This Healthy Chicken Alfredo pasta recipe is made in just one pan, with all the flavor of traditional Alfredo, without the calories!
If you love One Pan Meals, try my One-Pan Baked Ziti, Sheet Pan Fajitas, or Taco Soup.
I think this Skinny Chicken Alfredo really speaks for itself with a Healthy Alfredo Sauce made without butter, heavy cream, or cream cheese. The flavor is still creamy and amazing with the same “comfort food” type of feel, but way less calories and fat.
How to make Healthy Chicken Alfredo:
- Cut chicken breasts into bite size pieces, about 1 inch, and season with salt and pepper. Add olive oil to a skillet over medium high heat.
- Add chicken to the hot skillet and brown on all sides for 1-2 minutes (you don’t need to cook it all the way through).
- Add minced garlic and sauté for one minute.
- Add chicken broth, milk, flour, onion powder, basil, parsley and uncooked pasta to pan and stir well to combine.
- Bring to a gentle boil, then cover and reduce heat to a simmer.
- Simmer for 15-20 minutes or until pasta is tender, stirring once or twice during this time.
- Remove from heat and stir in freshly grated parmesan cheese.
- Season with salt and pepper, if needed.
Recipe Variations:
- Dairy Free: Replace milk with a dairy free alternative, like soy, or almond milk.
- Gluten Free: Use 1 tablespoon cornstarch in place of the flour. Substitute gluten-free pasta.
- Vegetarian: Omit Chicken (add veggies if desired) and use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
- Extra Veggies: Add broccoli florets or your favorite type of veggies! Throw them in during the last few minutes of cooking.
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Recipe
One-Pan Skinny Chicken Alfredo
Ingredients
- 6 ounces uncooked farfalle pasta or any bite-sized shape pasta (white or wheat), about 3 cups
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 3/4 cups fat-free milk
- 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
- 1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Cut chicken breasts into bite size pieces, about 1 inch, and season with salt and pepper. Add olive oil to a skillet over medium high heat.
- Add chicken to the hot skillet and brown on all sides for 1-2 minutes (you don’t need to cook it all the way through).
- Add minced garlic and sauté for one minute.
- Add chicken broth, milk, flour, onion powder, basil, parsley and uncooked pasta to pan and stir well to combine.
- Bring to a gentle boil, then cover and reduce heat to a simmer.
- Simmer for 15-20 minutes or until pasta is tender, stirring once or twice during this time.
- Remove from heat and stir in freshly grated parmesan cheese.
- Season with salt and pepper, if needed.
- Serve with veggies, green salad, breadsticks, fruit.
Notes
- Dairy Free: Replace milk with a dairy free alternative, like soy, or almond milk.
- Gluten Free: Use 1 tablespoon cornstarch in place of the flour. Substitute gluten-free pasta.
- Vegetarian: Omit Chicken (add veggies if desired) and use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
- Extra Veggies: Add broccoli florets or your favorite type of veggies! Throw them in during the last few minutes of cooking.
Nutrition
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Have you tried this recipe?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
I originally shared this recipe March 2015. Updated January 2021.
Hi there! Can this meal be frozen?
Delish!! Loved this meal, we’ve made it twice this month. Added a little bit of “better than bouillon” and some broccoli too. Lauren never disappoints:)
I stuck to the recipe and it came out great. I’ve been looking for an easy and healthier version of chicken Alfredo. Glad I found it, saving this recipe to make again.
Made this recipe for my daughter and I for dinner tonight, we both loved it! Only changes to the recipe and that’s because of personal preference, heaping 1/2tsp of the onion and garlic powder. As well extra minced garlic just because! I used 1/2c grated and 1/2c shredded Parmesan and the end result was amazing! I steamed some broccoli put it at the bottom of my bowl and added the Alfredo to it, it filled me up with the one serving. My daughter helped herself to a little more. She’s not a pasta fan, but this recipe is a definite keeper!! Thanks for sharing this recipe. I now have two pasta recipes that I can enjoy with my daughter 😉
Hi I have a question. Does this recipe require 6 oz (3/4 cup) or 3 cups of pasta??
I’ve made this recipe a bunch of times now and I love it!!!
Hi Michael! We are so glad you are loving the alfredo. If you are using a small noodle (like penne) one cup is 2 oz. of dry pasta. So 3 cups is 6 oz. Hope that helps!
I love this recipe! It’s simple and made with ingredients I always have on hand. I’ve made it several times with shrimp instead of chicken. Tonight I used frozen shrimp that I thawed, rinsed, and tossed with a little Old Bay seasoning before stirring into the pasta the last few minutes of cooking time -just long enough to heat the shrimp! Delicious, fast, and easy!
So much flavor without the guilt or heaviness of traditional chicken alfredo.
This was absolutely delicious and easy! I followed the recipe exactly, except 5 minutes before the end, I added small cut broccoli florets. Everyone loved it and there was plenty for all. I’m adding this to my rotation – thank you!
This recipe turned out perfectly for us! I made it with dairy free milk for my lactose intolerant husband and he loved it! I am going to make it for a family gathering because I know that all the family will enjoy it, even those with particular tastes! It is so simple I will get to spend time with the grandchildren instead of in the kitchen! Thanks!
This is a winner! Tastes great and easy to make. We add some green peas. New favorite around our house.
Cannot believe what is in it and how GREAT it tastes!!!! I cooked it so I know but still cannot believe my taste buds. 4 Men in the house and had them ALL fooled. Their response was, “Make it again, just this way!!” Thank you
Thank you so much for sharing a great information. I appreciate your time and effort in your work. Keep posting.
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Super quick and easy and my kid gobbled it up and got two thumbs up from my picky 4-year old. Will definitely go on regular rotation. My only note is that the pasta cooked quicker than 15 mins (which is a bonus – so fast!) – i checked it was ready around 12 mins for me.
Please don’t add the pasta when it says, it’ll turn out all mushy. The flavor was awesome, I did add some cayenne, made it more flavorful. I’ll make again but next time I’ll add the pasta the last five minutes of cooking
I use this as a base recipe and end up making it a little different each time I make it. Some favorite adjustments are to swap the chicken for broccoli or asparagus (I’m vegetarian) and/or add some baby spinach. I also always add a bit of crushed red pepper flakes to give it a little bit of a bite. If it’s been a while since I’ve made a grocery run I even just make this with just the noodles as a super easy, basic weeknight meal.
I have made this twice. I don’t like marinara, so I was looking for a healthy white sauce. Hands. Down. This is phenomenal! Comfort food to the max. The first time, we used macaroni, oat milk and added broccoli). BOMB. The second time, I subbed pasta for a beet pasta – not quite as good because the pasta got a little weird. As far as the comments on blandness, we use chicken that we preseason and keep in the freezer for quick meals, so we did not have any issue with this dish having a lack of flavor. I’m probably going to continue to make this every week. AMAZING.
So easy on those nights I’m tempted to reach for the phone to do take-out. Someday I intend to try replacing the chicken with a container of sliced mushrooms or some salmon.
Has anyone tried using legume or other healthy pasta?
I did today! The only thing I would do is leave out the pasta until the last 7 or so min. – this pasta gets weird if you leave it in too long.
Love THIS and ALL the recipes, but I am wondering what people are using to measure out portions? For example this is four servings but what is the measurement? I am wondering this for most of the recipes!
I am new here so any info would be awesome!
I’ve been making this recipe for years and it comes out great every time! Thank you!
Very good and easy to make! Used 2 1/2 cups of noodles (instead of 3) that I had on hand. Even my picky eater that does not care for cheese liked the dish. Thank you!
A great basic recipe, but I thought it was a bit bland. I stirred in a couple tablespoons of pesto at the end and some fresh spinach leaves – will make again, especially when short on time!
Delicious, kids loved it too! Super easy and full of flavor,
Really good! I threw in a whole bag of frozen peas and carrots and it gave it a bit more volume. Tasted great and had a much thicker consistency than I was expecting! Thanks!
How big is your pan? It looks giant in the picture above and I want to make sure I have one big enough to try this! It looks delicious!
This recipe was quick and delicious! I could make it easily with ingredients I already had on hand. Thanks so much!
Love this recipe! I’ve made it too many times to count, I always add fresh broccoli to mine! Thank you
The perfect family meal – easy and delicious. Finally found a site with recipes that make the teenagers happy. Thank you!
This was excellent! Easy to make and doesn’t taste skinny:)
I made this last night for my family and they loved it. I substituted a cup of fat free milk with a cup of fat free half and half. But was so good.
Nutrition information?
Hi Brandi, the calories are listed under the serving size. If you divide the recipe into 4 larger servings, there’s about 460 calories per serving (or less calories if you have 5 smaller servings).
I’m sorry, I guess I just didn’t see it, haha! I love this recipe, but was also wondering approximately how many cups were in one serving?
This dish is one of my all time favorites. I love it. Thanks for sharing the recipe!!
My husband and I really enjoyed this! It was so easy to make, too. I used one already-cooked chicken breast, chopped, and 2% milk (all I had). I also added about 1/4 t ground nutmeg, which is a common alfredo ingredient. I did have to add about a tablespoon of cornstarch at the end because it wasn’t thick enough. I loved that it was one pot. I served it with spaghetti squash and green beans. I do Weight Watchers, and it’s 9 points per serving with the 2% milk (8 points with skim). I think I might try making it with lentil pasta next time to get it even lower points.
This is so good!! My whole family loves this! Thank you!
This looks good! Quick question, though: how would this work with 2 chicken breasts?
You could double the rest of the recipe if you want, or else it would just add quite a bit more chicken to the recipe.
This is one of those meals that everyone in my family loves, these are hard to find!
The skinny chicken Alfredo was a big hit on Christmas Eve in my home. My father in law is allergic to tomatoes so we made this as an alternate to spaghetti for him but all 20 guests loved this dish. Thank you
It’s awesome with fontina instead of Parmesan! Makes it much creamier. Great recipe-thanks!
Thank you so much for this recipe! It was so easy to make this semi lactose free. Heavy cream really hurts my tummy because of my intolerance, so this recipe was a Godsend!!
How many calories does this have per serving???
Thank you for this recipe! My family of five adored it! I served it with corn and some of the kernels mixed into one of my bites. Man oh man, what a happy accident! We dumped the rest of the corn into the dish. Thanks again! This will go into my meal rotations.
Thanks so much Mary! And the corn addition sounds delicious!
do you think it would be good with steak instead of chicken?
I’ve never tried it, but I think it could be delicious!
Do you ever add the nutritional values? That would be very helpful. Your recipes look delicious!
Hi Janie, Thanks for you comment! I’m looking into a way to add nutritional values–Hopefully soon!
What do you consider a serving size? I made this for dinner, it was delicious! Everyone loved it!
Hi Shannon,
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed the recipe. A serving is approximately 1 1/2 cups!
I love this recipe! I’m making it right now for the second time! The first time, I thought the Parmesan cheese was a little heavy, so I’m trying it with 3/4 cup this time! Next time, I’m gonna try no parmesan cheese because the sauce is so yummy even without the cheese! Thank you so much for sharing! I’ll definitely try more of your recipes 🙂
Thanks Katherine, you’re adaptations sound perfect. Thanks for sharing!
This looks so good. I’m going to try this. We eat lots, maybe too much, pasta! 🙂
Mmmm I love alfredo sauce, but I haven’t had it in YEARS. I like the kind that’s full of fat and cream 😉 and I know it’s not that good for me so I just stay away haha. This looks like a much lighter version though! I wonder what it would be like with unsweetened cashew milk…
Did you ever try with cashew milk, or other dairy milk alternatives?
Hi Bonnie, I haven’t but I”m sure they’d work fine!
I used almond milk and it was amazing!