Chicken and Bacon Pasta Bake
with Courgette & Pepper
- Milk
- Egg
- May contain traces of allergens
- Celery
Warm and comforting, our delicious tomatoey chicken pasta bake makes a brilliant quick fix dinner. Packed with hidden veggies, bursting with fresh Italian-inspired flavours and with a crispy golden topping, it’s hard to think of a reason why you wouldn’t fall head over heels for this dish.
Ingredients
1
Dried Oregano
1
Chicken Stock Powder
200
Rigatoni Pasta
90
British Smoked Bacon Lardons
½
Finely Chopped Tomatoes with Onion and Garlic
210
Diced Chicken Thigh
30
Tomato Puree
1
Flat Leaf Parsley
1
Courgette
(May contain traces of: Celery)
1
Bell Pepper
(May contain traces of: Celery)
99
Creme Fraiche
(Contains: Milk)
40
Grated Hard Italian Style Cheese
(Contains: Milk, Egg)
Not included in your delivery
75
Water
Utensils
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 200°C and put your kettle on to boil. Trim the courgette and quarter lengthways. Chop widthways into small chunks. Halve the pepper and discard the core and seeds. Slice into thin strips. Roughly chop the parsley (stalks and all).
Heat a drizzle of oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add the chicken pieces, bacon lardons, red pepper, dried oregano and season with salt and pepper. Brown the chicken on all sides, about 4-5 mins. Meanwhile, in a measuring jug, dissolve the chicken stock powder in the boiling water (see ingredients for amount). Put a large saucepan of water with 0.5 tsp of salt on to boil for the pasta.
Pour the chicken stock and finely chopped tomatoes with garlic and onion into the pan with the chicken and bacon. Stir in the tomato purée and courgette. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to medium until the mixture is simmering away. Cook until the sauce is thick and tomatoey and the veggies are soft, stirring occasionally, about 12-15 mins. IMPORTANT: The chicken is cooked when it is no longer pink in the middle.
Meanwhile, add the pasta to the pan of boiling water and cook until tender, 12 mins. When the pasta is cooked, drain in a colander and return to the pan. Mix in the crème fraîche and season with salt and pepper.
Add half the parsley to the chicken and veggies and stir through. Transfer the mixture to an ovenproof dish and top with the creamy pasta. Cover with the hard Italian cheese and pop on the top shelf of your oven. Bake until the top is golden and a little crunchy at the edges, 10-12 mins.
Serve the chicken and bacon pasta bake in bowls and finish with a sprinkling of the remaining parsley. Enjoy!
Step 2 MOD: If you've decided to add bacon to your meal. Add it to the pan when you add the chicken, pepper and dried oregano. Continue with the step and the rest of the recipe as instructed.
