‘Gather and Graze’ is not about preparing elaborate, complicated meals – that was never my intention. Mostly it’s about sharing food, recipes and ideas that bring both happiness and nourishment to our own small family. It is also published in the unwavering hope that it will reach those people teetering on the verge of discovering how wonderfully simple cooking can be…
This Chicken and Mushroom Pasta recipe is yet another family staple and a slightly amended version of a dish my Mum used to prepare back in my younger years. It’s tried, tested, very family-friendly and most importantly can be made in the time it takes to boil the water and cook the pasta – perfect for busy weeknights!
Pasta con Pollo e Funghi | Chicken and Mushroom Pasta | Gather and Graze
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- 1 Tablespoon Butter
- 500g Free-Range Chicken Thighs (diced)
- 1 Garlic Clove (finely chopped)
- 6 Large Field Mushrooms (sliced)
- 1 Teaspoon Dried Tarragon
- 150ml Heavy/Thickened Cream
- Sea Salt and Freshly-ground Black Pepper
- 300g Dried Pasta
Instructions
Place a large pot of water on the stove and bring to a rolling boil, before adding a pinch or two of sea salt. The chicken and mushrooms will take about 15 minutes to cook, so depending on the type of pasta you’re using, decide on when the right time is to put it in the pot…
In a large frying pan, over medium/high heat, add the oil and butter (allowing the butter to foam and colour just slightly) before cooking the diced chicken until a lovely golden-brown colour. Lower the heat a little while you add the garlic and tarragon to the pan and cook for a minute or two more. Season with sea salt and black pepper. Raising the heat again, stir through the mushrooms and cook until they gain a golden-brown tinge as well. Add the cream, stir to combine and allow to simmer for a few minutes until the sauce begins to thicken a little. Check once again for seasoning.
In a large serving bowl, toss together the pasta with the sauce and serve immediately. Perfect with some warm, crusty bread on the side.
Cooking Notes:
- A lovely variation is to toss through some chunks of ripe avocado just before serving.
- Tarragon is the perfect partner for chicken – I find that dried (rather than fresh) works best in this dish.
- From memory… my Mum’s version of this dish included onion that was gently fried before adding the chicken to the pan and also had the addition of grated cheese at the very end.
Gather & Graze 
Margot, I learned about your lovely blog through Karen´s wonderful “LemonGroveCakes” – I enjoyed this post about a wonderful family-friendly meal with pasta, chicken and mushrooms – my kids adore these types of food and I love preparing dishes like this – how nice that you shared a tried-and-true family favorite here! You really do have a lovely blog and I will enjoy coming back soon!
Have a wonderful weekend and many greetings from pretty far away!
Andrea
Thank you so much for your very kind comment Andrea! Life has been a little hectic over the past couple of days, but I’m really looking forward to discovering your own blog in the next few days. Enjoy the rest of your weekend! Cheers, Margot
Mushrooms yum! I’m with you Margot, I may go a bit crazy on my baking but I like my meals to be simple… the simpler the better! I reckon fresh ingredients, beautiful herbs in an easy recipe that is right up my street!
Absolutely, Karen! Like you say, it really does just come down to having fresh, good-quality ingredients and a simple recipe (or way of preparing it…) that shows respect for the food itself and also the person who grew/produced it.
You could add any variety of mushrooms to this dish to make it a little more complex in taste – I just seem to grab for the field/portabello or swiss brown mushrooms (if I can find them) out of habit…
Hope you’ve had a wonderful weekend! 🙂
Nearly bought mushrooms tonight. With tuna?! Must be Autumn! As that’s when I really crave them. Loving the use of tarragon here as I wouldn’t have thought of it with mushrooms. In fact, it’s one of the few herbs I don’t have in my cupboard. Will have to change that.
It’s such a beautiful herb to use Johnny! Though I seem to keep it in the cupboard for the sole purpose of flavouring this particular dish… certainly need to explore it’s uses a little more! I tried growing some fresh tarragon once, but the possums got to it first and munched it to the ground. 😧 Have a lovely weekend!
Oh, that does look rather yummy! And the colours bring to mind the perfect pasta dish for autumn!
Thank you Lidia! Yes, a rather autumnal dish, yet we eat it year-round in our house… I can only imagine the beautiful colours the trees are changing to in Canada at the moment – such a fabulous time of year!
Yum. Mushrooms plus pasta plus chicken? That’s a heavenly dinner. I love the fact that it’s something that can be simply prepared too. Life is way too short to do ornate dinners every night 🙂
They do complement each other rather well, don’t they Laura?! Some nights, in fact… most week-nights I need meals like this one, that I can just throw together fairly quickly and still get smiles all round… 🙂 Enjoy your weekend Laura!
I love mushrooms! M,ore often than not they are relegated to the side. Love that yr pasta dish showcases it as the main ingredient! It looks delicious!
Thanks very much Jo! I love mushrooms too – so versatile in what they can be added to, or even better – served up with a little garlic and parsley on toast on a Sunday morning. Ahhh, might need to go and buy a few more mushrooms in the next day or two!
Yum! This looks delicious!
Thanks! It’s a great one for the littlies too – tender chicken and pasta always tends to go down well! 🙂
I would totally love this! Sadly I am the only true mushroom lover in my household, but that does not stop me throwing them in everything! I live in hope one day someone else will be persuaded … I am definitely going to give this a go, I have cooked something similar but I love the look of this recipe! 🙂
Our youngest tends to pick the mushrooms out (tossing them into my bowl), but I refuse to leave them out of this dish – like you say, I’m sure he’ll be persuaded to give them another go one day! Even if he doesn’t eat them, the lovely richness of their flavour still permeates through the sauce… Give it a try! Great to catch up today dear friend! M.xx