Spinach and Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken Spaghetti
This is one of those creamy pastas that tastes like it took all day but really comes together fast. I brown off seasoned chicken cutlets first, then build a rich sun-dried tomato cream sauce right in the same pan and let the spaghetti finish cooking in it so the noodles soak up all that flavor. The spinach wilts right in, the Parmesan melts down silky, and a little Creole seasoning on the chicken ties the whole thing together.
Right at the top of this video I tell you I don't make promises often — and then I make one anyway: cook this for somebody and they're going to look at you differently. Might be hubby material, might be wifey material. I said it on camera and I stand by it. What makes it work on a weeknight is that nothing sits around waiting: while the spaghetti boils, I'm seasoning and browning the chicken, and while the spinach wilts into the sauce, I'm already dicing the cutlets.
If you steal one move from me here, steal the fillet. Instead of beating the breasts flat, I slice each one horizontally into two thin cutlets — you get more meat out of every breast, and it helps the chicken cook evenly. Less work than pounding, better result.
Watch me make it — video from my YouTube channel
The recipe
Spinach and Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 to 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2 breasts), filleted into thin cutlets
- olive oil, to coat
- salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- Creole seasoning, to taste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (for the pan)
- butter (added to the pan after browning the chicken)
- sun-dried tomatoes, chopped if the pieces are big
- minced garlic (fresh garlic works too)
- red crushed chili peppers, to taste (optional, for heat)
- 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 to 1 cup heavy cream (adjust to desired creaminess)
- salt, to taste
- fresh spinach — get as much as you like
- fresh Parmesan cheese, grated (plus more for topping)
- spaghetti, cooked al dente per box directions
How to Make It
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
- Add the spaghetti and cook al dente according to the box directions — my box called for 11 minutes, uncovered; stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
- Drain and set aside; don't cook it all the way through — it will finish in the sauce.
- Heat a large pan over medium to medium-high heat — medium keeps things from burning too fast.
- Fillet each chicken breast horizontally into two thin cutlets.
- Place the chicken in a bowl, coat with olive oil, and season all over with salt, black pepper, and Creole seasoning; mix until fully coated.
- Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the hot pan.
- Add the chicken and brown for 2 to 3 minutes per side — I'm going for a light brown char all around, not cooking it through (it finishes in the sauce so it doesn't dry out).
- Remove the browned chicken to a plate and set aside.
- To the same pan, add butter.
- If using, add a pinch of red crushed chili peppers and stir it into the butter.
- Add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring — not too long, just until they're mixed in with the butter and peppers.
- Add the minced garlic and stir to combine.
- Pour in the chicken broth (1/2 cup to 3/4 cup) and stir.
- Pour in the heavy cream (1/2 to 1 cup depending on how creamy you want it) and add salt to taste.
- Add the spinach and stir it into the sauce as it wilts.
- Add the grated Parmesan cheese and stir until the sauce is smooth and creamy.
- Reduce the heat to low, then add the drained spaghetti and toss to coat, letting the noodles absorb the sauce.
- Dice the browned chicken and add it to the pan.
- Top with additional grated Parmesan cheese.
- Let everything cook on low heat for about 5 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened around the pasta.
Curtis's Tips
- Fillet the chicken breasts rather than pounding them flat — it gives you more surface area and helps everything cook evenly.
- Only season the chicken with salt, pepper, and Creole seasoning; the sauce carries most of the flavor, so you don't need to overseason the meat. The Creole seasoning gets right into the chicken itself instead of just sitting in the sauce.
- Don't cook the spaghetti all the way through — stop at al dente, because the noodles finish cooking in the cream sauce and soak up its flavor.
- Use fresh Parmesan, not the packaged pre-grated stuff. The preservatives in packaged cheese keep it from melting smoothly and make the sauce clumpy. Fresh Parmesan breaks down into a creamier, smoother sauce.
- When you add the spaghetti to the sauce, turn the heat down to low and slow-cook it so the sauce gets right inside the pasta.
- The red crushed chili peppers in the butter step are optional — add them only if you want a little heat.
- The amount of heavy cream is flexible: start with 1/2 cup for a lighter result, or go up to 1 cup for a richer, creamier sauce.
Why this works
The chicken never gets fully cooked in that first sear — on purpose. I brown it two to three minutes a side, just to a light char, then pull it out so it can finish gently in the cream sauce at the end, which is how the breasts stay juicy instead of drying out. The spaghetti works the same way: it goes in al dente, then the heat drops to low, because slow-cooking is what gets the sauce inside the noodles instead of just coating them.
- Creole seasoning — the sauce carries most of the flavor, so the chicken only needs salt, pepper, and Creole; that seasoning ends up embedded in the meat itself, not just in the sauce.
- Sun-dried tomatoes — chop up any big pieces like I did; they only need one to two minutes in the butter, not long, before the garlic goes in.
FAQ
What kind of cream do you use, and how much?
Heavy cream — and the amount is a range on purpose: half a cup for a lighter sauce, up to a full cup if you want it extra creamy. That's your dial for how rich this gets. The broth goes in first, half a cup to three-quarters, then the cream, then a little salt to taste.
Can I use packaged pre-grated Parmesan?
I'd skip it for this one. Packaged cheese has preservatives on it to keep it from sticking together, and that's exactly what makes a cream sauce clumpy. Fresh Parmesan breaks down a lot better, so the sauce comes out creamy and smooth instead.
Won't the chicken dry out being cooked twice?
It won't, because the sear was never meant to cook it through — two to three minutes a side is just for that light brown char. The diced chicken finishes with about five minutes on low in the sauce, and that gentle finish is the whole reason it stays juicy. Filleting each breast into two thin cutlets helps it cook evenly, too.
My sauce came out thin — what did I miss?
Probably the low-heat finish. Once the noodles are in, turn the heat down and let everything go about five minutes on low — that's the stretch where the spaghetti soaks up the sauce and it thickens around the pasta. It only works if the noodles went in al dente, since the cooking they still have left is what pulls the sauce inside them.
Is this dish spicy?
Only if you want it to be. The crushed red chili peppers go into the butter before the sun-dried tomatoes, and they're optional — just a little heat, not too much. Leave them out and everything else stays exactly the same.
Estimated nutrition, per serving (recipe makes about 6 servings): ~680 calories · 45 g protein · 28 g fat · 61 g carbs. Computed from the ingredient list using standard reference values — an estimate, not a lab analysis; your exact brands and portions will vary.
