One Pot Meal: Skillet Barbecue Chicken and Bacon Pasta
One pot meals have recently ramped up as one of my favorite ways to cook weeknight meal. While dinner is cooking, I can clean up the kitchen. By the time we sit down to eat, all I have to think about is enjoying my dinner and putting the plates into the dishwasher. This pasta dish fit the bill, because this dish has some of my husband's favorite ingredients. Bacon. Onion. BBQ sauce. Best of all, this dinner comes together in no time flat, because the pasta is cooked in the same pot, at the same time! Did I also mention that it's delicious?
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon diced
- 2 chicken breasts boneless, skinless, cut into 1-inch chunks
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 onion diced
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or more, to taste
- 3 cups rotini pasta
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup barbecue sauce or more, to taste
- 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
Instructions
- Heat a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium high heat.
- Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6 to 8 minutes; drain excess fat, reserving 1 tablespoon.
- Stir in chicken and cook until golden, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add garlic and onion, and cook, stirring often, until onions have become translucent, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Stir in chicken broth, tomatoes, milk, red pepper flakes, pasta, salt and pepper, to taste.
- Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat and simmer until pasta is cooked through, about 13 to 16 minutes*.
- Stir in barbecue sauce and cheese until heated through, about 1 to 2 minutes.
- Serve immediately. (leftovers reheat well)
- *Cooking time will vary. Check the pasta before adding in the BBQ sauce and cheese. Also, removing the lid for the last few minutes, might help to reduce the amount of liquid left behind.
Notes
(Recipe source: Damn Delicious)