recipe with 14 oz of pasta instead of the standard 16 oz that the majority of pasta boxes come in?
Loves how the chicken turned out. I would have rather par cooked the noodles. I used whole wheat and they were very “al dente” I added mushrooms too since I have tons dehydrated. I love your concepts. So encouraging. Approachable. Healthy and flavorful.
I made this last night and it was SO good, even my husband who usually tells me my cooking is bland said it was really good! I used veggie broth, cooked the chicken in a separate pan and subbed shrimp for my portion since I’m a pescatarian, and it was delicious! Easy to make too. Thanks so much! Look forward to more TJs recipes like these 🙂
My guess would be that the GF pasta she used might come in a smaller package? Not sure. But I used 16 oz of a non-GF rigatoni pasta and it was delicious! I added more water to cover the noodles, but found that it took a while to evaporate, so next time I’d probably still use the 16 oz of pasta, but use the recommended amount of water in the recipe (even though it doesn’t cover the pasta) and see how that goes.
https://ronitpenso.wordpress.com/2024/08/04/pasta-frittata-with-dandelion-greens-sun-dried-tomatoes-and-feta-cheese/#respond
This was so good! I used 14oz regular pasta and there was a lot of liquid left, but I brought the heat up and uncovered the pan, then added some cornstarch. It turned into a thick sauce and was delicious! Next time I would probably do a little less water if using regular pasta. The end product was still delicious and I love that this is a one pot meal!
Loved this!! I used 16 oz of TJ brown rice penne pasta and only the 3 cups of chicken stock and it turned out great. Like previous posters, I added spinach at the end and also used heavy cream instead of coconut cream. I used Costco chicken breasts and ended up having to cut them up in order to cook them all the way through. The servings are huge!
Use half and half instead to keep it creamy!!
This is my go to pasta recipe for my family! Delicious and so easy to make. I always double it because my family of 4 devours it. Half of us are dairy free, and the whole family finds it delicious!
This is delicious! Event picky daughter loved it. I used 14 oz regular penne and only 1/4 water. It was perfectly saucy, but not too much. I’m definitely making this again. Yummmmm!
are the sundried tomatoes the kind with oil in a jar? or the dried kind in a bag?