Get my Cookbooks! Lemon Chicken Pasta
This Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta is easy to make and has the most flavorful cream sauce with simple herbs and flavor enhancers. Simple add-ons include broccoli, asparagus, or frozen vegetables. Your family will ask for this meal on repeat!
Be sure to try my Tomato Basil Pasta and Pasta Primavera recipes next!
Lemon Chicken Pasta
If you’re looking for a simple, restaurant-worthy meal, you’ve come to the right place! Here we have some thin spaghetti that’s tossed in the most flavorful lemony cream sauce with herbs and delicious bites of seared and seasoned chicken.
Searing the chicken in the pan adds fond to the skillet which is deglazed with white wine, garlic, and butter. This creates the most flavorful base for the sauce, which is further enhanced by the best combination of herbs, chicken broth, cream, and Parmesan cheese.
Freshly squeezed lemon juice rounds out the flavor palate and leaves you wanting more with every bite!
How to Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Season, dredge, and sear the chicken for 4-5 minutes per side. Set aside once cooked and let rest for 10 minutes, then cut into bite-sized pieces.
Deglaze the pan with white wine and cook until reduced by half. Add butter and garlic and cook for 2 minutes.
Add flour and stir continuously for 2 minutes. Add chicken broth in small splashes, stirring continuously. Add the half and half in the same manner, then add the bouillon/seasonings. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce heat to low.
Cook pasta according to package instructions and drain. Stir Parmesan cheese into the sauce. Remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice. Add the pasta and chicken. Toss to combine and serve with lemon wedges and freshly chopped parsley.
What to Add to Lemon Chicken Pasta
- Sauteed broccoli or asparagus which can be cooked to your liking in the skillet while the chicken is searing and added back to the sauce at the end.
- Frozen vegetables can be added while the sauce is simmering and the pasta is cooking.
- Capers make a great addition and can be added just before the cheese is added.
- Asiago cheese can be added in addition to the Parmesan, I like using 1/2 cup of each.
- Freshly Cracked Pepper adds a nice finishing touch at the end.
- Roasted Broccoli or Roasted Asparagus make nice side dish options with this as well.
Pro Tips
- Wine: Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio are my favorite wines for this recipe. It adds next-level flavor to this sauce but chicken broth can be used if you don’t cook with wine.
- Pasta: I use 1/2 lb. thin spaghetti for this recipe but I love a lot of sauce, especially if I anticipate leftovers as it ensures the reheated pasta isn’t dry. Feel free to use 3/4 lb. pasta instead. Any kind of pasta can be used for this recipe as well.
- Grate the cheese from a wedge, it will melt and taste much better than packaged grated cheese.
- Be sure to use freshly squeezed lemon juice as the flavor is far superior than bottled lemon juice.
- Make sure the heat is off when you add the lemon juice at the end. Add it slowly and stir in continuously to ensure it doesn’t cause the cream to curdle.
- Lemon Pepper Seasoning: Redmond Real Salt lemon pepper seasoning is my favorite brand for seasoning this chicken, it also contains sea salt and has a lot of great flavor. (Use promo code ‘COZY‘ for 15% off!) Some brands (like McCormick) can be potent so be aware of that.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. This does reheat well.
- Reheating this pasta in a makeshift double boiler on the stove top is the best way to restore it to its original form.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- 3.5 quart Enameled Cast Iron Braiser– This is the one pictured in the process shots above and what I use for most of my recipes.
- Cheese Grater– Always shred your cheese from a block for soups and sauces, it melts and tastes much better than packaged shredded cheese. I use Belgioioso parmesan.
- Pasta Strainer– I have this one and love it.
- Measuring Spoons– I have these magnetic ones which stay nice and organized in my utensil drawer.
- Pinch Bowls– for measuring out seasonings ahead of time.
Try These Next
-
- Pasta Primavera
-
- Lemon Pepper Chicken
-
- Mushroom Ravioli Sauce
-
- Pepper Steak
-
- Spinach Chicken
-
- Tomato Basil Pasta
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Tried This Recipe?
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Lemon Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
Seasonings
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon EACH: dried oregano, basil, mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Chicken
- 1 large boneless skinless chicken breast, or 2 small
- Lemon pepper seasoning, see notes
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/3 cup flour
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Pasta/Sauce
- ½ cup dry white wine, see notes
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons flour
- ¾ cup chicken broth
- 1 ¼ cups half and half
- ½ chicken bouillon cube
- ¾ cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- ½ pound thin spaghetti, see notes
For serving
- Lemons, sliced
- Parsley, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Prep Work: Combine the seasoning ingredients and set aside. I recommend that you measure out the remaining ingredients as well, the recipe will be a breeze from there!
- Cook the Chicken: Cut the chicken in half lengthwise to create 2-3 thinner slices. Pat completely dry and season each side with lemon pepper seasoning. Combine the flour and garlic powder and dredge the chicken in it. Heat olive oil over medium-high heat and add the chicken. Sear on each side for about 4-5 minutes, until a golden crust has developed. Set aside and let it rest for 10 minutes, then cut into bite-sized pieces.
- Heat a pot of salted pasta water while you begin to prepare the sauce as outlined below.
- Add the wine to the same skillet that you used to cook the chicken and set the heat to medium. Let it reduce by half, about 4 minutes. Use a silicone spatula to “clean” the bottom of the pan while it simmers, this will add flavor to the sauce.
- Add the butter and garlic, cook for 2 minutes. Add the flour and stir continuously with a silicone spatula for 2 minutes.
- Add the chicken broth in small splashes, stirring continuously. Add the half and half in the same manner.
- Add the chicken bouillon and seasonings and stir to combine. Bring to a gentle boil and then reduce heat to low. Let the sauce simmer while you boil pasta according to package instructions, set a timer to avoid overcooking. Drain once cooked.
- Slowly sprinkle in the Parmesan cheese, stirring continuously. Remove from heat and slowly stir in the lemon juice. Add the pasta and the chicken and stir to combine. Optional: Taste and season with salt if desired.
- Serve with sliced lemons and garnish with parsley.
Notes
- Wine: Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio are my favorite wines for this recipe. It adds next-level flavor to this sauce but chicken broth can be used if you don't cook with wine.
- Pasta: I use 1/2 lb. thin spaghetti for this recipe but I love a lot of sauce, especially if I anticipate leftovers as it ensures the reheated pasta isn't dry. Feel free to use 3/4 lb. pasta instead. Any kind of pasta can be used for this recipe as well.
- Lemon Pepper Seasoning: Redmond Real Salt lemon pepper seasoning is my favorite brand for seasoning this chicken, it also contains sea salt and has a lot of great flavor. (Use promo code ‘COZY‘ for 15% off!) Some brands (like McCormick) can be potent so be aware of that.
- Grate the cheese from a wedge, it will melt and taste much better than packaged grated cheese.
- Make sure the heat is off when you add the lemon juice at the end. Add it slowly and stir in continuously to ensure it doesn't cause the cream to curdle.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. This does reheat well.
- Reheating this pasta in a makeshift double boiler on the stove top is the best way to restore it to its original form.
The Nutritional information provided is an estimate and is per serving. There are 4 servings in this recipe.
My family loves this recipe! I followed the recipe exactly as written minus the white wine since I’ve never cooked with it and didn’t want to buy just for this so I just subbed chicken broth. I will definitely be adding this to my dinner rotation!!
I’m so happy you’re family is loving this one Brittany, nice work! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!💖
The recipe says it’s a Serves 4 but 1/2 a pound of pasta and 1 chicken breast is only really a Serves 2 quantity. I’m confused.
Are people double the recipe to feed 4?
You can double this if preferred! But it does make enough for four servings, just depends on how much you’d like per serving.
We were in the middle of a blizzard and I did not have all the ingredients but it was still delicious. I had half of a store cooked (blizzard) rotisserie chicken that I wanted to use up. I sliced it up and prepared it the same as described in the recipe, it just took less time to brown. I didn’t have half and half and used 2% milk, and I ran out of Parmigiano Reggiano. For pasta, I used Lemon Torchietti Pasta from Trader Joes and added 1/4 cup of capers. I sprinkled chopped fresh basil over the top of each plate before serving. Everyone loved it. I will definitely make it again with chicken breasts, and will definitely stick with 2% milk because it was still very creamy without the extra calories and fat. I usually have Parmigiano Reggiano as a staple so I look forward to using it the next time, but it was still delicious without it.
You can’t beat blizzard food, so cozy! I’m so happy you were able to make use of the rotisserie chicken, nice work JB! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!💖
Oh my, this was so creamy and delicious, it’s difficult not to sound redundant in my words, as other commenters have pretty much said it all! I did order the Redmond’s lemon pepper seasoning….so glad I did as I’ve never been crazy about the taste of cheaper brands of that spice, but this one is wonderful. I used sauvignon blanc, followed the recipe exactly….definitely restaurant quality and is a much better dish than some of the eating establishments around here can offer!
I’m so happy you liked it so much Vicki! My husband said the same thing when he first had it, “this belongs in a restaurant”! Such a great compliment, thanks so much!💖
Absolutely delicious ! I made it exactly as written minus I used the suggested sub chicken broth for wine because I didn’t have any wine. When my husband and I tasted the sauce before the lemon juice or Parmesan we were blown away it was so good. We both said this would be great over shrimp next time. I will make this exact recipe again & I’ll also make it without adding the Parmesan and lemon, because they’re not even needed unless you’re going for that flavor, which we were today. The sauce even before the parm had such a deep rich flavor and creamy texture, I was surprised. I added boiled broccoli as a bonus. P. S. I was afraid the lemon would overtake the sauce, but once the chicken and pasta were added back it was the perfect amount. My husband is not a big lemon fan and he loved this. 100% satisfied my pregnancy lemon craving. 10 stars !
I’m so happy this was such a success Kay, extra happy to hear it satisfied your pregnancy cravings! There’s no better feeling. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave such great comments!💜
I actually tried it w 2 pieces I needed to cook by cutting the breasts into smaller strips, adding to the heated oil & running a fork underneath occasionally to keep them from sticking. The fond was a beautiful golden color to which I added the tablespoon of flour & then deglazed w the wine in order to use it to make more lemon sauce for pasta tomorrow to go w the asparagus that I also forgot to cook since my granddaughter wanted to try it that way. I’m pretty sure the roux can be made wo the meat by lightly browning flous in the oil then following the recipe from there. I just didn’t like the look of the chicken when we reheated leftovers yesterday & since I need to use up the asparagus, wine, etc, pls salvage the last 2 chicken breasts, I did a trial run just to prepare the deglazing & save for tomorrow to make fresh pasta & the rest of the sauce. My granddaughter who is really picky loved it so I’m making it again at her request w the asparagus. I could not wrap my head around a lemon sauce on pasta even though I had seen it on cooking shows. When I saw your recipe, I had to give up & try it to see what it actually tasted like & I love it! I hate Alfredo sauce because of the cream, I think, so the half & half was more palatable to me. I was totally surprised by the taste w the wine & cheeses which I mixed as you suggested. I also bought the herbs you used to see the difference btwn the Italian seasoning & your combo for this next trial. Looking forward to it since the whole family will be here for the weekend to try it. Can’t wait to try your other recipes!
So glad that you loved it Trudy! ❤️
Next time I will not dredge chicken in flour before cooking it. Instead, I will cook it on med heat, remove when browned, stir in one tablespoon of flour to the olive oil left in the pan until incorporated, then add the wine to deglaze the pan. The chicken looks much more appealing in the leftovers the next day when cooked this way & the base is a pretty golden color. Thanks again.
Hi Trudy! The purpose on the flour dredge is not only to give the chicken more texture, but to provide a barrier between the chicken and the skillet so that it releases more easily during searing, otherwise it can have a tendency to stick. Cooking it over medium (instead of medium-high), will only decrease the golden color/crust on the outside, (basically it’s less effective).
Great recipe. Picky eaters even liked it! I only had to change the Parmesan because mine was pretty moldy. :/ I used shredded havarti cheese. Was good but next time I think the parm would be even better. Great order to make the sauce.
Thanks so much for the great review Lawrence, I’m so happy even the picky eaters approved, such a victory!💖
Made this last night but had to sub Italian Seasoning for the herbs since I didn’t have the others on hand. I also added lemon zest to the recipe. It was a hit! Everyone wanted seconds & they’re usually picky eaters. Thanks for a delicious recipe.
You’re very welcome Trudy! I’m so happy everyone loved it! Nice work adding a little lemon zest, I do that too sometimes. Thanks so much for the great review💖
I believe that this is the best tasting meal that I have ever had. WOW!! What flavor that sauce packs. I will be cooking this over and over. I never thought a pasta dish could be so good. Thanks so much for sharing this with us. I cannot wait to try it out on my family. I cooked it tonight just for me.
You’re very welcome Paul, I’m so happy this was such a hit! My husband said this is his new favorite too! Thanks so much for the great comments and review, I can’t wait for your family to try it❤️