Chicken & Leek Pasta with Pancetta (Edit recipe)

Deliciously comforting and satisfying but without being overly indulgent, this chicken and leek pasta dish recipe is made with crispy pancetta, a lighter cream sauce and finished with fresh parmesan and lemon.

15 minutes

50 minutes

Difficulty:

Intermediate

Show nutritional information

This is our estimate based on online research.
Calories:	796
Fat:	31 g
Carbohydrates:	52 g
Protein:	80 g
Cholesterol:	106 g
Sodium:	1387 mg
Fiber:	9 g
Sugars:	12 g
Calculated per serving.

by Priscilla Lawrence

View original recipe

Serves: 4

Ingredients

1 lb Chicken Breast, chopped in 1-inch cubes
1 tsp Smoked Paprika
4 oz Pancetta
10 oz Pasta, shape of choice
1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4 cups Leek, finely chopped, about 2 medium leeks, white part only
3 - 4 cloves Garlic, minced
0.5 tsp Black Pepper, more or less to taste
2 tsp Dijon Mustard
0.333 cup Chicken Broth (Low Sodium)
0.666 cup Half and Half
0.5 cup Pasta Water, reserved
3 Tbsp Parmesan Cheese, freshly grated
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice, fresh
2 - 3 sprigs Parsley, chopped
0.5 tsp Salt, more or less to taste

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Process

Note, these instructions are written assuming the standard serving size, since you have modified the number of servings, these steps may need to be modified for best results

Season the cubed up chicken breasts with smoked paprika, a pinch of salt and pepper, mix it well, then set aside.
Heat up water and cook the pasta per package direction. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta water.
Heat up a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the cubed pancetta. (no need for oil). Cook the pancetta until crispy, stirring often, about 6-7 minutes.
Once the pancetta is crispy, remove and transfer the cooked pancetta to a bowl with a a slotted spoon, leaving the rendered fat in the skillet.
Add chicken to the skillet and cook for about 3 minutes, then flip and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
Once the chicken is ready, remove it from the skillet with the slotted spoon, and keep it aside on a plate or bowl.
Add some olive oil if the skillet feels dry, but you might not need any. Add the chopped leeks, reduce heat to medium, and cook stirring often for about 10 minutes or until leeks are tender. *watch the heat level as you don't want to burn the leeks.
Add the minced garlic to the leeks and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Sprinkle salt and black pepper, then add the Dijon mustard, broth, half and half and pasta water to the leeks, scrape any bits from the bottom of the pan, bring to a low boil, keep the heat to medium/medium-low, let the sauce thicken, stirring often, about 10 minutes.
Once the sauce has reduced a bit, add the chicken and pancetta back to the skillet and mix them in. Continue cooking for about 5 minutes.
Sprinkled the lemon juice and grated parmesan over the dish and mix it in.
Add the pasta to the sauce and mix together, cook for another couple of minutes until the pasta are well coated.
Serve, add a little more parmesan and chopped parsley if you wish, adjust salt and pepper to taste, and enjoy!

Notes

Pasta: use any kind of pasta you like, from wheat, gluten-free, protein, chickpea, lentils. I used long shaped pasta linguine but any shape works with this recipe. You can even use zucchini noodles to make this dish low-carb, or half regular half zoodles too.