Instant Pot Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta
Instant Pot Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta combines tender chicken, perfectly cooked pasta, and a rich, basil pesto sauce for a weeknight dinner that delivers incredible flavor.
Note: Made in a 6-qt Instant Pot
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized pieces
- 10 ounces (284 g) penne pasta dry
- 4 ounces (113 g) cream cheese
- 1 pint (473 g) cherry tomatoes cut in half
- 1 teaspoon (6 g) salt
- 1/4 teaspoon (0.5 g) black pepper
- 1 1/2 cups (355 ml) chicken broth
- 1/3 cup (79 ml) basil pesto
- 1 teaspoon (2 g) lemon zest
- 1/2 cup (50 g) parmesan
- Garnish with shredded parmesan cheese and fresh basil leaves chopped
Instructions
- Cut chicken into bite sized pieces and add to the bottom of the Instant Pot. Top with dry pasta, cream cheese, cherry tomatoes, salt, black pepper and broth. No stirring necessary.
- Secure the lid, make sure the valve is closed. Set to manual pressure cook for 8 minutes. When time is up let the steam naturally release for 5 minutes and then manually release.
- Stir in the pesto, parmesan and lemon zest. Let it sit for 5 minutes to thicken up. Top with Parmesan cheese and chopped basil.
Notes
- Fresh basil leaves give this dish an added brightness. You can make homemade pesto or just use a store-bought option.
- Make sure to cut the chicken into like sized pieces so that they cook evenly, ensuring juicy, tender chicken.
- When you add the ingredients to the pot just push the pasta down into the liquid so it is covered as best you can. Don't stir it.
- If you have pasta water spurt out the steam valve when you release the pressure you can lay a kitchen towel over it to collect the splatter.
Nutrition
Calories: 583kcalCarbohydrates: 62gProtein: 30gFat: 23gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 77mgSodium: 1474mgPotassium: 692mgFiber: 4gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 1493IUVitamin C: 28mgCalcium: 245mgIron: 2mg
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