• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Savory With Soul
  • Fall Recipes
  • Recipes
  • About
  • Subscribe
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Fall Recipes
  • Recipes
  • About
  • Subscribe
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Fall Recipes
    • Recipes
    • About
    • Subscribe
  • ×
    Home » Recipes » Pasta

    Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta (quick & easy)

    Published: May 9, 2021 by Sally · This post may contain affiliate links · 4 Comments

    467 shares
    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    This creamy chicken bacon pasta is a fabulous one-pot meal that's great for busy weeknights.

    Pasta with creamy sauce chicken and bacon

    The mingling flavors of bacon are the highlights of this dish along with the creamy sauce, chunks of chicken, and mounds of your favorite long noodles.

    Bacon is one of my favorite flavors, and I'm sure you probably agree. Basically, bacon makes everything better, right?

    When it comes to pasta, bacon is a great addition. I love how I can fry the bacon until crispy, remove it from the pan, then leave a portion of the bacon fat to add flavor to the rest of the dish.

    This recipe is like that ... cook the bacon, leave a bit of bacon fat ... then cook the rest of the dish in the flavorful bacon fat goodness.

    The chicken is the next to cook after the bacon. And cooking the chicken on medium heat helps to seal in the juices. The fact that we're cooking it in bacon fat makes it extra flavorful and delicious!

    Linguini with bacon and cream sauce

    What You'll Need

    • 6 slices lean bacon
    • 1 pound chicken breast cut into strips or chunks
    • 1 Tablespoon minced garlic (about 3 large cloves)
    • 4 ounces cream cheese
    • paprika
    • cream
    • shredded or grated parmesan cheese
    • 16 ounces pasta (spaghetti, linguini, etc.)
    • pasta cooking water
    • fresh parsley
    • dry marjoram or oregano
    • salt and black pepper
    Pasta with chicken and bacon

    How to Make

    In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, cook bacon until crispy. Move to a plate lined with paper towels to drain. Remove all but about 2 tablespoons of bacon fat.

    Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions, reserving ¾ cup pasta cooking water at the end before draining.

    With heat on medium, add the chicken to the bacon fat in the pan, stirring and turning often.

    Turn down heat if needed if it's too hot, but you want a nice hot sear initially to seal in juices.

    Cook 10 minutes or until chicken begins to brown.

    Note that the higher initial heat will help seal in the chicken juices to make it more flavorful and juicy (kinda like cooking a steak).

    Next, you will add the garlic, marjoram, parsley, salt, black pepper, and paprika. Cook 5-7 minutes more or until chicken is fully cooked.

    Once chicken is fully cooked, turn heat to off, and add cream cheese and parmesan cheese. Stir and cover for 5-10 minutes until softened.

    Add cream, pasta cooking water, and pasta. Stir together.

    Crumble cooked bacon and add to the top. Serve hot and enjoy!

    Creamy Pasta with chicken and bacon

    Tips & FAQs

    I like to cut up my bacon before cooking it when I know it will need to be crumbled. It's just easier to cook it by stirring instead of having to turn the bacon and deal with the curls and waves.

    Cooking the chicken on high heat at first serves to seal in the chicken juices and make the chicken more tender and juicy, kinda like a great steak.

    In contrast to cooking a steak, keep in mind that you do NOT want the chicken pink in the center once cooked.

    Linguini with chicken

    The best creamy bacon pasta includes cream cheese (in my opinion), so don't leave this out. Such a simple way to add creamy, cheesy goodness to any pasta dish. I think you'll agree.

    For the pasta, you can add any long noodles that you prefer. I love linguini, so that's what I use most of the time. However, angel hair is a close second for me.

    Spaghetti or fettuccine are also great pasta choices for this dish.

    I hope you love this easy stove top creamy chicken and bacon pasta dish as much as my family and I do! Let me know in the comments below (and don't forget to share)!

    More Chicken Pasta Recipes

    • Chicken Spaghetti in the Crock Pot
    • Chicken and Bacon Pasta Bake
    • Chicken Spaghetti with Rotel
    • Chicken and Ham Pasta Bake

    Recipe

    Pasta with creamy sauce chicken and bacon

    Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta

    This creamy chicken bacon pasta is a fabulous one-pot meal that's great for busy weeknights.
    4.77 from 17 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Main Course, pasta
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 40 minutes minutes
    Servings: 4 servings
    Calories: 1046kcal
    Author: Sally

    Ingredients

    • 6 slices bacon lean
    • 16 ounces pasta uncooked, spaghetti or linguini
    • 1 pound chicken breast cut into strips or chunks
    • 1 tablespoon garlic minced (about 3 large cloves)
    • 1 teaspoon marjoram or oregano (dry)
    • ¼ cup parsley fresh, chopped
    • ½ teaspoon salt more to taste
    • ½ teaspoon black pepper
    • 1 teaspoon paprika
    • 4 ounces cream cheese
    • ½ cup parmesan cheese shredded or grated
    • 1 cup heavy cream
    • ¾ cup pasta cooking water reserved when pasta is done when draining
    US Customary - Metric

    Instructions

    • In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, cook bacon until crispy. Move to a plate lined with paper towels to drain. Remove all but about 2 tablespoons of bacon fat.
    • Cook pasta according to package directions, reserving ¾ cup pasta cooking water at the end before draining.
    • With heat on medium, add the chicken to the bacon fat in the pan, stirring and turning often. (Turn down heat if needed if it's too hot, but you want a nice hot sear initially to seal in juices). Cook 10 minutes or until chicken begins to brown.
    • Add garlic, marjoram, parsley, salt, black pepper, and paprika. Cook 5-7 minutes more or until chicken is fully cooked.
    • Turn heat off, and add cream cheese and parmesan cheese. Stir and cover for 5-10 minutes until softened.
    • Add cream, pasta cooking water, and pasta. Stir together.
    • Crumble cooked bacon and add to the top. Serve hot.

    Notes

    The higher heat will help seal in the chicken juices to make it more flavorful and juicy.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 1046kcal | Carbohydrates: 90g | Protein: 51g | Fat: 53g | Saturated Fat: 27g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 216mg | Sodium: 964mg | Potassium: 879mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 1975IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 260mg | Iron: 3mg
    Tried this Recipe? Share it Today!Mention @SavoryWithSoul or tag #savorywithsoul!

    More Pasta

    • Macaroni salad with tuna and corn on a plate
      Pasta Tuna and Sweetcorn Salad (quick & easy)
    • Goulash with rotini pasta, ground beef, and cheese.
      Slow Cooker Goulash Recipe
    • Spicy Goulash with Ground Beef
    • Philly Cheesesteak Casserole with Ground Beef

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Colleen

      May 01, 2023 at 10:28 pm

      5 stars
      My 16 yr old son liked it enough to ask me to make it again next week for his birthday. Thanks for a great recipe!

      Reply
      • Sally

        May 04, 2023 at 5:21 am

        That's awesome Colleen! Thanks for letting me know!

        Reply
    2. jean

      December 31, 2022 at 11:58 pm

      3 stars
      The fact that the recipe didn't give exact amounts of the ingredients, the recipe did not turn out that well. Did not have a lot of flavor.

      Had the amount of each ingredient been indicated, I'm sure this recipe would have been great

      Reply
      • Sally

        January 09, 2023 at 1:30 am

        Jean - The recipe actually does give the exact amounts of each ingredient. The first list on the post is simply to let people know what ingredients they will need. The recipe card is at the bottom of the post and gives detailed instructions as well as exact ingredient quantities. Hope that helps you for next time!

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    I'm Sally, and I love great food! Whole foods, specifically, and savory, yummy eats! I love using spices and trying new combinations - in fact, I consider it an art form, as I smell and taste my way through each dish.

    More about me →

    Fall Recipes

    • Cast Iron Skillet Potatoes with bacon
    • Homemade Chicken Pot Pie
      Homemade Chicken Pot Pie Recipe
    • Slow Cooked Chicken and Corn Soup
    • Chicken Spaghetti Crock Pot Recipe with Cream Cheese
    • Cooked beef roast on platter with fork.
      London Broil Crock Pot Recipe
    • Pumpkin and Mushroom Risotto with Sage

    Trending Recipes

    • Butter biscuits with extra butter - Southern style
      Easy Homemade Biscuits Recipe (Southern Style)
    • Crock Pot Great Northern Beans - Southern Style
    • Green beans and potatoes with ham chunks on plate
      Crockpot Ham Green Beans and Potatoes
    • Creamy linguini with chicken and bacon served on plate with salad
      Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta (quick & easy)
    • Creamy Scalloped Potatoes Recipe
      Creamy Scalloped Potatoes Recipe
    • Bojangles Dirty Rice Recipe (easy copycat)

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    • About
    • Privacy Policy
    • Accessibility

    SIGN UP for emails and updates

    Recipe Index

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2023 Savory With Soul, All Rights Reserved

    467 shares