This buffalo chicken pasta recipe combines the signature flavor of buffalo wings with pasta coated in a flavorful, creamy sauce for an easy dinner that’s ready in just about 30 minutes.
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Here on the blog, my husband makes appearances as a hand model, a stellar dishwasher, and a super cute sous chef who can dice an onion so precisely it puts Bobby Flay to shame. But his real talent is in front of the stove creating crazy mash-ups of our favorite foods. Like these Buffalo Chicken Drumsticks, Baked Buffalo Wings, and Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Dip, we love a recipe in the buffalo-spiced realm. This Buffalo Chicken Pasta dish creation will go down as one of his comfort food masterpieces. The recipe is inspired by three favorite food groups: pasta, chicken, and buffalo wings sauce. Yes, hot sauce is one of our family’s food groups. The pasta’s sauce owes its perfectly balanced mellowness to the cream and chicken broth that mellows the blaze of the buffalo wings sauce. Diced carrots and celery carry on the hot wing tradition while tendrils of fettuccine lovingly wrap each forkful. It’s easy to make and fast to cook, making it a weeknight fave of everyone at the table.
Why You’ll Love This Pasta
- This creamy pasta cooks in just about 30 minutes.
- Basic ingredients gain an extra degree of flavor with the addition of a pantry staple hot sauce you can always have on hand.
- You can cut out more time from the preparation by using a store-bought rotisserie chicken instead of cooking the chicken breasts.
What’s in Buffalo Chicken Pasta
- Fettuccine noodles—or another sturdy pasta like spaghetti, penne, or rigatoni
- Butter—use for cooking the chicken and later for thickening the sauce
- Skinless, boneless chicken breasts—cut down on time by using chopped chicken breast from a store-bought rotisserie chicken
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper—always, for flavor
- Leek—a mellow cousin of white or green onion, leek gives an earthy umami flavor
- Garlic—because most every pasta tastes best with garlic
- Carrots—add a touch of sweetness to the pasta
- Celery—another buffalo-sauced vegetable staple
- Heavy cream—the base for the creamy sauce. Use whipping cream or half and half if you prefer.
- Chicken stock—combined with cream, chicken stock loosens the sauce so it isn’t as cloying
- Frank’s RedHot Buffalo Wings Sauce—I don’t substitute this ingredient due to its signature buffalo sauce flavor
- Parmesan cheese—adds a salty umami to the dish
- Parsley—add before serving for a touch of freshness in every bite
How to Make Buffalo Chicken Pasta
- Set the pasta to cook. While the pasta cooks, start the chicken and sauce.
- Cook the seasoned chicken. I cook whole, skinless, boneless chicken breasts. After, I shred them into strips or chop them into cubes. If you prefer, dice the chicken before cooking for more chicken pieces browned on all sides.
- In the same pan, cook the leeks, garlic, carrot, and celery until softened. Don’t overcook the vegetables, you want a bit of bite in them.
- Add the chicken broth, reduce, then add the cream. Cook the cream sauce until reduced and thickened.
- Stir in the buffalo sauce and grated Parmesan cheese, then add the remaining butter to give the sauce a glossy finish.
- Add the pasta and the sliced or shredded chicken. Toss well to coat and cook for another minute or two.
- Sprinkle with more Parmesan cheese and minced parsley, and serve.
Recipe Substitutions and Additions
- Try this recipe with a different type of hearty noodle such as spaghetti, rotini, rigatoni, or penne pasta.
- Garnish the pasta with a few crumbles of blue cheese instead of Parmesan cheese. Or, why not both?
- If you live on the wild side and like your food extra hot and spicy, add more buffalo wing sauce to taste or add a few shots of Tabasco.
- Use half and half or whipping cream instead of heavy cream. Or, try mixing in a few tablespoons of softened cream cheese.
Meal Prep and Storage Tips
You can freeze individual portions of the pasta for up to 2 months.
Save time when you cook the chicken and chop the vegetables ahead of cooking.
Use store-bought cooked chicken instead of cooking your own.
Store leftovers of this pasta in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
To reheat, warm on the stove or in the microwave being watchful so the sauce doesn’t break.
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Buffalo Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- ½ pound fettuccine noodles
- 2 tablespoons butter divided
- ½ tablespoon olive oil or canola oil
- 6 ounces skinless and boneless chicken breasts
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt divided
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ leek white and light green parts only, diced
- 2 garlic cloves pressed or minced
- 1 carrots peeled and diced
- ½ celery rib diced
- ¾ cups chicken stock
- ¾ cups heavy cream
- 2 ½ tablespoons Frank’s RedHot Buffalo Wings Sauce or to taste
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese plus more for serving
- chopped parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Cook fettuccine noodles according to package directions, reserving ½ cup pasta water, drain, and set aside.
- While the pasta cooks, melt 1 tablespoon butter with 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Season the chicken breasts with 1 teaspoon kosher salt and black pepper. Cook the chicken breasts for 7 minutes, turn, and cook for another 5-7 minutes or until the chicken is browned and their juices run clear. Remove the chicken from the skillet, cover with foil, and set aside to rest.
- In the same skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of butter. Add the leeks and cook for about 3 minutes or until they soften. Add the garlic, carrots, and celery. Season with the remaining kosher salt and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add the chicken stock, then bring the sauce to a boil while scraping the cooked flavor bits from the skillet. Reduce the heat to a rolling simmer and cook until the stock is reduced by half, leaving about 1 cup. Add the heavy cream and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 5-7 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Stir in the buffalo sauce and Parmesan cheese, then cook for another minute. Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter until it melts and the sauce is glossy.
- While the sauce cooks, slice or shred the chicken into thin strips. Add the chicken and fettuccine noodles to the sauce and toss to coat. Cook for another 1-2 minutes and season with more salt if desired. If the sauce is too thick, add the reserved pasta water 1 tablespoon at a time until it’s the desired consistency. Garnish with parsley and serve with additional Parmesan cheese.
Notes
Garnish the pasta with a few crumbles of blue cheese instead of Parmesan cheese. Or, why not both?
If you live on the wild side and like your food extra hot and spicy, add more buffalo wing sauce to taste or add a few shots of Tabasco.
Use half and half or whipping cream instead of heavy cream. Or, try mixing in a few tablespoons of softened cream cheese.
I love anything with buffalo chicken! This pasta looks so creamy and flavorful. Definitely adding it to my must-try list!