Hen pasta bake

A pleasing exchange from the standard creamy variations, this rooster pasta bake is made with a tomato pasta sauce. Stuffed with bacon, scorching seasoned rooster and beneficiant at the cheese, it’s snug and hearty and thrifty and in order that, so scrumptious! Superb entire meal for making forward and freezing.

If you’ll be able to reduce a pasta bake like cake – I’m speaking instantly vertical partitions with sharp edges – that isn’t a just right factor. It simply screams dry pasta bake!

Nope. Now not in my international. Pasta bakes must be saucy and juicy, molten and oozy! Generously loaded with add-ins, should you’re going for a dinner pasta bake (versus an aspect dish like Mac and Cheese).

This one ticks all the ones containers. Evidence by way of image – juicy / saucy:

Tasty add-ins – scorching seasoned rooster! Love the odor when the rooster hits the pan.

Sizzling seasoned chicken for Chicken pasta bake

So if that sounds just right to you, learn on so you’ll be able to see find out how to make your new favorite rooster pasta bake!

Overhead photo bowl of Chicken pasta bake

Elements in rooster pasta bake

You’ll be capable of get the whole lot out of your native grocery retailer. Not anything expensive at the listing!

Scorching seasoned rooster

The pasta bake begins with scorching rooster that’s been tossed in a easy, tasty seasoning. Right here’s what you wish to have:

Hen – I love the use of rooster thighs as they keep juicier in dishes like pasta bakes the place they’re two times cooked (ie sooner than including into sauce then within the oven with the pasta).
Seasoning – The use of a shop purchased Italian herb combine is a smart shortcut right here. I at all times like so as to add an additional spice, garlic on this paste, for added flavour oomph.

Tomato pasta sauce for the pasta bake

A just right tomato-based pasta bake wishes a just right tomato pasta sauce! No shortcuts right here – I attempted and simply discovered it too bland. So right here’s what we’d like:

Pasta sort – I just like the substantialness of rigatoni, there’s anything additional snug and enjoyable about it in pasta bakes. Alternatively, be happy to make use of different brief pastas like macaroni, penne, ziti, shells and so forth.
Tomato passata – for a thick, easy sauce with higher tomato flavour and purple color, use passata as an alternative of beaten or diced tomato. It’s simply pureed simple tomato! Readily to be had right here in Australia within the pasta or canned tomato aisle and prices round the similar as canned tomato. Extra on passata right here.
Tomato paste – for sauce thickening and additional tomato flavour.
Garlic and onion – very important flavour base!
Oregano – for earthy flavour.
Chilli flakes / purple pepper flakes – for a hum of heat!
Wine – secret factor! Simmered impulsively to cut back and cook dinner out the alcohol and winey flavour, simply leaving in the back of tasty flavour. My favorite white wine for cooking is chardonnay which provides awesome flavour in comparison to extra impartial whites like sauvignon blanc. Change with low sodium rooster inventory/broth.

Hen pasta bake add-ins & topping

Numerous add-in choices, however right here’s what I’ve long past with!

1st Baron Beaverbrook – cooked first till crisp, chopped, and tossed throughout the pasta bake. Then we use the bacon fats left within the pan to cooke the rooster. Loose flavour to not be wasted! Change with ham bits or chopped ham.
Tomato – provides beautiful juicy chunks of tomato within the pasta bake in addition to filling it out and lengthening the vegetable quota.
Child spinach – for extra hidden vegetables in addition to including great streaks of inexperienced into the pasta bake.
Cheese – mozzarella for stretch and melting qualities, parmesan for flavour! (As a result of mozzarella in truth does no longer have a lot flavour).

Be at liberty to replace the tomato and child spinach with different add-ins of selection.

Easy methods to make rooster pasta bake

There’s a time and a spot for fast, low-effort one-pot pasta bakes. Then there’s all the ones occasions when you wish to have a truly just right pasta bake so that you’ll do it correctly. Crisp the bacon, sear the rooster, simmer the sauce, then deliver all of it in combination into one giant effervescent pasta bake.

Lately is a type of days!

1. Crisp bacon (no oil)

First, cook dinner the bacon in a non-stick pan till golden and crisp. You received’t want any oil to try this because the fats within the bacon will soften and unencumber fats into the pan. So it chefs in its personal fats!
Drain on paper towels, leaving the fats within the pan (we can use this to cook dinner the rooster). The bacon will cross crispy when it cools, then chop into items.

2. Making the pasta bake

Toss the rooster within the Italian herbs, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Sear – The use of an excessively giant pan or a big pot (as a result of we’re blending the sauce with pasta on this pan), sear the rooster till gentle golden within the reserved bacon fats.

Don’t fear whether or not it’s cooked thru inside of, it’ll end cooking within the sauce and oven. Take away rooster with a slotted spoon and put aside in a bowl, leaving the tasty rooster/bacon fats within the pan (you spot all this flavour development occurring, proper??!)

Sauté the onion and garlic with the chilli flakes and dried oregano – just right trick for bringing out additional flavour from dried herbs! Then upload the wine and simmer impulsively to most commonly scale back – this chefs out the alcohol and gets rid of the winey flavour, simply leaving in the back of tasty flavour which provides a bit of something-something into the sauce.
Sauce – Subsequent, cook dinner off the tomato paste. Very similar to toasting the herbs, this improves the flavor of tomato paste, setting out the bitter edge, intensifying the tomato flavour and sweetening it. Excellent Cheffy tip!

Then we upload all of the liquids – the tomato passata, water (use it to rinse out the bottle) – salt and pepper for seasoning.
Simmer – Then stir within the rooster – don’t fail to remember so as to add all of the juices pooled within the bowl! Simmer for five mins to deliver the flavours in combination – that is when the magic occurs so don’t skip or shortcut this step. I attempted – to hurry issues up – however the sauce simply lacked flavour.
Upload-ins – Upload the newborn spinach, tomato, cooked pasta and bacon in that order, so the heavier add-ins crush the really extensive quantity of child spinach.

Oh! Should you consider, you’ll be able to dangle again slightly of bacon for sprinkling on on the finish. However to be truthful, I typically fail to remember.

Combine neatly – Give all of it a just right stir to combine all of it in combination. You DID use a large pan, proper?? 🙂 Should you didn’t, that is the section the place you’ll get started crying or cursing – been there, carried out that!
Baking pan – Switch to a 23 x 33cm / 9 x 13″ pan and stage the skin.

Cheese it! Best with mozzarella then parmesan cheese. Doing it on this order provides the skin a wonderful golden crust because of the parmesan, however it’s no longer the tip of the sector should you do it the opposite direction.
Bake for simply 25 mins till the cheese is melted with some beautiful golden spots. Leisure for five mins, simply to let it settle so the sauce clings to the pasta slightly higher. Then serve!

Make-ahead / freezing tip

Maximum pasta bakes are terrific make-ahead-bake-later choices, and this rooster pasta bake isn’t any exception!

One of the best ways to make forward is to cook dinner the sauce and pasta one at a time, permit each to chill utterly. Then toss in combination and compile the pasta bake – together with topping with cheese. Duvet neatly with grasp wrap and refrigerate 3 days or freeze as much as 3 months (thaw completely). Then bake lined for 20 mins then exposed for 20 mins. It’ll take longer for the centre to get scorching should you’re baking from fridge-cold however the cheese gets too brown should you depart it exposed for this complete baking time.

Whole meal – veg, starch, protein!

It isn’t steadily I am getting to let you know {that a} pasta dish is an entire meal, so let me benefit from the second. This one’s were given all of it! Starch, protein and numerous greens – the tomato passata (sure it’s a vegetable!), chunks of clean tomato and a just right quantity of child spinach too.

Which means that – in contrast to maximum of my creamy pasta bakes – no wish to make a salad for the facet to spherical out the meal. All the time an advantage relating to opting for what to make for dinner this night, proper?? – Nagi x

PS Having simply made that observation, I simply realised the photograph above has an aspect salad in it. 😂 It’s the rocket salad (arugula) with balsamic dressing minus the parmesan shavings (as a result of I figured there was once sufficient cheese within the pasta bake!). It was once already made for any other recipe I used to be capturing so I simply grabbed it as a background prop for the photograph!

PPS In spite of pronouncing this can be a entire meal, an aspect of garlic bread would no doubt take dinner to any other stage!

Watch find out how to make it

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Hen pasta bake | RecipeTin Eats

Hen pasta bake