Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Blackened Chicken Pasta!

This is the new favorite of the Wilson Household (Mooresville Chapter). Be ready for some heat!
We stole this from Pioneer Woman. Here's the original website if interested:
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/09/cajun-chicken-pasta/

Here's the ingredients:
  • 3 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, Cut Into Cubes
  • Cajun Spice Mix, my mix listed below
  • 1 pound Fettuccine
  • 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 2 Tablespoons Butter
  • 1 whole Green Bell Pepper, Seeded And Sliced
  • 1 whole Red Bell Pepper, Seeded And Sliced
  • 1/2 whole Large Red Onion, Sliced
  • 3 cloves Garlic, Minced
  • 4 whole Roma Tomatoes, Diced
  • 2 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
  • 1/2 cup White Wine
  • 1 cup Heavy Cream
  • Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To Taste
  • Salt To Taste
  • Chopped Fresh Parsley, To Taste
Here's what I used to make my Cajun spice mix:

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp cayenne red pepper

1 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp onion powder

½ tsp black pepper

½ tsp salt

1/4 tsp white pepper (this really dictates how spicy this recipe is, adjust as necessary)

Get the pasta going first. When it's done just set aside. So you just coat the chicken cubes with the spice mix. Get a large pan hot and then add half the olive oil and half the butter. Get this good and hot and add half the chicken. Let it sit and blacken on one side, then stir around to brown the rest. You want to do this pretty quick, and don't need to get the cubes fully cooked. They will finish cooking later. The blackening has a pretty potent smell that makes me want to sneeze! Remove this half of the chicken and finish the other half. Put the chicken on a large plate or platter and put in the microwave to keep warm. Use a slotted spoon or spatula so that you leave as much of the spices behind in the pan as you can. Add the rest of the oil and butter and mix with the leftover spices. Add the green and red pepper, onion and garlic. Stir and cook pretty quick, just trying to coat. Again they will finish cooking later. Just before pulling the veggies out add in the roma tomatoes. Put the veggies on the plate with the chicken. Again, try to leave spices and some bits in the pan. Add the wine to the pan and stir/scrape to mix in the spices and bits. Add in the chicken broth. The original recipe says this mix will reduce by half and thicken. It hasn't for me the two times I made it. Reduce heat and add in the cream. This will thicken some, but not a ton. Add the veggies and chicken back to the pan and cook until the sauce thickens some more - mine is always a little runny - and until the chicken and veggies are fully cooked. Finally add in the cooked pasta and mix it all together. Sprinkle parsley over it and enjoy!

1 comment:

  1. Wow! Delicious! I tried adding a quarter teaspoon cornstarch to thicken the sauce since you said it gave you trouble. It helped, but I think I'll add a half or a full teaspoon next time.

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