This Cherry Tomato Pasta with Chicken is the perfect summer pasta dish. Toss cooked linguine and seared chicken in a simple cherry tomato pasta sauce.
30 minutes
Easy cleanup
You’ll Learn: How to help the sauce cling to the pasta
Worth It: It’s a satisfying, protein-forward option that actually keeps you full
Bonus: Easy to customize
Use fresh summer tomatoes to make a simple cherry tomato pasta sauce
Cherry tomatoes are one of my favorite summer ingredients. When they are in season, the harvest is always bountiful and the flavor is perfectly sweet.
Combine a sweet burst tomato sauce with linguine pasta and sliced seared chicken. This tomato chicken pasta recipe makes for a perfect date night dinner or family meal!
Serve it with fresh basil and fresh grated parmesan cheese for a delicious summer dinner. I promise you will impress anyone you serve this meal to!
Kitchen tools
- Measuring spoons and measuring cups
- Frying pan
- Large pot for boiling pasta
- Liquid measuring cup
- Sharp knife and cutting board
- Collander
Serving Suggestions
This chicken tomato pasta is a delicious full meal all by itself, but there are a few side dishes that I like to serve with it. I usually serve it with a simple green salad that I toss in an apple cider vinaigrette.
It is also delicious served with my grilled caesar salad especially in the summer when the weather is nice.
For a kid friendly pasta idea, try these homemade SpaghettiOs with meatballs! If you like chicken pasta recipes, try this high protein buffalo chicken mac and cheese next!
ingredients
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Olive oil
- Salt, dried oregano, black pepper
- Cherry or grape tomatoes
- Garlic
- Balsamic vinegar
- Dry Linguine pasta (can use spaghetti or fettuccine noodles)
- Salt for pasta water
- Fresh basil
- Aged parmesan cheese for grating
Ingredient substitutions
You can use shrimp instead of chicken. Use one pound of peeled and deveined large shrimp. Sear in the pan at the same time as you would the chicken. Cook shrimp 1-2 minutes each side.
To add some spice to this dish, sprinkle red pepper flakes into the cherry tomato pasta sauce before tossing with the chicken and pasta.
You can mix extra veggies into the sauce if you would like to. I sometimes mix in some spinach leaves for an extra dose of fiber.
If you prefer to use chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts, just be sure to cook them until the internal temperature reaches 165F. They may take a little longer to cook than chicken breasts.
To make this recipe gluten free just use any gluten free pasta. I prefer long noodles to soak up the pasta sauce, but you can use any shape like penne pasta instead.
How to make Cherry tomato pasta with Seared chicken
Step 1: Prep Ingredients and Sear Chicken
To begin, mince garlic cloves and set aside for later. Mix salt, pepper, and oregano in a small bowl.
Then, slice chicken breasts in half horizontally and season on all sides with the mixture. Heat 1.5 tsp of oil in skillet over medium heat.
When the oil is hot add the chicken to the pan. Cook the chicken for 4-5 minutes on each side.
Remove chicken from the pan and reduce the heat to medium-low.
Step 2: boil water for pasta and blister tomatoes
At this point, add your pot of water to the stove to boil the water for the pasta. Then, add the other 1.5 tsp of oil and the tomatoes to the skillet to blister. Increase the heat to medium.
You want to hear the tomatoes sizzle, but not burn. If they start to burn, reduce the heat. Allow the tomatoes to blister for 5 minutes.
Step 3: Sauté cherry tomato sauce
Then, reduce the heat to medium low and add your diced garlic to the pan with the tomatoes. Saute for about a minute until the garlic is fragrant. Add the balsamic vinegar to the pan and saute for another minute.
Next, drop your noodles in the boiling water and stir. Allow the tomatoes to cook and simmer over medium heat as the noodles cook. You can push down on the tomatoes with the back of a fork to encourage them to burst.
Step 4: Slice chicken, toss pasta in sauce
Next, while the tomatoes and pasta cook, slice the chicken into strips. After 8 minutes take ⅓ cup pasta water from the pasta pot and pour it into the pan with the tomatoes.
Then, add sliced chicken to the pan with the tomato sauce. Drain the pasta and add to the pan with the sauce and remove from the heat.
Toss with tongs so that everything is thoroughly mixed. Finally, top with fresh basil and parmesan cheese.
Storage and reheating
Store this cherry tomato pasta sauce with linguine and sliced chicken in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Reheat on the stovetop in a frying pan. Add a little water as you reheat to refresh the sauce.
If you have lots of cherry tomatoes to use up, try these marinated cherry tomatoes.
Check out these other simple pasta dishes
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
Email Recipe for Later
Recipe
Cherry Tomato Pasta with Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 3 tbsp olive oil separated
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 16 oz Cherry or grape tomatoes
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 8 oz linguine pasta can use spaghetti or fettuccine noodles
- Salt for pasta water
- Fresh basil
- Aged parmesan cheese for grating
Instructions
- Mince garlic cloves and set aside for later. Mix salt, pepper, and oregano in a small bowl. Slice chicken breasts in half horizontally and season on all sides with the mixture.
- Heat 1.5 tsp of oil in skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot add the chicken to the pan.
- Cook the chicken for 4-5 minutes on each side. Remove chicken from the pan and reduce the heat to medium-low. At this point, add your pot of water to the stove to boil the water for the pasta.
- Add the other 1.5 tsp of oil and tomatoes to the skillet to blister. Increase the heat to medium. You want to hear the tomatoes sizzle, but not burn. If they start to burn, reduce the heat. Allow the tomatoes to blister for 5 minutes.
- Reduce the heat to medium low and add your diced garlic to the pan with the tomatoes. Saute for about a minute until the garlic is fragrant. Add the balsamic vinegar to the pan and saute for another minute.
- Drop your noodles in the boiling water and stir. Allow the tomatoes to cook and simmer over medium heat as the noodles cook. You can push down on the tomatoes with the back of a fork to encourage them to burst.
- While the tomatoes and pasta cook, slice the chicken into strips. After 8 minutes take ⅓ cup pasta water from the pasta pot and pour it into the pan with the tomatoes.
- Add sliced chicken to the pan with the tomato sauce. Drain the pasta and add to the pan with the sauce and remove from the heat. Toss with tongs so that everything is thoroughly mixed.
- Top with fresh basil and parmesan cheese.
Recipe Notes
- you can use any kind of pasta, but I like long noodles best to soak up the sauce
- use gluten free noodles to make this recipe gluten free
- you can use chicken thighs in place of chicken breasts
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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