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A Mexican comfort food dish made with pasta is every bit as satisfying an Italian one. (Trust me on this — I had this for dinner last night!)
If you really want to shine and mix up the buffet at the Cinco de Mayo party in a few days, I highly recommend bringing Chicken Poblano Pappardelle Pasta. Imagine how awesome it’ll be presented between guacamole and salsa selections and the tacos and nachos!
This pasta is uber delicious — it’s spicy, creamy, hearty, and fresh — all at once!
Enjoy!
Please note that the prep time does not include making the enchilada sauce or roasting the peppers, which will add about 1 hour. (Here's the enchilada sauce recipe.)
Recipe
8-ounces Pappardelle pasta
Olive oil for the pan
1¼ cup thinly sliced onion
1-pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 large red, orange or yellow bell peppers, roasted, peeled, seeded and thinly sliced (Here's how to roast and peel a pepper.)
1½ cups Smoky Poblano Enchilada Sauce (Get the recipe here) -- see notes at the bottom of the recipe
⅓ cup Cacique Crema Mexicana
1 cup loosely packed, roughly chopped cilantro leaves, washed and dried, plus a few sprigs for garnish
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling, salted water until just tender but still firm to bite. Reserve ½ cup of the cooking water and drain the pasta in a colander. Then put the pasta back into the pot with the reserved liquid and set aside.
- Coat a large sauté pan with olive oil, add the onion, and cook, stirring often, over medium-high heat until soft and nicely caramelized, about 15 minutes.
- Add the chicken and mixing it every minute or so, sauté just until it's cooked through, about 5 minutes.
- Turn the heat to low and add the roasted peppers, the Smoky Poblano Enchilada Sauce, Crema Mexicana and cilantro. Stir to blend and season to taste with salt and pepper. (Here's How to Season to Taste.)
- Add the pasta (along with the liquid it's in), to the sauce and gently mix everything together.
- Garnish with fresh cilantro springs and serve.
Notes
I love making my own sauce, but if you need to save time, use your favorite store-bought enchilada sauce.
It's pretty quick and easy (and I think tastier), to roast your own peppers, but again, if you need to save time, you can buy them (you would need about 1 cup).