Chicken Tetrazzini
This chicken tetrazzini recipe is a cheesy, oven-baked classic that twirls tender pasta and chicken together in a tasty sauce.
Ingredients
Method
Spread 1 tablespoon of butter over a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish. Melt 1 tablespoon each of butter and oil in a deep large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the chicken with 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Add the chicken to the hot pan and cook until pale golden and just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate to cool slightly. Coarsely shred the chicken into bite-size pieces and into a large bowl.
Meanwhile, add 1 tablespoon each of butter and oil to the same pan. Add the mushrooms and saute over medium-high heat until the liquid from the mushrooms evaporates and the mushrooms become pale golden, about 1-2 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, and thyme, and saute until the onion is translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until it evaporates, about 2 minutes. Transfer the mushroom mixture to the bowl with the chicken.
Melt 3 more tablespoons butter in the same pan over medium-low heat. Add the flour and whisk for 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk, cream, broth, nutmeg, remaining 1 3/4 teaspoons salt, and remaining 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Increase the heat to high. Cover and bring to a boil. Simmer, uncovered, until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 10 minutes.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the linguine and cook until it is tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 9 minutes. Drain. Add the linguine, sauce, peas, and parsley to the chicken mixture. Toss until the sauce coats the pasta and the mixture is well blended.
Transfer the pasta mixture to the prepared baking dish. Stir the cheese and breadcrumbs in a small bowl to blend. Sprinkle the cheese mixture over the pasta. Dot with the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter. Bake, uncovered, until golden brown on top and the sauce bubbles, about 25 minutes.
This one-pan chicken tetrazzini recipe is pure Italian-American comfort.
Think of this old fashioned chicken tetrazzini as the cosier cousin of a creamy pasta bake, with a distinctly Italian-American accent.
Tender strips of chicken, sautéed mushrooms, and linguine are coated in a white sauce enriched with butter, milk, double cream, and chicken broth. The sauce for our chicken tetrazzini recipe is made in the same pan used to brown the chicken, where onions, garlic, and mushrooms are softened in butter and olive oil, then deglazed with a splash of dry white wine. A little flour thickens everything before the liquids go in, and once the pasta, peas, and chicken are added, the whole lot is tipped into a baking dish.
A generous sprinkle of grated Parmesan and Italian-style breadcrumbs on top adds a crunchy, golden crust to this traditional chicken tetrazzini dish. Once it’s golden and bubbling at the edges, serve your old fashioned chicken tetrazzini straight from the oven with a green salad with a brown butter walnut vinaigrette, tenderstem broccoli with mustard seeds and lemon, or roasted green beans with shallots and hazelnuts.
A toasted ciabatta or focaccia with garlic and rosemary is perfect for scooping up any extra sauce, and a crisp glass of white wine makes a lovely match if you’re turning it into a relaxed dinner-party main.
For a personal touch to this chicken tetrazzini recipe, you could swap linguine for tagliatelle, add a few extra herbs, or dial up the mushrooms. However you plate it, this traditional chicken tetrazzini dish is the definition of crowd-pleasing comfort.
