Chicken and Broccoli Linguine with Lemon Butter Basil Sauce
This chicken and broccoli linguine with lemon butter basil sauce recipe is creamy without any milk or cream. Full of bright, fresh flavor and packed with good for you broccoli.
extra salt and pepper, lemon zest, Romano cheese, and fresh basilfor serving (optional)
Instructions
Cook the pasta according to directions in a large pot of heavily salted water. 3 minutes before it's al dente, remove 1/2 cup pasta water and reserve for later. Add the broccoli florets to the water and boil with the pasta. Drain the pasta and broccoli until it's almost cooked, just before al dente.
Meanwhile, season cubed chicken breasts liberally with salt and pepper, as well as the zest from the lemon.
Sauté the chicken in a large skillet over medium high heat in 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil, until browned and fully cooked. Don't worry about it sticking to the bottom of the pan- you'll deglaze it in a moment.
Remove the chicken and set aside on a plate. Add the minced garlic (2 cloves) to the pan and sauté until fragrant (about 30 seconds).
Add the white wine (1/2 cup) to the pan to deglaze it, using a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits from cooking the chicken and garlic. Turn heat to medium and simmer until almost all of the liquid from the wine is gone.
Add the chicken stock (1/2 cup) and stir.
Add the drained linguine and broccoli, as well as the 1/4 cup reserved pasta water. Continue cooking over medium heat until sauce thickens and pasta cooks all the way through- about 2 minutes. Add the cooked chicken back in.
Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice, remaining 1 tablespoon butter, fresh basil (2 tablespoons), Pecorino Romano cheese (1/4 cup), and slivered almonds (1/4 cup). Stir until cheese has fully melted.
Serve immediately with extra cheese, lemon zest, fresh basil, and/or salt and pepper, if desired.
Notes
Wine Substitute: Instead of wine, you can use 1/4 cup extra chicken broth.
Using frozen broccoli: I used fresh broccoli florets, but frozen can also be used. While I specified 4 cups, the specific amount is not too important, so go ahead and throw the whole bag in if you want to, right into the water- no need to defrost first!
The provided nutrition information does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. Feel free to calculate it yourself using this calculator or by adding the recipe to Yummly.