Chicken Carbonara Recipe [VIDEO]
Chicken Carbonara is a creamy, sinful, and indulgent dish. Made with egg yolks and loads of cream, this recipe can easily be a staple comfort food of the family!
We love to make delicious and creamy pasta recipes for dinner. Some of our favorites once are Creamy Garlic Parmesan Shrimp Pasta, Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta, and Instant Pot Philly Cheesesteak Pasta.
Best Chicken Carbonara Pasta
Creamy Chicken Carbonara is made with the meat of roasted chicken, egg yolks, and loads of cream. What we love about this recipe is it can be done in under half an hour. And the finished dish would look like you have slaved over the stove for a long time too. This recipe can also be done with leftover roasted chicken.
In addition, it can be modified with other ingredients, and some of our favorite add-ins are bacon or ham. The dish is creamy, and can easily feed the entire family. Once you try making it at home, you will be making it over and over again!
Originally, Carbonara is made with eggs, pancetta, Pecorino Romano, and pepper. But we love playing with this recipe so we can add regular bacon, shrimp, and just egg yolks to the sauce. Also, adding cream to this delicious meal is a bonus, and is what makes this recipe best!
What is Chicken Carbonara?
This dish is a take on the original Carbonara with eggs, cheese, and Italian bacon (pancetta). What’s great about this recipe is that you can use shredded chicken instead of Italian bacon. Also, if you have leftover roasted chicken from a previous meal, you can certainly use that too!
How to make Chicken Carbonara?
This Italian-inspired dish is super easy to make. Also, I have attached the recipe video which shows steps I have taken to make this recipe.
- First, cook the pasta in boiling water until it’s al dente. Al dente means literally firm to the bite. Once cooked, drain the pasta and set it aside.
- Next, in a bowl, mix the yolks, cream, herbs, and other flavorings. Next, heat up some olive oil and fry the cooked shredded chicken until heated through. Once heated, add the pasta and pour in the sauce.
- At this point you should cook the whole thing for about 4 minutes, mixing constantly. Do not overcook it, because you do not want your egg yolks to scramble. Turn off the heat, and continue to stir. The sauce will still cook from the residual heat.
How to make Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara?
Simply add the peeled shrimp after adding the cooked shredded chicken. Then proceed to the next steps as described in the recipe box below.
How to make Chicken and Bacon Carbonara?
Now adding bacon to the mix is getting more indulgent! You need to cook the bacon separately first.
Then, drain the excess oil coming from the bacon and add your shredded chicken. Then add in your cooked pasta and the sauce mixture.
How to make Chicken Carbonara Sauce?
Since there are egg yolks in the sauce mixture, you have to be careful not to overcook the whole thing. This is the only difficult part of this dish. Egg yolks scramble when cooked for too long. Therefore, ensure not to overcook them.
To make the sauce, simply combine the egg yolks, grated the Parmesan cheese, with some salt and pepper in a bowl. Then, mix well with a fork, and set aside.
How to make creamy Chicken Carbonara?
If you want to be more indulgent and make this sauce creamier, add additional egg yolks and cream to the mixture. But I assure you that this recipe will satisfy your craving for a sinful meal!
How to reheat pasta?
We like reheating leftover pasta in the oven. Simply, place leftover pasta into a baking sheet, and cover with foil. Then, place the dish in a preheated oven at 350 degrees F, for about 10-15 minutes, or until completely reheated.
Alternatively, you can reheat it in the microwave for 2-3 minutes.
How to store leftovers?
Use an airtight container to store any leftovers. It will last in the refrigerator for up 4 days; and 3 months in the freezer.
Also, you can do a large batch of it in advance, and freeze it. This way, you can enjoy it for weeks to come, by simply reheating it.
More pasta recipes to try:
Recipe Tips and Notes:
- Drizzle oil over the cooked pasta and toss it, so the pasta won’t stick together once it’s cooled down.
- Make sure that the leftover pasta is totally cooled down before placing it in an airtight container and then store it in the refrigerator or freezer.
- Also, to reduce calories, use lite cream.
- For an authentic Italian dinner, substitute bacon with pancetta (which is basically cured meat imported from Italy).
- Turkey meat or leftover turkey can be used as well.
Chicken Carbonara Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound spaghetti
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 sweet onion (finely diced)
- 1/2 cup diced bacon
- 6 cloves garlic (minced)
- 4 cups cooked chicken (shredded)
- 3 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 8 large egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves (chopped)
- 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves (chopped)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Garnish:
- Chopped parsley
- Grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Cook pasta per package directions, aiming for al dente.
- In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks, cream, parmesan cheese, lemon zest, oregano, basil, and parsley until combined.
- Place a large frying pan over medium heat and add olive oil. Once hot, add diced bacon, and cook until crispy, for about 4-5 minutes.
- Next, add onion and garlic and continue to cook and stir for another 2 minutes.
- Add the chicken to the pan, toss and stir and cook for 4-5 minutes, until the chicken is warm.
- Reduce heat to low-medium and add the spaghetti to the pan, toss to combine, and pour the cream mixture on top. Toss again to combine and ONLY cook for about 4-5 minutes. Cooking longer will make the eggs turn into scrambled eggs.
- Taste and adjust for salt and pepper.
- Garnish with parsley, more grated parmesan cheese, and serve.
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