Chicken Fajita Pasta (Ready in Under 30 Minutes)
Sizzling fajita chicken folded into pasta, on the table fast — one of the most-engaged videos on the channel (61 engagements per 1,000 views), and the promise is right there in the video: "all of my busy professionals out there — this dish is going to take you less than 30 minutes to prepare."
I filmed this one back in July 2023, and if you watch the original you'll hear me say it plainly: I wasn't making a dime off the channel yet, and that was okay — I do it because I love it. I'm not a culinary chef, I'm a really good cook, and that's the whole promise: if I can make it, that means you can make it. This channel isn't knife-skills lessons — it's bomb, delicious recipes anybody can pull off.
It also has one of my favorite moments: I hold up the bag of noodles and flat-out refuse to pronounce the name, because every time I try to say one of those fancy pasta words, you guys drag me in the comments. (It's cavatappi — the ridged corkscrew ones. Get these.) And when you've made it, come tell me what you'd do differently. Don't be shy — I really want to know.
Watch me make it — video from my YouTube channel
The recipe
Chicken Fajita Pasta (Ready in Under 30 Minutes)
Ingredients
- 16 oz (1 lb) cavatappi pasta (any short pasta works)
- 3-4 skinless chicken thighs, cut into strips
- 1 teaspoon salt, for the chicken
- 1 teaspoon chili powder, for the chicken
- 9 oz bacon, chopped
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced
- 1 green bell pepper, sliced
- avocado oil, to coat the pan
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, for the vegetables
- 1/2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning, for the vegetables
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, for the vegetables
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, for the vegetables
- 2 cups half & half
- 1 cup reserved pasta water
- 2 cups shredded Parmesan cheese
- fresh cilantro or parsley, for garnish
How to Make It
- Cut the chicken thighs into strips and transfer to a bowl.
- Season the chicken with 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon chili powder; mix to coat.
- Heat a little avocado oil in a large pan over medium heat.
- Cook the seasoned chicken until there's no more pink in the middle, then remove and set aside.
- In the same pan, brown the chopped bacon in the chicken drippings until crisp.
- Add the sliced onion, red bell pepper, and green bell pepper to the bacon and sauté until softened.
- Season the vegetables with 1/2 teaspoon each cumin, Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, and salt; stir to combine.
- Meanwhile, cook the cavatappi in a separate pot to just al dente; reserve 1 cup of the pasta water before draining.
- Add 2 cups half & half and the reserved pasta water to the pan with the vegetables and bacon.
- Finish cooking the al dente pasta in the sauce, stirring until the noodles are cooked through and the sauce thickens.
- Once the sauce bubbles, stir in 2 cups shredded Parmesan cheese until melted and creamy.
- Return the cooked chicken to the pan and fold it through; toss to coat.
- Serve garnished with fresh cilantro or parsley.
Curtis's Tips
- "All of my busy professionals out there — this dish is going to take you less than 30 minutes to prepare."
- Boil the pasta only to al dente, then finish it in the sauce so it soaks up the flavor.
- Reserve a cup of the starchy pasta water — it helps thicken the cream sauce.
- I won't even try to pronounce the noodle name — every time I try to pronounce these certain things, you guys just drag me. So get these: the bag reads "cavatappi."
Why this works
The fajita flavor gets built in two layers instead of dumped in once: salt and chili powder go on the chicken strips before they ever hit the pan, then the onions and bell peppers get their own round of cumin, Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, and salt later. In between, the chopped bacon browns right in the chicken drippings, and the vegetables cook in with the bacon. The noodles only boil to al dente — they finish cooking in the pan, in the half & half, so they soak up sauce instead of plain water. And that cup of starchy pasta water I have you save? That's what helps the cream sauce thicken before the Parmesan goes in.
FAQ
Should I use heavy cream or half & half?
You all ask me this on every creamy dish I post, so here it is for this one: it's 2 cups of half & half. I don't cook a heavy-cream version in this video, so I won't pretend to walk you through one — but I can tell you where this sauce gets its body: the reserved pasta water, the noodles finishing right in the pan, and 2 cups of shredded Parmesan stirred in once the sauce bubbles.
How do I keep the sauce from turning out watery?
Three things in this recipe are working on that. Boil the cavatappi only to al dente, so it finishes cooking in the sauce. Reserve a cup of the starchy pasta water before you drain — it's there to help the cream sauce thicken. And wait for the sauce to bubble before you stir in the Parmesan, then keep stirring until it's melted and creamy.
Can I use chicken breasts instead of thighs?
This one is 3–4 skinless chicken thighs cut into strips, and I don't make that swap in the video, so I won't invent numbers for you. What I can give you is the doneness check I use: cook the strips over medium heat just until there's no more pink in the middle, then pull them out and set them aside — they go back in at the very end, folded through the finished sauce.
Is this a one-pot recipe like some of my other pastas?
No — this one takes two. The cavatappi boils in its own pot to just al dente while the chicken, bacon, and vegetables happen in the big pan. Before you drain, save a cup of the pasta water, then move the noodles into the pan to cook the rest of the way in the sauce, soaking up the half & half instead of plain water.
Estimated nutrition, per serving (recipe makes about 4 servings): ~1200 calories · 63 g protein · 60 g fat · 100 g carbs. Computed from the ingredient list using standard reference values — an estimate, not a lab analysis; your exact brands and portions will vary.
