Mary Berry's Chicken Pasta Bake - My Gorgeous Recipes (2024)

Published: Jun 9, 2022 · Modified: Feb 7, 2023 by Daniela Apostol · This post may contain affiliate links · 7 Comments

Mary Berry's Chicken Pasta Bake, a fantastic family meal that is super easy to make. A creamy, cheesy white sauce, garlicky chicken, and juicy fresh tomatoes, what a glorious dinner! Even fussy kids will love this casserole that sums up what comfort food is all about.

When you have kids, feeding them can be one of the biggest challenges. I'm forever wondering what else to cook for the day. Toddlers are by definition creatures of habit, and they like to stick to their ( very few) favourite dishes (don't we all, though?).

Before I had the girls, I never worried what else to cook. It was a simple matter of opening the fridge, throwing together some bits and pieces to make a quick salad, sandwich or an easy dish.

With kids, it doesn't quite work like that, and they needs a wide range of dishes for a healthy growth. And this recipe is everything I ever needed. It's got carbs, veggies and protein, all in one delicious dish.

Making it is so easy, you will find yourself cooking this dish again and again. And it's not a big hit with kids only, but also with grown ups.

Ingredients needed

• chicken breasts - they cook quickly, and are good and healthy, an easy choice here
• penne pasta-or any other pasta shape
• butter- the sauce doesn't really work without it
• plain flour- it's used to thicken the sauce
• full-fat milk - it works the best with the bechamel sauce, the skimmed or semi-skimmed milk is not creamy enough
• dijon mustard - adds a nice sharpness to the dish
• grated parmesan cheese - it makes the sauce cheesy and delicious
• salt and black pepper
• garlic granules and paprika - to season the chicken
• oil - for cooking the chicken pieces
• chopped fresh tomatoes - to top the dish, it can be optional

Step-by-step photos and instructions

This dish has everything you wish for: garlicky grilled chicken, heart-soothing cheese sauce, and the good old pasta. Plus, some nice and juicy tomatoes to give it a fresh kick. Start by boiling the pasta with salted water until al dente. Drain, and set aside.

To cook the chicken:

• cut the chicken breasts into pieces, add them to a bag together with the garlic granules, paprika, salt, and pepper
• shake the bag well to coat the chicken pieces evenly
• heat up a grill pan or a simple frying pan, add a bit of oil, and cook the chicken pieces for 5-6 minutes

Next, we need to make the creamy cheese sauce:

• melt the butter in a pan, add the flour, and whisk well
• gradually pour in the milk, and continue to stir until it thickens into a sauce
• add the cheese, dijon mustard, salt and pepper

To put the dish together

• add the cooked pasta to an oven-proof dish, and top with the cooked chicken
• pour over the sauce and mix well to combine
• top with chopped tomatoes and bake

Expert tips

The dish can also be cooked without making it to the oven, you can simply cook the chicken, make the sauce, coat the cooked and drained pasta with the sauce, and add the chicken pieces to it.

The dish would still be delicious this way too, but baking it really takes it to the very next level - I absolutely love the golden baked bits of the pasta, it's the best thing!

Be careful when you take the dish out of the oven, the sauce makes the pasta extra hot, so I'd leave it to cool for a bit before trying it out.

Recipe FAQs

Other creamy pasta recipes

Easy Baked Mac and Cheese Recipe with Bread Crumbs

Creamy Sausage Pasta Bake

Butternut Squash Macaroni and Cheese

Cheesy Ham and Pea Pasta Bake

Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake

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