Description
Creamy, cheesy chicken bacon ranch pasta loaded with tender chicken, crispy bacon, rich cheddar sauce, and perfectly cooked penne pasta.
Ingredients
Scale
- 10 oz penne pasta
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts (cubed)
- 6 slices thick-cut bacon (chopped)
- 8 oz cream cheese (softened and cubed)
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese (shredded)
- 1 packet dry Ranch seasoning mix
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- Green onions (sliced for garnish)
Instructions
- Cook the penne pasta in salted boiling water until al dente.
- Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water before draining.
- Cook the chopped bacon in a large skillet until crispy.
- Remove the bacon and leave about 2 tablespoons of bacon grease in the skillet.
- Add the cubed chicken to the skillet and season with half of the ranch seasoning.
- Cook the chicken until golden brown and fully cooked.
- Stir in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Lower the heat and add cream cheese and chicken broth.
- Whisk until smooth and creamy.
- Stir in the remaining ranch seasoning.
- Add shredded cheddar cheese gradually until melted.
- Toss in the cooked pasta and half of the bacon.
- Add reserved pasta water if needed to loosen the sauce.
- Top with remaining bacon and sliced green onions before serving.
Notes
Freshly shredded cheddar melts much smoother than pre-shredded cheese. Add extra pasta water if the sauce thickens too much while sitting.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl
- Calories: 720
- Sugar: 4g
- Sodium: 980mg
- Fat: 42g
- Saturated Fat: 20g
- Unsaturated Fat: 17g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 42g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 43g
- Cholesterol: 155mg