Pasta Archives • Mushroompride

Creamy Chicken Corn Bacon Pasta – Delishar

Sunday is always a very busy time for me. The kids will be running amok after their Sunday enrichment class, refusing their naps after lunch (don’t kids ever get tired?!), the helper out of her well deserved day off, and the husband also running amok on the baseball field training for his next game. On top of all that going on, I will still make Sunday dinner almost every weekend. So I’ve resorted to efficient cooking all in one pot. So when I searched through the fridge, I saw chicken thighs and my carton of milk. So I got inspired by Jamie Oliver’s Chicken in Milk, and improvised to make this one pot dinner.

One pot meals like this means that I will only have minimal dishes to wash. However, after having made quite a few one pot pasta, I realised that they all kind of ends up in the same texture. That is probably because everything was cooked at the same time, in the same pot, for the same amount of time. So staggering the time to add the ingredients will make a difference. And of course playing with the natural texture of the ingredients itself.

Searing the chicken gives the chicken a different texture, colour, and appearance as compared to just cutting it up and putting it all into the pasta at the start. Crumbling the bacon bits just before serving ensures that it gives the meal a smoky, savoury, crispy crunch. Then when you bite into the corn kernels, the sweetness just burst into action balancing out the saltiness of the bacon, chicken, and pasta.

4 One pot Creamy Chicken noodle

I really liked the fact that no heavy cream was used to make this meal. The low-fat milk reduced to a cream like sauce that coats each individual pasta beautifully. And the pasta took in all the goodness of the chicken, and seasoning. The husband came back from his baseball practice just when dinner was served. He took his first bite and said, “Wow, is there some more where this came from?”. Even before he finished his plate, he was already planning for second serving. The girls were a little dubious with the new dinner served, as usual. But very quickly and readily exclaimed that they liked it and wants me to make it again. Another one pot winner in our book!

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One pot Creamy Chicken Corn Bacon Pasta Process

Creamy Chicken Corn Bacon Pasta

Delishar

4-6 Chicken Thighs
4 slices bacon cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 medium yellow onion diced
1 head of garlic separated & unpeeled
120 g uncooked spiral pasta
1 3/4 to 2 cups milk
1 chicken bouillon cube
1 sprig rosemary
1 cup frozen corn
Zest of a lemon
2-3 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
Lemon wedges to serve
Baby arugula to serve

Rinse and pat dry chicken.
Season generously with salt and pepper.
In your French oven, sear chicken with 2-3 tbsp of olive oil.
About 4 minutes on the skin side then 4 minutes on the other.
Then set aside, and use a paper towel to absorb grease.
Add bacon, cook until fat renders and crisp.
Remove and set aside for use later.
Add onion, and garlic.
Saute until onion is soft.
Add pasta, rosemary, milk, bouillon cube, corn, and lemon zest.
Season with salt and pepper, then stir.
Place chicken on top of pasta, skin side up.
Bring to boil, cover, and allow to cook for about 10 minutes over medium heat or until chicken and pasta are done.
Crumble bacon on top of pasta, and serve immediately with baby arugula.

2 One pot Creamy Chicken Corn Bacon Pasta

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One Pot Chicken Mushroom Pasta – Delishar

It is one pot meals like this one that makes life’s demands much more manageable. As much as I want to cook up a feast on most days, there are days where there seems to be absolutely no time to even take a short break. Let alone preparing, cooking, then cleaning up after the whole family. And such days usually falls on a Sunday.

Sunday is the day the husband goes for his softball game, it is also the day that my helper goes on her well-deserved day off. The kids has a short 1.5 hour phonic class in the morning, so I usually drop them off, then go to the supermarket to buy stuff I need for lunch and dinner. Get back home, get lunch ready, and I have to rush off to go buy fresh pressed juice for the girls before picking them up. Once home, we have lunch, clean up, and I’ll have to keep them busy with some activities for a while before getting them ready for naps.

Most of the time it’s a “get back to your room and nap!” or “Mummy, I just want to sleep with my eyes open.” or the girls will be driving each other up the wall and I have to step in to break up fights. In between that, if I’m lucky I get some work in. If not I’ll be cleaning up closets/hidden areas where my helper chucks stuff away or clean up nooks and crannies covered in dust, settling bills, mails etc. Then in no time at all, prepare dinner. If you don’t know yet, we eat dinner very early. Sometime between 4.30pm to 5pm. Plus the husband will be back around 4pm and usually famished. However, as much as I am kept very busy on Sunday, I love that I get to spend quality alone time with my kids. And for that, I will not trade anything for. 🙂

Chicken Mushroom One Pot Pasta 1

So such a meal is really a life-saver! Again, no heavy cream was used to get the creamy consistency of the pasta sauce. The low-fat milk reduces beautifully and coats each pasta nicely. By using low fat milk instead of heavy or double cream, it reduces the calorie and fat intake, making this meal a healthier alternative. Here’s a little peek into what I saw when I removed my cover. Dinner was ready in no time at all, with effort close to none. Haha! It was so easy, I almost felt guilty and a little embarrassed for serving it to the family. But when I hear the “Mmmm”, “Yummm”, and “Ahhh” coming from the kids and the husband. I knew this is another one pot winner!

Chicken Mushroom One Pot Pasta Process

One Pot Chicken Mushroom Pasta (Serves 4)

200g spiral pasta, uncooked
2 chicken breast, cubed
2 cups baby spinach
1 chicken bullion cube
125g button mushrooms, sliced
650ml milk
1/2 yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Season chicken with salt and pepper.
Heat pot, then when it’s hot, add oil.
Saute chicken for a minute then add onion.
Continue to cook until onion is soft, then add garlic, and mushrooms.
Saute for another minute and add pasta.
Pour in milk, add bullion cube, and give it a stir.
Remember to scrap the bottom of the pan to release all that flavourful goodness!
Bring to boil, give it another stir.
Lower heat to simmer, cover and cook for 6-7 minutes.
Add spinach, give it a stir, and allow to cook for another 1-2 minutes.
Or until spinach has wilted and pasta cooked through.
Season with salt and pepper if needed.
Serve immediately.

PS. Not sure why my Recipe Card isn’t working. I’m sorting it out with the support team. Meanwhile, you can still use the print button at the end of this post to customise printing. 🙂

Chicken Mushroom One Pot Pasta 3

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XO Sauce Pasta – Delishar

Just before Chinese New Year, Lee Kum Kee sent me a gift pack with all their popular items. In the pack, sits a bottle of XO sauce. Think of XO sauce as the Asian style truffle, it is also known as the ‘Caviar of the Orient’ . For those who do not know what XO sauce is, it is a savoury gourmet condiment made from Chinese ham, dried scallops, dried shrimp, dried squid & spices. In this dish, I’m using Lee Kum Kee’s new Seafood XO sauce, which is available in major supermarket. The first dish I made with this XO sauce was Pan Seared Scallops with XO Sauce.

When I posted that recipe online, my page hits went through the roof. I have since gotten many great feedback from readers on that dish. I feel that using XO sauce on anything at all, makes the meal a whole lot more delicious.

XO Spaghetti 1

I thought of this dish while I was walking my girls to their enrichment class on a Sunday morning. The husband went out to play soft ball that morning, so he will be coming home famished and hunting for food. Sunday also meant that my refrigerator and pantry will be low on fresh produce, as I usually go marketing on Tuesdays to stock up for the week. I had an hour to queue up for a caffeine fix, rush back home, make food, shower, and go pick the girls up. So I thought up this perfect dish, a slight variation from the usual aglio olio.

It only took me 10 minutes to put this together. Taste-tested it, and instantly knew I had to share this with all of you. Such a quick fix, but so darn delish! The husband came home had 2 servings, then asked if I could make him more of whatever this sorcery is. Lucky for him (and me), it was so easy to put together I could make him more in minutes. If you are looking for a quick fix meal, I highly recommend this. Personally, I felt that the new XO seafood sauce isn’t as spicy as the regular one. So do feel free to add some chilli padi to the recipe if you like your food hot & spicy. I made my girls’ portion without XO sauce but tossed it with a little crispy fried shallot.

XO Sauce Spaghetti

Delishar

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

100 g angel hair pasta
3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic minced or thinly sliced
2 tbsp XO sauce + 1-2 tsp XO sauce to serve
Handful of bonito flakes divided
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp chopped spring onions
1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Cook angel hair pasta just shy of al dente in a large pot of salted water (about 2 minutes)
Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of pasta cooking water, and set aside.
Meanwhile, heat pan with 3 tbsp olive oil over medium heat for about 2-3 minutes.
Add garlic to infuse oil, stir occasionally and watch heat so the garlic doesn’t brown/burn.
Add 2 tbsp XO sauce, and saute until heated through.
Add pasta, and toss to coat. Adding in the reserved pasta water if needed.
Season with salt and pepper.
Remove from heat, and plate.
Top with bonito flakes, spring onions, coriander, and a little more XO sauce.

XO Spaghetti

Disclaimer: This post was made possible by Lee Kum Kee. However, all opinion expressed are my own.

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One-Pot Chicken Fajita Pasta – Delishar

So glad that we have another one pot meal to add to our repertoire! This meal is a good one to bring to pot luck parties, and to make for the whole family on a busy work day. I felt that the spice level for the recipe is mild enough for the kids to enjoy or start training for spicy food. On a scale of 0 – 10 on spice level, I’d give this a 1, it’s very very mild for me. But to err on the safe side, I made another portion without any chillies for the kids.

I used ready packed mild fajita seasoning that I got from Cold storage. Alternatively, you can also use Taco seasoning which seems to be more stocked up at cold storage. Both of the have very similar flavour profiles. I’d suggest using chicken thighs for the dish as the cut ensures that you’ll get much more succulent chicken pieces after it’s cooked. However, the breast meat will be friendlier to your waistline. 🙂

My girls really enjoyed this one pot pasta meal that I made for them. Melody, my eldest and the fussier eater of the 2 gave me a thumbs up, and requested for me to make this again for her. The husband and I loved how a small dollop of sour cream helps to round up all the flavours , and adds a creamy touch to the meal. My favourite part was the zesty lime that cuts through all the warm spices and freshens the whole meal up! If you do try this recipe, let me know what’s your favourite part of this meal!

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One-Pot Chicken Fajita Pasta

Delishar

500 g Chicken thigh/breast cut into cubes
2 tbsp olive oil
4-5 tbsp fajita/taco seasoning
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 med yellow onion diced
3 cloves garlic minced
1 red pepper diced
1 yellow pepper diced
2 cups chicken broth
1 283 g 10oz can mild ro-tel diced tomatoes with green chiles
200 g fusilli pasta
1/4 cup light sour cream
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup chopped cilantro/coriander
1 small avocado diced (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
Wedges of lime to serve

Marinate chicken in salt, pepper, and 2 tbsp fajita seasoning.
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in French oven over medium high heat.
Add chicken and cook until no longer pink.
Remove and set aside.
In the same pot, add 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat.
Saute onion, red pepper, yellow pepper, and garlic with 1 tbsp fajita/taco seasoning until onion is soft and translucent.
Remove and set aside.
Deglaze pan with 1/4 cup of chicken broth, scraping up all the fond in the pan.
Then add the rest of the chicken broth, chilli powder, rotel tomatoes, and uncooked pasta.
Season with 1-2 tbsp of fajita/taco seasoning.
Stir to combine, and bring to boil.
Cover, and allow to cook for 10-15 minutes or until pasta is tender and liquid is almost absorbed.
Add chicken and vegetables back into pot.
Stir to combine, and heated through, about 2 minutes.
Remove from heat, serve hot, topped with cheese and a dollop of sour cream.
Serve with lime wedges and garnished with chopped avocado & cilantro.

You can get rotel canned tomatoes from cold storage.
For a non-spicy version, I used mild seasoning, omit chilli powder, and substitute with regular diced tomatoes.
Adapted from Skinny Taste

Chicken Fajita Pasta 4

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Yummy Easy Pasta Salad – Delishar

This pasta salad was so easy to make, but amazingly tasty! The husband had so much of it that I had to stop him from eating. Or else the kids there will not be enough for the kids to enjoy. The kids enjoyed it as much as we did as well!

The dressing was so delicious! Just the right balance of sweet, salty, and tang. And the vegetables added layers of texture and some freshness to the salad. What I liked most is getting a little of that yummy feta cheese in each bite. This is one of those awesome make ahead recipe for a busy week or party. Oh, and it’s vegetarian friendly too!

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Easy Pasta Salad

Delishar

Fusilli Pasta 190g
English Cucumber 1/2 diced
Feta Cheese 70g
Tomato 1, seeded and diced
Purple onion 3 tbsp, diced
Cilantro 3-4 tbsp, chopped
Extra Virgin Olive Oil 4 tbsp
Red Wine Vinegar 3 tbsp
Lemon Juice 2 tsp
Dried Oregano 1 tsp
Honey 2 tsp
Garlic cloves 2, minced
Salt to taste
Black pepper to taste

Bring a pot of salted water to boil, and cook pasta until Al dente.
Drain, transfer to a large mixing bowl, and allow to cool.
Make dressing by whisking olive oil, red wine vinegar, honey, garlic, oregano, lemon juice, and salt together.
When pasta is cooled to room temperature, crumble feta cheese over pasta, and add all the other ingredients into mixing bowl.
Pour dressing over pasta, season with black pepper, and toss to combine.
Serve immediately or keep chilled until ready to serve.

Pasta Salad insta 5

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Sausage and Mushroom Pasta – Delishar

Dinner time is very precious and important to me. It’s a time to connect without distractions, no tv, no phones, no technology. Just family. Well, after my picture shots that is. A time where we catch up as a family. It starts with the usual, “How was your day?”, “Did anything interesting happen today?”, “Tell us something you learned in school today.”

Then there’s a little small talk exchanges between the husband and I. Most often than not, aligning schedule or decisions about the kids. You know, mundane parenting stuff. But nonetheless, over delicious homemade food. 😀 By the way, this recipe converted my non-mushroom loving family into mushroom lovers.

As we were talking as usual over dinner, the husband brought up spring break, and the possibility of a short vacation. A romantic one, just him and I. *insert heart emoji here* He suggested going to Bali for a our getaway, which I thought was a great idea.

The last time we were in Bali, we had the kids with us, and had a blast. I remembered our gorgeous orange villa in Seminyak area. Private pool, in-house massages, great food all around, great service, and have I mentioned how gorgeous our villa was? We hardly left the place, partly because of our young kids and partly because we wanted to fully enjoy our villa.

So this time round, we are thinking of going back to Bali during spring break to enjoy what Indonesia has to offer. And since we had such a great experience with Villa Getaways, we have been villa shopping for our holiday plans. For now, we are just spoilt for choice. So, lets get back to the pasta.

I ran out of cooking cream that day, and improvised by using roux and milk to make the cream sauce. In order to convert the non-mushroom loving family, I used fresh sausage to flavor the pasta. Because, who can say no to sausages right?! As the sausage cooks, it renders flavorsome fat, which was used to cook the mushrooms, and create the roux. No wastage here.

The end result was an incredibly delicious plate of pasta. A whole new level of umami-ness with the mushroom, cream sauce, and beautifully browned sausage meat. I didn’t have to keep reminding the girls to finish their food and finish it fast. Granted, there was some hesitation at first when they found out it has mushrooms in it. But after applying the golden rule of “Always try new food first, before saying I don’t like it”, solved that problem. After their first bite, they smiled, and I knew I won that battle.

Sausage & Mushroom Pasta

Delishar

250 g spaghetti
300 g fresh sausage of choice casing removed
300 g brown Swiss mushrooms sliced
100 g Shimeji mushrooms separated
4 cloves garlic
2 tbsp flour
1-3/4 cup fresh milk I used low-fat
1/4 cup italian parsley chopped
Salt and black pepper to taste

Cook pasta in a pot of salted water until just shy of al-dente.
Drain, and set aside.
In a pan, cook sausage until brown over medium heat breaking it up into small pieces with your spatula.
Remove sausage on a plate, and drain fat, leaving 2 tbsp in the pan. Set aside the fat for later.
In the same pan, over medium high heat, cook garlic for 30 seconds.
Then add mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and saute until brown.
Pour mushrooms onto the same plate where you have your cooked sausage.
Add 2 tbsp of reserved fat into the same pan, and stir in flour.
Cook over medium high heat for a minute.
Then slowly drizzle in milk while stirring consistently with a whisk or wooden spoon until combined, and sauce thickens.
Add in cooked pasta, sausage, and mushrooms.
Toss to combine, and season with salt and black pepper to taste.
Remove from heat.
Toss in chopped parsley before serving.

* Disclaimer: Although this post is sponsored by Villa Getaways. I’m only recommending them because we had experienced first hand, the impeccable service they had to offer when we traveled to Bali on our own a few years back.

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Browned Butter Salmon on Sundried Tomato Pasta – Delishar

I have no idea why it took me this long to make sun dried tomato pesto for the family. That thing is amaze-balls! I did make amends for that though. The day after I made this recipe, I went out to get more sun dried tomatoes. Proceed home to make myself a huge tub of pesto, which I have been using for chicken, fish, pasta, wraps, and sandwiches. It taste so good and it is so versatile!

The husband and kids absolutely adored me that evening because of this dinner. The husband was going on about how good the pasta was, and how the sweetness of the salmon beautifully compliments the pesto. The girls enjoyed their dinner so much that they requested for me to make it again, to pack in their school lunch box. Did I also mentioned that they were asking for additional serving? There were not enough to go around, twice! So, if you are making it. Make more. Leftovers, if any, is always good for lunch the next day.

I used organic extra virgin olive oil from Naturel and their range of organic pasta as well. Don’t skim on the fish. If you have not tried wild caught salmon, you are seriously missing out on the good stuff. I promise you, you will be able to taste the difference. I get my supply of wild caught fish from The Alaska Guys.

Browned Butter Salmon on Sundried Tomato Pasta

Delishar

Sundried Tomato Pasta

240 g fusilli
200 g asparagus woody ends removed and cut into 2 inch length
1/4 cup pasta cooking liquid
1 cup 25g fresh basil leaves
85 g sundried tomatoes
1/4 cup 59ml extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp shredded Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Brown Butter Salmon

4 pieces 200g each Wild caught salmon fillet from The Alaska Guys
4 tbsp 57g butter
4 tbsp honey
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 – 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes adjust to taste
3 cloves garlic minced
Salt and black pepper to taste

Sundried Tomato Pasta

Cook pasta in salted water until al dente.
In the last minute of cooking the pasta, add in asparagus.
Drain and set aside.
Place all the ingredients into food processor EXCEPT pasta and pasta liquid.
Process until you get a paste. If too thick, thin it out with pasta liquid.
Toss pesto with cooked pasta & asparagus.

Brown Butter Salmon

Preheat oven to 200C.
Season fish with salt and black pepper.
In a oven safe pan over medium heat, melt butter and allow to cook until it starts to brown and smell nutty. (be careful not to burn it)
Add lemon juice, honey, red pepper flakes and garlic into the pan.
Cook for 45 seconds, and scoop out half of the sauce for serving later.
Add salmon into the pan skin side down and cook for 3 minutes.
Flip, and transfer the pan to the oven to broil further 5-6 minutes.
Drizzle with the reserved brown butter sauce to serve.