This chicken mushroom spinach pasta gives you the comfort of a creamy restaurant-style pasta without pouring heavy cream into the pan. Made in one-pot, it combines chicken breast, browned mushrooms and spinach with pasta cooked directly in a creamy milk and parmesan sauce.
I love the creamy, cheesy pasta dishes you get at restaurants, but the last thing I want is a heavy creamy pasta four or five meals in a row. So I took the flavours I actually wanted and turned them into a lighter one-pan version that still gives you the creamy sauce without relying on heavy cream.
It's similar to my creamy sundried tomato chicken pasta in that the pasta cooks in the sauce, and that has taught me one important thing: one-pot pasta needs to be treated differently if you're planning leftovers. Pasta keeps absorbing liquid once the heat is off, so stopping before it feels completely finished is not undercooking it (it's making it suitable for those leftovers - dw, I'll help with this).
TL:DR
- Servings: 4
- Prep time: 10 minutes Cook time: 20 minutes
- Meal prep: Chicken breast, pasta, mushrooms and spinach are cooked together in a creamy sauce, with the pasta kept slightly firmer so it holds its texture after storing and reheating.
- Fridge storage: 2-3 days in an airtight container
- Freezer storage: Up to 3 months. For the best texture, freeze the pasta separately or reduce its cooking time to 6-8 minutes if freezing everything together.
- Reheating: Microwave in approximately 1-minute intervals for around 3 minutes total. Let the pasta warm for the first minute before gently stirring.
- Customise: Swap the milk, change the pasta shape, add extra vegetables or replace parmesan with nutritional yeast.
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Why you'll love this recipe
Creamy without heavy cream. Milk, parmesan and cornstarch give you the creamy pasta feel without relying on heavy cream, similar to my beef stroganoff without sour cream.
One pan. The pasta cooks directly in the sauce, so you aren't cleaning a pasta pot as well as the main pan.
30-minute dinner. It fits comfortably alongside my 30 minute meal preps for busy weeknights.
Meal prep tested. The instructions for a pasta meal prep change slightly depending on whether you're eating it immediately, refrigerating it or freezing it.
Ingredients
Pasta. I used fusilli because that's what I had, but sturdy shapes such as rigatoni, penne or spirals hold creamy sauce well and tend to survive storage and reheating better than more delicate pasta.
Chicken breast. Chicken breast keeps this pasta fairly light and finishes cooking in the sauce rather than being cooked hard at the beginning, helping it stay moist when reheated.
Button mushrooms. Button mushrooms are affordable, easy to find and mild enough that they work with the creamy sauce without dominating it; slice them evenly so they brown at roughly the same rate.
Chicken stock. Stock gives the pasta cooking liquid more flavour than using milk and water alone while also providing enough liquid for the pasta to cook directly in the pan. I use a homemade chicken stock because I can control what I add in it. If using storebought, I recommend looking at ones that don't have all the added fillers.
Parmesan. Parmesan adds saltiness, savoury flavour and extra body to the sauce. Freshly grated will provide the most flavour and is recommended due to the minimal ingredients in this dish, but you can use ready grated for ease.
Please check the recipe card for full list of ingredients and quantity. See below for substitutions and variations.
Lauren's Meal Prep Tip
For meal prep, I prefer a better-quality dried pasta over the cheapest packet available. When pasta cooks directly in sauce and then gets refrigerated or frozen, a sturdier pasta generally holds its shape better; I use rigatoni for the same reason in my sausage spinach mushroom pasta.
Substitutions and Variations
Different milks. I've used both successfully in creamy pasta; unsweetened soy milk is the plant-based option I find closest to cow's milk for maintaining the creamy texture.
If using oat milk, use an unsweetened barista-style because its higher fat and thicker texture works better in creamy sauces.
I don't recommend almond milk here because its flavour is more noticeable and can change the overall flavour
Nutritional yeast. Nutritional yeast can replace parmesan if needed, although the flavour and consistency won't be identical. Add it gradually and adjust to taste.
Chicken thighs. Boneless chicken thighs can replace chicken breast and are even more forgiving during reheating, although they will give the sauce a slightly richer result.
Different mushrooms. Swiss brown or cremini mushrooms can be used for a stronger, earthier mushroom flavour.
Extra vegetables. Broccoli, peas or zucchini all work, but account for the extra moisture they may release into a one-pot sauce. Add quicker-cooking vegetables closer to the end.
How to make chicken mushroom spinach pasta
Step 1. Cut the chicken breast into even bite-sized pieces and coat it with the cornstarch, salt, pepper, rosemary and garlic.
Step 2. Heat a large, deep non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Add the chicken breast and cook for approximately 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pieces are mostly white on the outside but not necessarily cooked completely through.
Step 3. Add the mushrooms and cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they have reduced slightly in volume and have released moisture.
Give them enough contact with the pan to brown rather than constantly stirring them.
Step 4. Add the chicken stock and milk. Bring the liquid to a gentle bubble over medium heat.
Step 5. Add the pasta and stir so it is covered as evenly as possible by the liquid. Reduce to medium-low heat, cover and cook for (if eating immediately) approximately 10 minutes until just before al dante, gently stirring once or twice to prevent pasta sticking to the bottom.
For refrigerated meal prep, stop at 8-9 minutes while the pasta still has a little bite.
If freezing the completed pasta, stop at 6-7 minutes. The sauce should look slightly looser than you ultimately want because the pasta will continue absorbing it as it cools.
Step 6. Once the pasta is cooked as desired, add the spinach and gently fold it through. Cover for 1-2 minutes if needed to help the spinach wilt without aggressively stirring the pasta.
Note - if meal prepping, there's no need to make sure the spinach wilts as it will do this in the reheating.
Step 7. Remove from the heat and fold through parmesan. Taste and adjust with salt and pepper. Top with more parmesan.
Lauren's Top Tips
Leave more sauce than you think you need. One-pot pasta continues absorbing liquid while it cools, so a sauce that looks perfect in the pan can become too thick after a night in the fridge.
Don't fully cook the chicken first. Browning the outside and letting it finish in the sauce gives you more margin before chicken breast becomes dry, especially if it will be reheated.
Meal Prepping chicken mushroom spinach pasta
This chicken mushroom spinach pasta works well for meal prep because chicken breast provides the protein, pasta gives you the carbohydrate base, and mushrooms and spinach add vegetables without needing separate sides. The milk and parmesan sauce also gives the chicken some protection from drying out during reheating.
The main thing to manage is the pasta. Unlike a pasta that is boiled and drained separately, pasta cooked directly in the sauce stays surrounded by liquid and continues absorbing it as it cools. That's why I intentionally stop the cooking a little earlier and leave the sauce looser when I know it's becoming meal prep rather than dinner straight from the pan.
Storing
Allow the pasta to cool before transferring it into airtight containers, and make sure the chicken pieces remain coated in the creamy sauce. That extra sauce around the chicken helps protect it from drying during storage and reheating. Store in the fridge for 2-3 days.
I normally recommend storing pasta separately from its sauce for the best meal-prep texture. Because this is a one-pot pasta, I've instead built the recipe around stopping the cooking slightly early and leaving enough sauce to account for absorption.
If you're using a cheaper or more delicate pasta that doesn't hold its shape as well, you can still cook it separately and store it on the opposite side of the container from the chicken mushroom spinach sauce. Combine the two during reheating rather than letting the pasta sit in sauce.
The sauce will become noticeably thicker once chilled. This is normal: both the cornstarch and pasta contribute to the change, and it will loosen again once heated.
Lauren's Meal Prep Tip
Decide whether you're eating, refrigerating or freezing the pasta before you finish cooking it. That decision should change how soft you allow the pasta to become.
Reheating
If the sauce looks extremely thick, add a small splash of milk or water before reheating - but don't go overboard because it will loosen naturally once it becomes hot.
Microwave for approximately 1 minute first without stirring. Once the pasta and sauce have started warming, gently stir everything together and continue heating in 1-minute intervals until steaming hot, approximately 3 minutes total depending on the portion and microwave.
Finish with an extra sprinkle of parmesan, cracked pepper or fresh herbs after reheating. Adding those after the microwave gives the leftover portion some freshness
Freezing
This can be a freezer-friendly meal with a couple of adjustments! For the best possible pasta texture, cook the pasta separately at approx. Half the packet time and freeze it separately from the creamy chicken mushroom spinach mixture. That gives you the most control when thawing and reheating.
If I'm freezing this one-pot pasta together, I shorten the covered cooking stage from approximately 10 minutes to around 6-7 minutes. The pasta should still have considerable bite and the sauce should look runnier than you would serve immediately. Some will be absorbed as the pasta cools and freezes, and having extra moisture available helps during reheating.
I portion mine into 2-cup Souper Cubes, which gives me an easy single meal portion.
Thaw overnight in the fridge where possible, then reheat gradually. Going straight from a completely frozen pasta block to aggressive microwave heat makes it much harder to warm the centre without overcooking the pasta around the outside.
If you want more meal prep information, check out my Meal Prep for Beginners post and my Meal Prep Basics E-Book.
FAQs
Pasta continues absorbing liquid even after you remove it from the heat, especially while cooling in the fridge. Remove the chicken mushroom spinach pasta from the heat while the sauce still looks slightly looser than you ultimately want it, then add a splash of milk when reheating if needed.
Some pieces are probably sitting above the cooking liquid or your pan is too wide for the amount of liquid available. Make sure the pasta is mostly submerged when the lid goes on and gently move it once or twice during cooking without continuously stirring it.
The sauce will thicken as the cornstarch cooks and the pasta releases starch, so give it time before adding more thickener. If the pasta is already cooked and there is still too much liquid, simmer uncovered briefly while stirring gently.
Other chicken pasta recipes you'll like
Or, you can have a browse through my chicken pasta meal preps for more delicious eats.
Recipe
Creamy Mushroom and Spinach Pasta Recipe
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 300 g (10 ½ oz) pasta, short and sturdy, see note 1
- 500 g (1 lb) chicken breast, approx.2
- 2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder/granules
- 400 g (4 cups) mushrooms, see note 2
- 200 g (6 cups) spinach
- 1 cup chicken stock, store-bought or homemade
- 2 cups milk, see note 3
- ¼ cup parmesan, freshly grated where possible
- Salt and pepper, to taste, but at least 1 teaspoon of each
Instructions
Preparing
- Cut the 500 g (1 lb) chicken breast into even bite-sized pieces. Add the 2 tsp cornstarch, 1 tsp dried rosemary, 1 tsp garlic powder/granules and Salt and pepper (to taste, but at least 1 teaspoon of each) then toss until the chicken is evenly coated.
- Slice the 400 g (4 cups) mushrooms
Cooking
- Heat a large, deep non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Add the chicken breast and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until mostly white on the outside but not completely cooked through.
- Add the mushrooms and cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they have reduced slightly and released some moisture. Leave them against the pan between stirs so they have a chance to brown.
- Add the 1 cup chicken stock and 2 cups milk. Bring to a gentle bubble over medium heat (approx. 3-5 minutes)
- Add the 300 g (10 ½ oz) pasta and stir so it is covered as evenly as possible by the liquid. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and cook according to how you plan to use the pasta:Eating immediately: approximately 10 minutes, until just before al dente.Refrigerated meal prep: 8-9 minutes, leaving the pasta with a firmer bite.Freezing: 6-7 minutes, leaving the pasta noticeably firm and the sauce slightly looser.
- Gently stir once or twice during cooking to prevent the pasta sticking to the bottom, but avoid over-stirring as the pasta becomes softer.
- Add the 200 g (6 cups) spinach and gently fold it through. Cover for 1-2 minutes if serving immediately, until wilted.Note - If meal prepping, it can remain only partially wilted as it will soften further during reheating.
- Remove from the heat and gently fold through the ¼ cup parmesan. Taste and adjust with additional salt and pepper if needed.
Molly
Hi Lauren, great recipe. Am I being dim? When do you add the milk?
athletelunchbox
Hi Molly, thank you for your comment. I seem to have omitted that in the instructions, I apologise. I have amended. You add it in with the parmesan, cornstarch and pasta water to make the sauce 🙂