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This easy Chicken Bruschetta Pasta is packed with tender chicken breast and zesty tomatoes in a sweet and tart balsamic sauce. Enjoy it with a glass of wine on date night, or at family dinner with sparkling grape juice for the kids.
Bruschetta and pasta are both classic Italian dishes, so why not put them together? This bruschetta chicken pasta brings your favorite style of pasta together with chopped basil, chunks of fresh tomato, and homemade vinaigrette dressing. Every bite bursts with a comforting blend of familiar flavors. This makes it the perfect family meal, since even picky eaters won’t find anything to complain about. Trust me, this recipe is going straight into your Sunday dinner rotation.
What Is Bruschetta?
Bruschetta is a classic Italian appetizer traditionally served on a slice of toasted bread. The bread is rubbed in olive oil and garlic, then topped with a mixture of chopped tomatoes and basil, sometimes along with other ingredients. These toppings are usually tossed in balsamic vinegar before being piled on top of the crispy bread. For this recipe, we’re taking all those traditional bruschetta flavors and swapping the bread with pasta!
Recipe Ingredients
- Pasta: I like to use bowtie pasta because the balsamic sticks to it really well, but you can use any kind of pasta you prefer.
- Olive Oil
- Chicken breast: Deboned, skinless, and cut into cubes.
- Salt and pepper
- Tomatoes: I use Roma tomatoes, which are tender but still hold up well in the sauce.
- Basil: Cut the fresh leaves into thin strips.
- Garlic: Minced whole cloves.
- Tomato sauce
- Balsamic vinegar: For the balsamic glaze.
- Granulated sugar: This goes into the glaze.
How to Make Bruschetta Chicken Pasta
- Cook the pasta. Boil a pot of water over the stove and prepare the pasta according to the directions on the package.
- Cook the chicken. Season your diced chicken with salt and pepper. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a nonstick skillet and add the cubed chicken. Cook it until the chicken has browned evenly and it’s cooked through.
- Make the bruschetta. Dice the tomatoes and save the juices from them in a small bowl. Combine the diced tomatoes, tomato juices, basil, olive oil, salt pepper, and garlic.
- Make the tomato sauce. Sauté the rest of the garlic for about 20 seconds and then stir in the bruschetta. Add the tomato sauce to the pan and bring it to a boil. Pour the prepared pasta into the saucepan and toss it all around until the sauce coats the noodles completely.
- Make the vinaigrette. Bring the vinegar and sugar to a boil in a small separate pan. Reduce the heat to a simmer and continue to cook it until the vinaigrette turns into a thick syrup. Add it to the prepared pasta, tossing it again so the vinaigrette coats the noodles.
- Serve. Plate the pasta and top it with the prepared chicken before serving.
Recipe Tips And Variations
- Marinate the chicken in extra balsamic vinaigrette for a few hours, but not more than 4 hours to avoid acidity breakdown.
- Dice the chicken into even pieces so everything cooks at the same time and prevents undercooking or dryness.
- Check the pasta cooking instructions on the box, as different types of pasta vary in cooking time and texture.
- Add more to the bruschetta with options like onions, feta, beans, cured meats, green olives, and veggies like eggplant, artichoke, zucchini, mushrooms, or bell pepper.
- Substitute protein with beef, ground turkey, Italian sausage, tofu, or remove it and add beans for a complete vegetarian meal.
- For a gluten-free version, replace pasta with gluten-free noodles, sweet potato noodles, rice noodles, zucchini noodles, or tapioca noodles.
- Add spice with spicy sausage instead of chicken, or sprinkle in some red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, or hot sauce.
Serving Suggestions
This pasta dinner pairs really well with these baked garlic parmesan zucchini chips or my parmesan broccoli. Another great option is this bacon wrapped asparagus, which goes perfectly with the balsamic flavor in the pasta. Keep the Italian theme going and finish the meal with some pignoli cookies and a mug of cinnamon dolce latte.
Storing and Reheating Leftovers
- You can keep leftovers in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for 3 months. Keep it sealed tightly, either in a bowl with plastic wrapped snugly over it or in an airtight container.
- When you’re ready to reheat it, either warm it on the stove over medium heat, or microwave it for 30 seconds at a time until it’s warmed through.
Easy Chicken Pasta Recipes
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Chicken Bruschetta Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound bow tie pasta
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts,, cut into cubes
- salt and freshly ground black pepper,, to taste
- 6 roma tomatoes
- 10 fresh basil leaves, cut into thin strips
- 4 tablespoons olive oil, , divided
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 cloves garlic,, minced, divided
- ½ cup tomato sauce
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar
- ½ tablespoon sugar
Instructions
- Prepare the pasta according to the directions on the package.
- Meanwhile, season the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a nonstick skillet; add the cubed chicken to the skillet and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, or until browned and the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F degrees. Set aside.
- Dice the tomatoes and save the juices in a small bowl. Combine the tomatoes, tomato juices, basil, 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt, pepper, and half of the minced garlic; set aside. You can also make this ahead of time and refrigerate for 2 hours, covered.
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a heavy bottom saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the remaining garlic and sauté for about 20 seconds, or until soft – do not burn the garlic.
- Increase the heat to medium-high and stir in the prepared tomato salad. Add tomato sauce to the pan and bring to a boil. Add the prepared pasta to the saucepan and toss around until coated. Remove from heat and set aside.
- In a small saucepan, combine the balsamic vinegar and sugar and bring to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer and continue to cook until the sauce turns to a thick syrup. Remove from heat and add it to the prepared pasta.
- Transfer the pasta to a platter. Arrange the chicken over the pasta and serve.
Equipment
Notes
- To Store: Keep sealed tightly in the fridge covered in plastic or an airtight container for up to 5 days or freeze it for up to 3 months.
- To Reheat: Cook on the stove over medium heat or microwave in 30-second intervals until heated through.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
Parmesan is a great cheese to top you pasta dishes but everyone uses it. Try experimenting with other Italian cheeses. One that I would suggest is Pecorino Toscano a great sheep’s milk cheese. It is great for grating.
I know this was posted years ago, but I’ve made this recipe several times since I found it, including tonight, and I just LOVE it! It’s so so good!!
Hi! I hope someone can help me, because I just went and bought all the ingredients but I bought balsamic vinaigrette dressing because I’m new to all this so don’t judge me lol. Can i use that to mix with sugar or is there any replacement? Thanks in advance!
This was a really good, fresh tasting dish!! I cooked some baby bella mushrooms with a little dried basil and pepper on the side then added to tomato mixture. I also used a little extra tomato sauce (depends on your preference of the sauce’s consistency) and only 1/3 cup of balsamic.
Hi!! I looove that you used mushrooms! Thanks for the tip – I’ll definitely add those next time I make it. My husband will love it even more! 😀
Katerina –
Is it 4 or 5 tbsp of olive oil? Directions equal out to 5 (1 for chicken, 2 for bruchetta and 2 more cooking the sauce) but ingredient list says 4.
Also, can I use balsamic glaze instead or will it not be the same? I have the one from Trader Joe’s. Says Trader Giotto’s Balsamic Glaze . thank you!!!
Janelle: did you use TJ’s balsamic vinegar glaze? I’m wondering the same thing. THANKS…Shelly
For some reason mine had wayyyyyy too much balsamic, it ruined the dish. Did I read 1/2 cup correctly?
You have to reduce it in a separate sauce pan you should have no more then 1/4cup less is great or you can use some balsamique glaze (that you can purchase at the grocery store)
Hey. I made this tonight. I was feeling sketchy about it because I’m the past, anything I put balsamic vinegar on didn’t turn out good. But this! Delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
Awesome! SO happy you liked it! 😀 Thank you!
Made this last night ; my family loved it
Do people not usually use the juices from the tomatoes in recipes? I can’t even imagine trying to separate them?! LOL Also it bothered me so much that the pasta in the video looks SO much different then the one in the photos! but anywhoo I made this last night and it was so delicious. I definitely changed it up a bit tho. And mine actually did look like the one in the photos! I think I ended up using a cup and half of the pasta sauce (I like my pastas saucy) and I only used half of the balsamic vinegar/sugar and just threw it in the sauce as I cooked the noodles. I also used dried basil because that’s all I had on hand. But otherwise a good recipe that I’ll probably make again!
This will be my second time making this dish. Thank you for sharing. 🙂
How can a recipe with just a few basic ingredients and requiring very little preparation be, in your words, a waste of time and money? In my opinion you are being impolite and disrespectful. Maybe, dare I suggest, you should look at your own possible culinary failings. Just a thought.
My comment was a response to a comment from Amanda. Seems it may have been indicated differently
HI! Thank you for saying what I was thinking! 😉 XO