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This BBQ Chicken Pasta with bacon bits and cheese on top is a perfect easy pasta recipe that the whole family will love. Ready in about 30 minutes and cooked all in one pan.
Throwing everything together in one pan for a quick midweek dinner is my idea of winning at life.
Especially when that recipe is totally delicious, is made up of simple store cupboard ingredients and is ready in less than half an hour.
Well here’s another one for you, because it’s likely one-pot pastas should be on all of our weekly meal plans now we know what life-savers they are.
Oh HELLO BBQ Chicken Pasta. A bowlful of that winning combo of chicken and bacon, all brought together in a rich barbecue, smoky sauce.
Why you’ll love this BBQ Chicken Pasta recipe
⭐️ Ready in 30 minutes, made in one pan
⭐️ Rich in flavour and comforting
⭐️ Budget-friendly, simple ingredients
Sarah’s notes
A recipe that involves the word ‘BBQ’ flavoured is always a total hit in my house. It tastes like such a treat, so it’s only fair I found a way to get this smoky, sticky, rich and deep flavour into a one pot pasta (the holy grail).
We based this recipe originally on some of my other favourite one pan pasta recipes, like the classic Sausage Pasta recipe that we all love.
Initially in the first test versions, we made our own barbecue sauce to add in with the pasta, but I have to say, we all felt that 1) it was a bit more of a faff than needed 2) to keep this quick and minimal ingredients, a better result would come from using ready made BBQ sauce. (Of course, you could make your own if you prefer!)
Test number 3 and we were onto a winner, we added cheese on top, popped it under the grill and 10/10 all round. Hope you love it too!
BBQ Chicken Pasta Ingredients
- Bacon lardons – Or pieces of smoky bacon, chopped small.
- Chicken breasts – You can use chicken thighs (boneless and skinless) if you prefer, but they will take longer to cook.
- Onion – Fresh or frozen pre-prepared is OK .
- Garlic – You can also go for jar/frozen or fresh here.
- Red peppers – Or whichever colour you prefer.
- Dry pasta – Any pasta shape you prefer.
- Chopped tomatoes – Using good quality makes all the difference here.
- Sweet smoked paprika
- BBQ sauce – Any good quality shop brand is fine here.
- Vegetable stock – Made with a cube is fine, I like Marigold brand.
- Grated mozzarella
How to make BBQ Chicken and Bacon Pasta
1. Fry the bacon lardons for 5 minutes in a sauté pan (the pans I like are here!) then add the chicken until browned.
2. Add in the garlic and vegetables and cook as per the recipe below.
3. Add the dry pasta, chopped tomatoes, smoked paprika, BBQ sauce and some vegetable stock, season and cook with the lid on until most of the liquid is absorbed (timings are in the recipe below).
4. When cooked, stir and sprinkle over the cheese. Grill until melted and golden.
Hint: Cook the pasta until al-dente. Stop cooking when the sauce has reduced and thickened and the chicken is cooked through.
Substitutions
- Sweet smoked paprika – I use this as it’s warming and a little smoky, but also fine for childrens’ palates. If you want something a little more spicy, add or substitute regular paprika.
- Chicken – If you want to make this meat-free, you could use vegetarian chicken substitute or another protein, or just omit this ingredient and the bacon.
Leftovers
In the fridge You can keep this recipe in the fridge for 3 days. Reheat fully before serving.
If you don’t serve this as soon as it’s cooked, you’ll find that the sauce absorbs into the pasta and there’s not a lot left. It won’t affect the taste, you may just want to add a splash more stock when you warm it through.
Can you freeze BBQ Chicken Pasta? I’m not a big fan of freezing pasta as it can go quite mushy when defrosted and reheated.
All that said, there’s nothing wrong with freezing for lunch if you have leftovers, it’s just not quite as good as fresh or reheated from the fridge.
Recipe Tip: Sauce
I always make up 750ml/3.25 cups of stock and then check on the pasta as it cooks and add more if it’s looking dry.
If you like very ‘wet’ saucy pasta, go ahead and add it all at the start.
MOre one pan pasta recipes…
Under 30 minutes
Marry Me Chicken Pasta {One Pot Recipe}
One Pot Pasta
Peri Peri Chicken Pasta {One Pan}
One Pot
Orzo Bolognese {One Pot}
FAQs
Try and use a big lidded pan for this recipe. I have tried-and-tested some one-pan pans recently and there were some good ones in that list. Hope this pan review helps.
If you stick to lean chicken breast, use wholewheat pasta and omit the cheese, you could reduce the fat content and increase the fibre content. You could also add additional vegetables.
Let me know how you got on and what you thought of these recipes. Please rate the recipe using the ⭐️ below.
Also I’d LOVE to see your cooking creations. If you’d like to share yours with me, you can tag me on Instagram (@tamingtwins).
BBQ Chicken Pasta {One Pan}
Ingredients
- 200 g (7 oz) Bacon lardons
- 600 g (1.3 lb) Chicken breasts, Cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 Onion, Peeled and chopped
- 3 Garlic cloves, Peeled and crushed
- 2 Red peppers, Deseeded and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 250 g (9 oz) Dry pasta
- 400 g (14.5 oz) Tinned chopped tomatoes
- 1 tsp Sweet smoked paprika
- 6 tbsp BBQ sauce
- 750 ml (3.25 cups) Hot vegetable stock, See notes
- 100 g (3 oz) Grated mozzarella
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Heat a saute pan over a medium heat. Add the bacon lardons and fry for 5 minutes until starting to brown. (They won’t need any oil as they usually release their own fat.)
- Add the chicken pieces and cook for a further 5 minutes until the chicken is sealed and starting to brown.
- Add the onions, garlic, peppers and continue cooking for another 5 minutes until the vegetables have softened.
- Add the dry pasta, chopped tomatoes, smoked paprika, BBQ sauce and 500ml/2cups of the vegetable stock and salt and pepper. Give everything a good stir and pop the lid on and cook for 15-20 minutes cooked through and most of the liquid has been absorbed.
- Five minutes before the pasta is due to be cooked, preheat the grill to high.
- When the pasta is cooked, give everything a good stir, sprinkle over the cheese and pop under the grill for 3-5 minutes until melted and golden.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This post was originally published on June 19, 2023 and updated later to make improvements.
Up there with the best! We loved this, we did add some chilli as we like heat!
Very tasty, lots of sauce, easy to make.