Spicy Chicken Chipotle Pasta

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This decadent, creamy, spicy chicken chipotle pasta comes together for dinner in under 30 minutes. It’s the perfect weeknight meal to satisfy any comfort food craving!

Crispy chicken and pasta smothered in a spicy, smokey chipotle sauce? Yum. Nicole is constantly experimenting with new fun and creative pasta recipes. While we like to make just about any type of recipe, and we’re always looking for new ingredients and cuisines to try, pasta is Nicole’s go to. And for good reason.

If you love unique pasta dishes, you’ll love this recipe. And I’ll also recommend going to check out our Pasta of the Month series or our pasta category where you can find all of the wonderful pasta dishes that we’ve made over the years.

What This Recipe Entails

One of our favorite things about pasta dinners is how easy they can be to make. Even some of the most decadent recipes come together in under 30 minutes. And this recipe is no exception!

• Prep time: 10 minutes
• Cook time: 15 minutes

To make this crispy chipotle chicken pasta, you’ll simply boil the pasta, pan fry some breaded chicken, make the sauce, and then combine everything and serve!

The only ingredient of note needed for this chipotle chicken pasta is the chipotle puree. You may be able to buy this at the store, however the easiest way to get it is to make it! We’ll cover this later in the post, but basically all you need to do is buy a can of chipotles in adobo and blend them. Simple as that.

Spicy Chipotle Chicken Pasta Ingredients

There are three components to this spicy chipotle chicken pasta recipe: the crispy fried chicken, the spicy chipotle sauce, and the pasta. We love the combination of textures and flavors in this dish and know you will too.

Here is everything you need to make crispy chipotle chicken pasta:

• Chicken breast
• All purpose flour
• Chipotle powder
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Eggs
• Plain breadcrumbs
• Fettuccine
• Heavy cream
• Shredded parmesan
• Chipotle puree
• Sea salt
• Lime

We love to use fettuccine for creamy pastas like this one, since the thick noodles can carry the sauce well. But you can use any long noodle you like for this recipe – spaghetti, linguine, or even pappardelle would work great!

As for the chipotle puree, we recommend making this at home with just a can of chipotle peppers in adobo and either a blender or food processor. Add the entire contents of the can to your blender or food processor and blend until smooth. And there you have it, chipotle puree! 

Since this recipe won’t use all of your chipotle puree, you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 months. And then make this pasta over and over again 🙂

How To Make Chipotle Chicken Pasta

This recipe starts off with the slightly messy activity of tenderizing chicken and then coating it in flour, egg, and breadcrumbs. We highly recommend getting yourself some disposable gloves for activities like this.

But after that, this recipe is pretty straight forward! Here’s all the steps for how to make our chipotle chicken pasta recipe:

1. First, set up a station for breading the chicken with three separate containers: one for the beaten eggs, one for the breadcrumbs, and one for the flour.
2. Then, whisk the chipotle powder, salt, and black pepper into the flour.
3. Now, coat the chicken in flour, egg, and then breadcrumbs. Make sure to coat the chicken thoroughly in each, and let any excess egg drip off the chicken before transferring it to the breadcrumbs.
4. Heat about a quarter inch of oil in a cast iron or other heavy bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, fry the chicken until it’s golden brown on both sides, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Then, transfer the cooked chicken to a cutting board to let rest. Cover with foil to keep warm.
5. In the meantime, boil the fettuccine in a large pot of salted water until al dente.
6. To make the sauce, start by heating heavy cream in a large frying pan over medium-low. Once it’s lightly steaming (this will only take a minute or two), stir in the shredded parmesan and chipotle puree until combined.
7. Next, season with a pinch of salt and the fresh lime juice.
8. Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and then stir it into the sauce until the noodles are evenly coated.
9. Finally, slice the crispy chicken and serve the pasta topped with chicken and an optional garnish of freshly shredded parmesan cheese.

To tackle this recipe with perfect timing, start by getting your pasta water boiling. Then, coat the chicken and prepare your pan by preheating the oil. Once the pasta water is boiling, add the pasta and then start frying the chicken. This will leave you with the perfect amount of time to prepare the sauce after the chicken is cooked, and have your noodles ready to go by the time the sauce is ready.

We are all about making recipes (especially pastas) with this amazing crispy chicken. We learned this method from Joanna Gaines’ Magnolia Table cookbook when we made her chicken francaise.

If you love a beautifully fried chicken breast just as much as we do, we can highly recommend our spicy cashew pasta with crispy chicken as well! 

Storing And Reheating Leftovers

Any leftovers you may have can be stored in airtight containers in the fridge for up to a week. We recommend storing the chicken and pasta in separate containers to maximize the crispiness of the leftover chicken. 

Storing the chicken on its own without any sauce will keep the breading from getting soggy. It also allows you to reheat the chicken in a frying pan, in the oven, or in an air fryer to crisp it up once again. You can simply reheat the pasta in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes.

For reheating the chicken in an air fryer or in the oven, cook at 350 for 5 to 10 minutes. If you opt for reheating the chicken on the stove, heat a little oil in a pan over medium low and warm the chicken for about 5 minutes.

Of course, you can also reheat the chicken and pasta together or separately in the microwave – just note that the chicken won’t be as crispy this way. But that’s okay, especially if you’re looking for something quick and easy!

Serving Suggestions

We recently picked up a chipotle infused olive oil that pairs with a mango balsamic vinegar. They make the perfect combination to serve with some fresh bread alongside this pasta!

Serving pasta with bread and dipping oils is always our favorite side dish for pasta, but here are some other suggestions for you:

• Side salad
• Garlic bread, or better yet, cheesy garlic bread
• Any bruschetta, but specifically this roasted tomato and garlic bruschetta with balsamic
• Or combine the bruschetta and garlic bread ideas into our tomato bruschetta crostini, which is always a hit when we make it!

Other than the bread and dipping oils, our favorite side for this pasta is the bruschetta as it adds a fresh and light bite to the meal. Sometimes a heavier pasta dish like this one can really benefit from a light side to make the meal even more exciting.