My love for this Rasta Pasta recipe goes deep. At the end of the day, as much as I love Jamaica, a sis can’t always get there. When I make this pasta, it gets me right back. I add chicken and peppers to a jerk flavored cream sauce, and the best part it’s ready in about 40 minutes tops. Get at it boos.
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How to make Rasta Pasta
Step 1: boil the pasta
- Add pasta to a large stockpot filled with salted boiling water.
- Cook pasta until almost done. Before straining, reserve 1 cup of pasta water. Then, strain and set aside.
Step 2: sear the chicken
- Add oil to a large skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Sear chicken in two batches and season each with jerk seasoning, browning quickly on the outside but not cooking all the way through.
- Remove the chicken from skillet and place on a plate.
Step 3: Cook the vegetables and add the chicken
- Heat the remaining vegetable oil and add onions and peppers. Season with the remaining seasoning, and keep stirring the vegetables as they continue to cook. Reduce the heat a bit if they start to cook too quickly.
- Cook until peppers and onions are soft and translucent with a little bit of caramelization and most of the moisture is cooked out. Add in garlic and thyme and cook for an additional minute.
- Add in chopped tomatoes and scrape the bottom of the pan, removing all the browning from the bottom of the pan into the vegetables. Cook until all the moisture is gone.
- Pour in chicken stock and return the chicken to the pan. Cover and cook until the chicken is fully cooked.
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Step 4: Assemble The Rasta Pasta
- Remove the lid and add half and half. Stir together, reduce heat to medium-low, and continue cooking until the sauce reduces and thickens a bit, coating everything.
- Add in the cooked pasta. If the mixture becomes stodgy and the sauce has reduced too much, add a little pasta water to thin it out.
- Stir and serve immediately!
Rasta Pasta Recipe
Bold, Caribbean flavors pop in this Jamaican-inspired Rasta pasta! With Jerk chicken, a creamy sauce, and bell peppers, this pasta recipe brings it!
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Servings: 4 servings
Equipment
Ingredients
- 8 ounces tube-shaped pasta penne, rigatoni, mostaccioli
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil divided
- 1 pound chicken breast 1-inch dice
- 2 tablespoons jerk seasoning divided
- 1 large yellow onion thinly sliced
- 2 large or 3 medium bell peppers mixed colors, thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 cup chopped tomatoes
- 3 sprigs thyme
- ¼ cup chicken stock
- ½ cup half and half
Instructions
- In a large stockpot, boil 4 quarts water with salt and cook pasta until almost done, about 6 minutes. Before straining, reserve 1 cup of pasta water. Strain and set aside.
- In a large skillet, add 1 tablespoon oil and heat over medium-high heat. Sear chicken in two batches and season each with ½ tablespoon jerk seasoning, browning quickly on the outside but not cooking all the way through about 4 minutes per batch. Remove the chicken from skillet and place on plate.
- Heat remaining 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and add onions and peppers. Season with remaining 1 tablespoon of seasoning. Keep stirring vegetables as they continue to cook and don’t burn (reduce heat a bit if they start to cook too quickly). Cook until peppers and onions are soft and translucent with a little bit of caramelization and most of the moisture is cooked out, about 8 minutes. Add in garlic and thyme and cook for an additional minute.
- Add in chopped tomatoes and scrape the bottom of the pan, removing all the browning from the bottom of the pan into the vegetables. Cook until all the moisture is gone, about 3 minutes.
- Pour in chicken stock and return the chicken to the pan. Cover and cook until chicken is fully cooked, about 5-6 minutes.
- Remove lid and add half and half. Stir together. Reduce heat to medium low and continue cooking until the sauce reduces and thickens a bit, coating everything, about 5-6 minutes. (If mixture becomes stodgy and the sauce has reduced too much, add a little pasta water to thin in out.) Stir in pasta and serve immediately.
Notes
How to store & reheat Rasta Pasta
Store it in an airtight container in the fridge. This helps keep the pasta fresh. Just make sure it’s cooled down to room temp before you refrigerate to prevent bacteria from creeping up in there. To reheat, pour the pasta into a skillet over medium heat. The sauce tends to thicken up after refrigerating so just stir in some extra sauce to thin it out some. Heat it gently, stirring frequently, until it’s just heated through. For a quick fix, you can just cover the pasta with a damp paper towel to keep it moist and zap it on the microwave until warm.How long will Rasta Pasta last in the fridge?
It will stay good to go in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.Can I freeze chicken rasta pasta?
Fo sho! Pop it in a freezer-safe container or a freezer bag, and it’ll keep for up to 2 months. Remember to let it thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Nutrition
Calories: 496kcal | Carbohydrates: 55g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 84mg | Sodium: 330mg | Potassium: 969mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 3297IU | Vitamin C: 87mg | Calcium: 98mg | Iron: 3mg
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Recipe Tips
- Salt the Pasta Water Right: Y’all, seasoning your pasta water is KEY to flavorful pasta. Aim for about 1 tablespoon of salt per 4 quarts of water. It may sound like a lot, but it’s gonna give your pasta a nice lil’ flavor boost.
- Go for Pasta’s Perfect Timing: Cook your pasta until it’s just shy of al dente. so it won’t be mushy when it cooks in the sauce.
- Sear Chicken Carefully: When you’re browning your chicken, don’t cook it all the way through. It will keep cooking in the sauce and turn out juicy.
Recipe Help
My sauce is too watery. How can I thicken it?
A simple fix is to make a slurry from a teaspoon of cornstarch and a little water. Just whisk it into your sauce and watch it thicken up nicely!
My noodles came out mushy. What went wrong?
Make sure to only cook your pasta to al dente, or even a tad bit under. It will continue to cook in the cream sauce so if you over cook in the pasta water you will end up with mush.
More Jamaican-inspired recipes
- The BEST Jamaican Jerk Chicken Recipe!
- Jamaican Brown Stew Chicken Recipe
- Ackee and Saltfish
- Curry Goat
- Curry Chicken
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Excellent recipe and my family enjoyed it. Most requested dish! Picasso Jocelyn, Picasso
Awe, thanks boo!