Rigatoni Fiorentina (Creamy Chicken Rigatoni)
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Made with fresh basil, juicy pieces of chicken, al dente rigatoni noodles and creamy sauce infused with white wine, you won’t want to create any other pasta dishes after trying rigatoni Fiorentina.
Table of Contents
Why you should try this recipe
Whenever I’m craving a pasta dish, I cook rigatoni Fiorentina as a weeknight meal. Its bold flavour and easy-to-find ingredients make it a top choice every time. It also has the best creamy sauce! Plus, it’s packed with spinach and cauliflower, so it’s a healthier alternative to traditional pasta dishes, which typically only include sauce, cheese and meat.
By using chicken breast, you can keep the calorie count low and the protein content high. Even though it’s healthier, you won’t feel like you’re missing out as the tomato-forward sauce is super creamy. I’ve also swapped heavy cream for single cream, helping slash the fat and calories even more in this dish.
If you have any rigatoni left over, you can turn it into creative dishes like Creamy Chorizo Pasta, Pink Sauce Pasta, or Easy Quorn Bolognese.
Ingredients
Passata
I love using passata, which adds fresh flavour to the dish. It also allows you to control the salt content of the recipe. You can also use tomato sauce in a pinch, though it will add a weaker tomato taste to the dish, but if you do use tinned tomatoes to make the sauce, you can add some tomato paste to add to the depth of flavour.
White Wine
Any dry white wine will suffice for this recipe. It helps turn the recipe into a restaurant-worthy dish by elevating the flavour, but I used white wine vinegar, which works well too.
Cauliflower
You can easily sneak in your veggies by including cauliflower in this chicken rigatoni dish. Since it has a mild flavour, you can’t taste it in the finished recipe, so it’s great for picky eaters, but broccoli florets would work too.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make Rigatoni Fiorentina
Start by adding some rapeseed oil to the pan and increase the heat to medium/high and add the chicken into the pan. Season with salt and pepper and leave to fry for 4 minutes, or until you achieve a nice sear. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
- Deglaze the pan with a splash of chicken stock. Add the onion and chopped cauliflower stem into the pan. Season with salt and pepper and fry for around 4 minutes, then add the tomato puree and continue to fry for a further 4 minutes. Add the garlic in for the final minute and continue to fry (Image 1).
- Then pour the passata, white wine vinegar and chicken stock into the pan. Stir to combine and reduce the heat to a simmer (Image 2).
3. Add your rigatoni to salted boiling water and cook to the packet time minus 1 minute (Image 3).
4. Then add the cauliflower florets half way through (Image 4).
5. Add your chicken back into the sauce, along with the spinach to warm through/wilt, then add the cream and remove from the heat. Season with salt and pepper (Image 5).
6. Reserve a mug full of pasta water and drain the rigatoni and cauliflower. Add them together into the sauce (Image 6).
7. Loosen the pasta if necessary with the reserved pasta water and mix together until combined (Image 7).
8. Top the pasta with torn mozzarella and you can optionally pop under the grill or serve immediately with fresh basil! Enjoy (Image 8).
What to serve with this creamy chicken Fiorentina pasta recipe
You can always serve warmed bread rolls with rigatoni Fiorentina, which is especially helpful for cleaning any leftover sauce on your plate.
Try making one of these salads alongside this recipe for a healthier side dish; Budget Green Goddess Salad, Panzanella Salad with Halloumi and Tricolore Salad
You may want to serve rigatoni Fiorentina alongside a warm vegetable dish if the weather is chilly. Here are some more tasty side dish options; Air Fryer Green Beans, Vegetable Baked Fries and Crispy Baked Buffalo Cauliflower Bites with Chilli Mayo
Tips and Tricks
- Don’t overcook your pasta, as the al dente pasta will cook further in the creamy tomato sauce.
- Make sure you save some pasta/cauliflower water to loosen the pasta and it’s creamy sauce.
- After frying the chicken make sure you use the fond (the browned bits stuck to bottom of pan) as it adds to the flavours.
- Place the pan under the grill for the mozzarella to become golden brown and add the fresh basil when serving.
Try some sweet recipes after trying this recipe: The BEST Lemon Drizzle Cake Recipe, Chocolate Tiffin Recipe and Simple & Easy Brownies
Recipe FAQS
Yes, you can freeze rigatoni fiorentina. As always, separate it into portions before freezing for easier reheating later. You can also freeze the elements separately if you want to be able to make other recipes later. For example, you can freeze the extra sauce in a different container than the cooked pasta.
Can you reheat this rigatoni Fiorentina recipe?
Yes, you can reheat this chicken rigatoni recipe. You can either heat it in the microwave for a few minutes until it’s fully warmed up. Or, you can heat it in a nonstick pan until it’s warm throughout. Once reheated, you can add some fresh basil to the dish for a fresher flavour, though it’s not required
Explore More Recipes
If you tried this Rigatoni Fiorentina recipe, it would be mean so much to me if you could leave a review & a star rating to let me know how you found it! I love hearing about your experiences – it motivates me to keep creating more and more recipes for you guys 💛 Let’s get cooking! – Mimi x
Rigatoni Fiorentina (Creamy Chicken Rigatoni)
Ingredients
- 600 g chicken breast, sliced in half widthways (£4.20)
- 1 cauliflower, sliced into florets, stem finely chopped (£1.00)
- 1 white onion, diced (£0.15)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced (£0.39)
- 500 g passata (£0.50)
- 500 g rigatoni (£0.95)
- 150 g spinach (£1.00)
- 150 ml single cream (£1.20)
- 125 g 1 ball mozzarella (£0.95)
- Fresh basil (£0.55)
Cupboard Essentials
- 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 3 tbsp tomato puree
- 200 ml chicken stock
Method
- Add rapeseed oil into a large/deep pan. Increase the heat to medium/high and add the chicken into the pan. Season with salt and pepper and leave to fry for 4 minutes, or until you achieve a nice sear.
- Rotate and continue to cook for another 3 minutes, reducing the heat slightly. Set aside and deglaze the pan with a splash of chicken stock.
- Add the onion and chopped cauliflower stem into the pan. Season with salt and pepper and fry for around 4 minutes, then add the tomato puree and continue to fry for a further 4 minutes, adding the garlic in for the final minute.
- Pour the passata, white wine vinegar and chicken stock into the pan. Stir to combine and reduce the heat to a simmer. During this time, add your rigatoni to salted boiling water and cook to the packet time minus 1 minute. Add the cauliflower florets half way through.
- Add your chicken back into the sauce, along with the spinach to warm through/wilt, then add the cream and remove from the heat. Season with salt and pepper and when ready, reserve a mug full of pasta water and drain.
- Add the rigatoni & cauliflower into the sauce and stir until well combined. Loosen if necessary with the reserved pasta water and top with torn mozzarella.
- You can optionally pop under the grill or serve immediately with fresh basil! Enjoy.
Notes
- Cook the until pasta al dente and make sure you save some pasta water to loosen the sauce.
- Use fond bits at bottom of pan for added flavor after frying chicken.
- Grill the mozzarella topped pasta until golden brown.
- Add fresh basil when serving.
Nutrition
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