Creamy Chicken Bacon Penne (Printable)

Rich, comforting pasta with tender chicken, smoky bacon, and a silky garlic-Parmesan cream sauce. Perfect weeknight dinner.

# What You Need:

→ Pasta

01 - 12 oz penne pasta

→ Meats

02 - 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 14 oz), thinly sliced
03 - 5 oz bacon, chopped

→ Dairy

04 - 1 cup heavy cream
05 - 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
06 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

→ Vegetables & Aromatics

07 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
08 - 1 small onion, finely diced
09 - 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, plus extra for garnish

→ Pantry & Seasonings

10 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
11 - 1 tablespoon olive oil

# How-To:

01 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the penne according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water, then drain and set aside.
02 - While the pasta cooks, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped bacon and cook until crispy, about 5-6 minutes. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside. Discard all but 1 tablespoon of bacon fat from the pan.
03 - Season the chicken slices with salt and pepper. Add the olive oil to the skillet, then the chicken. Sauté until golden and cooked through, about 5-7 minutes. Remove and set aside.
04 - In the same skillet, melt the butter. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
05 - Pour in the heavy cream, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Bring to a gentle simmer, then stir in the Parmesan cheese until melted and the sauce thickens. If needed, add reserved pasta water, a little at a time, to achieve desired sauce consistency.
06 - Return the cooked chicken and bacon to the skillet. Stir in the chopped parsley. Add the drained penne and toss everything together to coat evenly.
07 - Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately, garnished with extra Parmesan and parsley if desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • Everything cooks in about 40 minutes, but it tastes like you've been stirring a pot all day.
  • The bacon fat left in the pan becomes the secret base that makes the sauce taste restaurant-rich.
  • It reheats beautifully, which means lunch the next day is even better than you remember.
  • You can toss in whatever vegetables are wilting in your crisper drawer and it still works.
02 -
  • If you drain the pasta without saving some of the cooking water, you'll regret it when your sauce is too thick and there's no easy fix.
  • Don't skip removing most of the bacon fat, I left it all in once and the dish was so greasy it coated our lips.
  • Add the Parmesan off the heat or on very low, high heat makes it clump and turn grainy instead of melting smooth.
  • Slice the chicken thin and even, thick pieces take forever to cook and dry out on the edges before the middle is done.
03 -
  • Use freshly grated Parmesan from a block, the pre-shredded stuff has anti-caking agents that keep it from melting smoothly into the sauce.
  • Don't walk away from the garlic, it goes from fragrant to burnt in seconds and there's no coming back from that bitter taste.
  • Toss the hot pasta directly into the sauce instead of plating first, it soaks up more flavor and every bite is perfectly coated.
  • Taste before you add extra salt, between the bacon, Parmesan, and pasta water, you might already have enough.
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