Rasta Pasta is loaded with tender chunks of chicken, bell peppers, and jerk seasoning for a quick delicious meal that’s ready in just 30 minutes!
Everyone could use a few 30 minute meal recipes in their back pocket for those busy weeknights! Try my delicious Easy Baked Ziti or perfectly cheesy One-Pot Chili Mac and Cheese the next time you need dinner to hit the table quickly!
Rasta Pasta is a Caribbean-style dish that combines sautéed bell peppers with tender pieces of chicken with a creamy pasta cheese sauce! This meal will shock your taste buds from the amount of flavor that’s packed into it from the jerk seasoning, garlic, and green onions!
It’s a toss-up on why I keep turning back to this spicy Rasta Pasta chicken recipe over and over again! Is it the overall mouthwatering flavor, that it’s a one-pot meal, or the fact that I can have this on the table in 30 minutes for a meal my family will actually sit down and eat on hectic weeknights?
Probably all of the above. No, Definitely all of the above! You can even easily mix this dish up by serving it with sautéed shrimp instead of chicken for a fresh new variation on the recipe!
Ingredient Notes
This Rasta Pasta recipe starts by cooking the penne pasta in water while slicing skinless chicken breasts. Then, you’ll toss the sliced chicken in jerk seasoning before cooking it in olive oil.
To finish off this dish cook up red, green, and yellow bell peppers with green onion and garlic. Then add in chicken broth, full-fat coconut milk, and parmesan cheese.
If you aren’t a fan of jerk seasoning since it’s traditionally spicy you can easily make your own instead of getting a store-bought envelope! Just mix together salt, pepper, thyme, all spice, brown sugar, garlic powder, and cinnamon.
Feel free to serve this dish over your favorite kind of pasta! Rigatoni bucatini, rotini, or even fettuccine noodles would all work really well in this recipe!
How To Make Rasta Pasta
- Slice the raw chicken breasts and then toss it in spicy jerk seasoning.
- Fry the chicken in oil in a dutch oven over medium heat until there’s no pink left. Remove and set it aside.
- Cook the bell peppers in the same dutch oven with oil. Add garlic and remaining jerk seasoning then cook for another minute.
- Pour in the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Then add in coconut milk and simmer until the mixture thickens.
- Add in the chicken and parmesan cheese. Remove from heat and stir.
- Stir in the cooked al dente penne pasta once the cheese has melted. Serve with parmesan cheese, enjoy!
Can I Use Leftover Chicken In Rasta Pasta?
Yes, you would want to use approximately 2 cups of chopped or shredded chicken. Instead of frying it in olive oil, you would just mix it well with the jerk seasoning.
I Don’t Have Coconut Milk – What Else Could I Use?
You could use heavy cream, coconut cream, or half and half.
What Could I Substitute For The Chicken Broth?
You could use vegetable broth or combine 1 cup of water with 1 Tablespoon of olive oil.
How Much Garlic Powder Would I Substitute For 2 Cloves Of Garlic?
You would use ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder in this recipe.
This Rasta Pasta is one of my go-to meals when I’m looking for dinner to hit the table in no time on a weeknight! Here are more 30-minute meals loaded with pasta to tuck away that your family will love!
- American Chop Suey – Pure comfort food made of ground beef, tomato, onion, green pepper, macaroni, and spices for a delicious meal the whole family will love!
- Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan Pasta – Loaded with tomato sauce, cheese, and chicken for a quick weeknight dinner option!
- Cajun Chicken Pasta – Spicy cajun-rubbed chicken sits on a bed of pasta that’s been tossed with a creamy sauce that has a kick!
- Best Ever Creamy Mac and Cheese – Stovetop mac and cheese made with sharp cheddar, parmesan cheese, heavy cream, whole milk, butter, and mustard powder!
- Instant Pot Chicken Alfredo – A thick, creamy, cheesy dish served with tender pieces of sauteed chicken!
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Rasta Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound Penne pasta
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 3 tablespoons jerk seasoning divided
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 red bell pepper sliced or chopped
- 1 green bell pepper sliced or chopped
- 1 yellow bell pepper sliced or chopped
- ½ cup green onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic grated or pressed
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 14 ounces full-fat coconut milk or one 14 ounce can
- 2 cups parmesan cheese freshly grated, divided – 1 ½ cup in the recipe, ½ cup for garnish
- green onions sliced thin and/or parsley optional garnish
Instructions
- Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente or desired tenderness.
- Slice raw chicken (about finger size). Toss the chicken with 1 Tablespoon jerk seasoning. In a dutch oven, fry the chicken in 1 Tablespoon oil until cooked (for about 5 minutes, until no pink left). Remove the chicken from the dutch oven and set it aside.
- Use the same dutch oven to cook the bell peppers with 1 Tablespoon oil for 5 minutes. Add garlic and jerk seasoning and cook for another minute.
- Pour in the chicken broth and bring to a boil, then add coconut milk and reduce heat to a simmer. Heat until the broth mixture thickens (about 5 minutes).
- Add the chicken and parmesan cheese.
- Remove from heat and stir well.
- Once the cheese is melted, stir in the penne. As the pasta cools a bit, sauce will begin to thicken and stick to the pasta, keep gently mixing until all the ingredients are incorporated well.
- Serve with reserved ½ cup of parmesan cheese.
Notes
- Jerk seasoning is traditionally somewhat spicy. If you aren’t a fan of heat but like all the flavors in this recipe, you can make your own jerk seasoning using salt, pepper, thyme, allspice, brown sugar, garlic powder, and cinnamon – just leave out the cayenne pepper which usually accompanies this seasoning.
- Storage Instructions: Rasta Pasta will keep for 3-4 days in the fridge. It reheats well on the stovetop, in the oven, or microwave. If you have leftover cheese and coconut milk or broth, you can add a bit of each in when reheating. If it is well wrapped and airtight, it should keep for 6 months in the freezer.
- Other FAQ suggestions:
- Can I use leftover chicken in this recipe? Yes, you would want to use approximately 2 cups of chopped or shredded chicken. Instead of frying it in olive oil, you would just mix it well with the jerk seasoning.
- I can’t find coconut milk – what else could I use? You could use heavy cream, coconut cream, or half and half.
- What could I substitute for the chicken broth? You could use vegetable broth or combine 1 cup of water with 1 Tablespoon of olive oil.
- How much garlic powder would I substitute for 2 cloves of garlic? You would use ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder in this recipe.
Nutrition
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