Baked Chicken Spaghetti
Inspired by techniques from NYT Cooking.
A creamy, cheesy baked spaghetti with poached chicken, soft vegetables and tomatoes with green chilli, baked until golden and bubbling.
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Method
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Equipment
- medium saucepan
- instant-read thermometer
- large frying pan or sauté pan
- large mixing bowl
- 23 x 33 cm baking dish
- large pot (at least 5 litres)
- colander or tongs
- heatproof mug for pasta water
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 527 kcal |
| Protein | 35.3 g |
| Carbohydrate | 44.1 g |
| of which sugars | 6.6 g |
| of which free sugars | 0 g |
| Fat | 23.1 g |
| of which saturates | 12.7 g |
| Fibre | 3.6 g |
| Salt | 2.31 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
6.7 g High Protein needs ≥ 10 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
Metric · 6 servings
Chicken
- 450 g boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 bay leaf
Pasta
- 250 g dried spaghetti, broken into thirds
Pasta water
- 24 g fine salt for 3 litres of pasta water (0.8%) about 4 tsp; most of it goes down the drain
Sauce
- 50 g unsalted butter, plus extra for the dish
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 120 g button mushrooms, finely chopped
- 2 celery sticks, finely chopped
- 1 green pepper, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 30 g plain flour
- 250 ml whole milk
- 250 ml low-salt chicken stock
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- 400 g tinned chopped tomatoes, drained
- 1 green chilli, finely chopped
- 3 g fine sea salt or table salt about ½ tsp
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
Cheese
- 170 g mature Cheddar, grated
- 40 g Parmesan, finely grated
- 1
Poach the chicken. Cover the breasts with cold water in the saucepan, add the bay leaf and bring to a bare simmer. Cook 12-15 min until the thickest part reads 74 °C, then lift out, cool a little and shred. Gentle heat keeps the meat moist.
- 2
Heat the oven. Set it to 180 °C (160 °C fan) and butter the baking dish.
- 3
Cook the pasta. Boil the spaghetti in 3 litres salted water for about 2 min less than the packet time, as it finishes in the oven. Drain and tip into the mixing bowl.
- 4
Soften the vegetables. Melt the butter in the frying pan over medium heat and cook the onion, mushrooms, celery and green pepper for 10-12 min until soft. Add the garlic for the last 2 min.
- 5
Make the sauce. Stir in the flour and cook 2 min until it smells nutty. Add the milk a splash at a time, stirring out lumps, then the stock, onion and garlic powders, salt and pepper. Simmer 5 min until thick, then stir in the tomatoes and chilli.
- 6
Combine. Add the sauce, chicken, half the Cheddar and all the Parmesan to the pasta and mix well. Spread in the dish and scatter over the rest of the Cheddar.
- 7
Bake. Bake uncovered for about 35 min, until bubbling at the edges and golden on top. Rest 5 min before serving.
Storage
Cool, cover and refrigerate within 2 hours for up to 3 days, or freeze portions for up to 2 months. Reheat covered in a 180 °C oven until piping hot (74 °C).
