Creamy Garlic Chicken Tortellini (Printable)
Juicy chicken and cheesy tortellini in a luscious garlic cream sauce with wilted spinach. Ready in 40 minutes.
# What You'll Need:
→ Meats
01 - 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced
→ Pasta
02 - 18 oz refrigerated cheese tortellini
→ Vegetables
03 - 3 cups fresh baby spinach
04 - 1 medium onion, finely chopped
05 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
→ Dairy & Pantry
06 - 2 tbsp olive oil
07 - 2 tbsp unsalted butter
08 - 1 cup heavy cream
09 - 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
10 - 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
→ Seasonings
11 - 1 tsp Italian seasoning
12 - Salt and pepper, to taste
→ Garnish
13 - Additional Parmesan (optional)
14 - Fresh parsley, chopped (optional)
# Directions:
01 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Cook tortellini according to package instructions until al dente. Drain well and set aside.
02 - While tortellini cooks, season diced chicken breasts evenly with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
03 - Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add seasoned chicken in a single layer and cook until golden brown and cooked through, 5–7 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
04 - In the same skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add chopped onion and sauté for 2–3 minutes until softened. Stir in minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
05 - Pour in chicken broth and deglaze the skillet, using a wooden spoon to scrape up all browned bits from the bottom. Reduce heat to medium.
06 - Stir in heavy cream and Parmesan cheese. Continue stirring until the cheese has fully melted and the sauce thickens slightly, about 3 minutes.
07 - Add fresh spinach to the skillet and gently stir until wilted, about 1–2 minutes.
08 - Return the seared chicken to the skillet along with the cooked tortellini. Gently toss everything together until evenly coated in the creamy sauce. Adjust seasoning with additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately, garnished with extra Parmesan and fresh chopped parsley if desired.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- It tastes like something you would pay twenty five dollars for at a cozy Italian spot, but it comes together in forty minutes on your own stove.
- The creamy garlic sauce clings to every fold of the tortellini, and the spinach melts right in so effortlessly that even picky eaters forget it is there.
02 -
- Do not walk away while the garlic cooks, because thirty seconds of distraction is the difference between golden fragrant garlic and bitter burnt bits that ruin the whole sauce.
- Reserve a half cup of pasta water before draining the tortellini, because if your sauce ends up too thick, a splash of that starchy water brings it back to the perfect consistency.
03 -
- Cut your chicken pieces as uniformly as possible so they all finish cooking at the same time, because biting into one perfectly cooked piece followed by an undercooked one is genuinely unpleasant.
- Grate your Parmesan from a wedge right before adding it to the sauce, because pre shredded cheese has a coating on it that prevents smooth melting and can leave you with a grainy texture.