Lime Chicken Pasta

This lime chicken pasta tastes bright and is chef’s-kiss–worthy. Buttery, lightly tangy, has juicy chicken and is speckled with fresh chilies that tease, but don't scare. Yes, please.

Ready in under 30 minutes, this one is perfect for weeknights when you want to eat your office blues away. Plus, you can load it with veggies.

The trick to getting it perfect is to not cook the chicken so long that it loses its juices, and to boil the pasta al dente, so when these two bathe in the lime sauce later, the finished texture comes out just right.

To get the recipe to its very best version, I tested different kinds of cheese. Though none tasted bad, some, like mozzarella, made it a little bland. Parmesan always hits the mark, but it has to be freshly grated.

If you enjoy chicken pastas and are looking for a very gourmet kind of recipe, check out my truffle chicken mushroom pasta.

Pre-cooking notes

• The recipe calls for chicken breasts, but I’ve made it with boneless, skinless thighs several times, and it works wonderfully.
• Whether you’re using a bouillon cube, granules, or a base like Better Than Bouillon, always follow the package instructions. My ½ bouillon cube equals roughly ½ cup of stock. Adjust the amount of your ingredient to match that proportion.
• If using salted butter, reduce the added salt by about a quarter of the total amount, you can always adjust to taste later.
• I typically use yellow onion, but red onion works fine.
• There’s a real noticeable difference in pasta dishes when you use freshly grated Parmesan versus pre-grated Parmesan from a jar. So, whenever possible, use fresh.
• I know fresh red chili peppers might seem intimidating, but finely chopping them distributes a mild-ish heat throughout the dish. You can remove the seeds and membranes for even less heat. I use red Thai/bird’s-eye chilies, but green ones work too. Avoid thicker varieties like jalapeños and serranos for this particular dish.

A visual guide for making lime chicken pasta

Here are photos of the key steps to guide you through the recipe. For a printable version with quantities and notes, see the recipe card below.

Cook pasta in salted water until al dente, drain, toss with 1 teaspoon oil, and set aside. In a skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat, season chicken with salt and pepper, and cook 4 to 5 minutes until done. Transfer to a plate.

Reduce heat to medium. In the same pan, melt butter, sauté onion for 5 minutes until soft, then add garlic, ground white pepper, and red pepper flakes, cook 30 seconds.

Sprinkle in flour and stir 1 minute. Gradually pour in water, and mix until no lumps remain. Add chicken bouillon cube, mix. Gradually pour in cream and simmer gently for 2 minutes. Add the remaining salt and pepper. Also add lime zest, juice, and parmesan. Mix again.

Turn down the heat, return cooked chicken to the pan/skillet along with the drained pasta.
Add cilantro and chopped red chili pepper. Mix until the pasta is well coated and serve.

Serving ideas

This recipe is so good on its own, it doesn’t really need a sidekick, but if you’re feeling fancy, some warm, crusty bread with garlic butter, or even just plain butter, would be perfect.