White sauce pasta has a special place in the world of comfort food. It is creamy, cheesy and delicious and when paired with some meat makes for a wholesome Italian style treat for dinner.
There are two kinds of white sauce you can use to make pasta – bechamel sauce and Alfredo sauce. Both are equally delicious, but the Alfredo is easier and quicker to make, especially on a weeknight.
To make the bechamel sauce, you start by making a roux with butter and flour and then slowly add milk while continuously whisking so you get a thick sauce to which you then add cheese.
The Alfredo sauce is so much simpler. You just need to gently heat up some butter and cream and fold in the cheese. That’s it! Read on for the recipe for a quick and easy Alfredo sauce you can make with a handful of ingredients.
What is Alfredo Sauce?
Alfredo sauce was created by chef Alfredo di Lelio and served at his restaurant Alfredo’s in the early 1900s. It was originally just a more buttery version of another Italian classic al burro which is simply a sauce made with butter and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.
When people in the US tried to recreate this recipe, they found that American cheese and butter were not as rich as their Italian counterparts. So to make up for the reduced richness, extra cream was added to the recipe.
Today, you can easily find pre-made Alfredo sauce on supermarket shelves. But with a recipe this simple, you’d much rather just make it at home yourself.
Can I add meat to white sauce pasta?
Of course you can! In fact, we recommend it. We have a wide range of pasta-friendly meats & seafood you can choose from including our Chicken Mini Bites, Chicken Tenders, Boneless Fish Cubes and Cleaned & Deveined Prawns to name a few.
Choose your favourite, season it with some salt and pepper, pan-fry it till just done and set it aside while you go about making the pasta. Then you can add it to the dish right in the end. This way, the meat won’t get overcooked or dry, it will remain perfectly juicy and tender.
If you try this recipe, do share pictures with us on Instagram @licious_foods with #MadeWithLicious. We love seeing your recreations.
Chicken White Sauce Pasta Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1.5 cups heavy cream
- 4-6 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- 2 cups grated parmesan cheese
- 200 grams pasta of choice
- 250 grams Licious Chicken Mini Bites
Instructions
- Bring 6-8 cups of water to boil, season it with 1 tbsp salt and add the pasta. Allow the pasta to cook as per the cooking time mentioned on the package. When cooked, reserve about half a cup of the pasta water and then drain the pasta in a collander.
- While the pasta is cooking, warm up 1 tablespoon butter in a nonstick skillet and add the chicken mini bites to it. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook them for 1-2 minutes on each side until they're just opaque and then set them aside.
- In the same skillet, add the remaining butter and cream and bring to a gentle simmer on very low heat. Add the minced garlic and let it simmer for 2 minutes so the garlic cooks. Then season with salt and pepper and gently fold in the cheese until it melts into the sauce.
- Once the sauce is smooth and as thick as you'd like, add the pasta and chicken to it and toss until everything is coated well. If the sauce is too thick for your liking, use some of the reserved pasta water to thin it out a bit.
- Serve this immediately. Garnish with Italian seasoning or some dried oregano and some chilli flakes if you want to make this a little spicy. Enjoy!