Chicken, Bacon & Eggplant Pesto Penne
I made this up with things I had on hand and it was delicious. The perfect mid-week meal.
I made this up with things I had on hand and it was delicious. The perfect mid-week meal.
- Carbohydrate 62.99689 g
- Cholesterol 201.04 mg
- Fat 31.54858999955 g
- Fiber 0.591300019621849 g
- Protein 37.04099 g
- Saturated Fat 9.06502949993786 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (290g)
- Sodium 345.916124999991 mg
- Sugar 62.4055899803781 g
- Trans Fat 3.15142874998781 g
- Calories 693 calories
Step-by-step
- Cook penne pasta according to packet directions
- Heat oil in a large frypan and fry bacon, brown chicken then add tomatoes, pesto and salt & pepper to taste.
- Drain pasta and add to frypan and mix well.
- Serve with parmesan cheese.
Vibrant red chopped tomatoes merge with rich, herbaceous eggplant pesto to coat toothsome tubes of penne, while rendered bacon fat infuses savory depth into cubed chicken thighs. Managing heat is the single technique that determines success or failure here. Searing chicken thighs requires a hot pan to build fond, but high heat will burn the bacon if rendered incorrectly; maintain medium-high heat initially to render the 3 rashers of chopped bacon before browning the 500 grams of chicken. Deglazing the skillet with the tinned tomatoes lifts those caramelized proteins off the metal surface, dissolving them directly into the sauce. Standard non-stick or cast-iron frypans work well for this preparation, though a heavy-bottomed stainless steel pan provides superior heat distribution for browning meats evenly. Cooking the 2 cups of penne pasta precisely to al dente ensures the starch molecules remain firm enough to bind with the sauce rather than turning mushy upon mixing. Stir the drained pasta directly into the simmering sauce for exactly 60 seconds to allow the tubular starches to absorb the oily pesto emulsion. Dietary adjustments require careful attention: replace standard dairy parmesan with hard sheep's milk cheese for a lactose-tolerant variant, or swap penne for brown rice pasta to achieve gluten-free results without altering the sauce ratios. Leftovers maintain proper texture for up to three days when stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
