Chicken Alfredo: If You're Gonna Do It, Do It Right!

If you’re like any other person, odds are that just about every time your parents took you out to a nice restaurant when you were a kid, you would usually order the chicken alfredo. And why not? That creamy, cheesy goodness lathered up against long strands of wide, fettuccini noodles with succulent strips of chicken is rarely a bad decision and is loved by children and adults alike. Unfortunately, when the craving hits us and we don’t feel like going out, we often turn to the pre-packed alfredo sauce in the supermarket, a pre-packed package of chicken strips, boil some spaghetti that’s been in the pantry since the Clinton administration, mix it up and call it dinner. Shame on you! All of you! Not only is chicken alfredo simple to make at home, it also tastes amazing! I’m going to show you how to make the best chicken fettuccini alfredo of your life, using quality ingredients and some simple know-how.

Ingredients:

2 cups of heavy cream

1 stick of unsalted butter

1 large garlic clove, chopped

3 cups of fresh grated parmesan cheese

¼ cup of freshly chopped parsley

1 16oz package of fettuccini noodles

4 small, boneless, skinless chicken breasts

3oz of chopped pancetta (optional)

Chicken

• · Pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees. Next, grab a large stainless steel or cast iron pan (or any other pan that is safe to place in a hot oven. No Teflon!) and place it over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add the pancetta. The purpose of this step is to render as much of the fat as possible to fry the chicken in. If you’d rather skip this step and just use olive oil, you are more than welcome to. But why would you want to do that?


• · Next, take your chicken breasts and season both sides with kosher salt and black pepper. Tip: the longer you allow the chicken to sit with the salt on it, the better it will taste.


• · After the pancetta is cooked thoroughly and you have a nice amount of fat in the pan, remove the pancetta and set it to the side. This will be added to the final dish… Assuming you don’t eat it all before then.


• · Next, raise the heat to medium-high and add your chicken. Allow it to fry for about 2 to 3 minutes on each side, depending on how large the breasts are.


• · After both sides have been cooked, place the entire pan in the oven for about 5 to six minutes, again, depending on the size. Should you really want to be sure that your chicken is done, it wouldn’t hurt to invest in a probe thermometer. Once the chicken hits 165 degrees, it’s done.


• · After your chicken is cooked, remove them for the oven and the pan and place the breasts on a cooling rack. Cover and allow them to sit for at least 5 minutes. Doing this will make for a much juicier breast.

Alfredo Sauce

• · Place a medium-sized saucepan over low heat. Thoroughly melt the butter then add the cream. Stir the mixture with a whisk for 5 minutes. It may appear that the two won’t want to mix at first, but just keep stirring and eventually they will.


• · After the 5 minutes are over, mix in the garlic. Next, mix in the parmesan cheese slowly (about a handful at a time). Adding the cheese this way will make for a smoother sauce and take less time for all of the cheese to melt. Continue to stir in the remainder of the cheese and allow it to sit to let the cheese completely melt, but be sure to give it a good stir every now and then. This could take maybe 10 minutes or longer, but trust me. Your patience will be well rewarded.


• · Once the cheese has completely melted and your whisk comes out of the sauce cleanly (meaning no massive clumps of cheese caught in it), add in the parsley. Stir it all together and put it on the back burner on simmer to keep it piping hot and ready for the noodles.

Noodles

• · Begin by grabbing the biggest pot you can find. I’m talking huge. Pour in about 16 to 20 cups of water (about a gallon to a gallon-and-a-half). Seriously. By using this much water, you allow the noodles plenty of room to expand as they cook and you’ll end up with great tasting noodles. Add a good dollop of salt to the pot, cover, and crank it up on high.


• · DO NOT ADD OIL TO THE WATER! If you add oil two things will happen: 1, it could get on the noodles when you drain them and this will mean that the alfredo sauce won’t stick to them. 2, it will only just sit on the top of the water and do nothing. Remember, oil and water do not mix. So just skip this oily mess all together and you’ll end up with a better dish in the end.


• · Once your massive pot has reached a rolling boil, add in your noodles. Don’t break them in half! This is another reason for using a huge pot. If fettuccini was supposed to be that short, they would be made that short. If any of the noodles poke out over the water’s surface, just wait a few seconds and gently push them down into the water. The noodles will begin to loosen up quickly.


• · Continue to stir every once in a while to avoid any clumping. After about 5 minutes take one of the noodles out and give it a tug. If it has some elasticity, like a rubber band, they’re probably ready. Go ahead and taste it to see. If the noodle is firm, yet soft enough to chew, the pasta is now al dente. I can’t remember what that means in Italian, but basically it means that it’s done.


• · Drain the pasta and be sure to shake as much water off of them as you can. Don’t add any oil here either! And don’t rinse! Don’t add anything! Simply strain the noodles and put them in a large bowl.


• · Next add your homemade alfredo sauce, the cooked pancetta, and stir to combine.

Serving

• · Grab four plates and add as much pasta as desired.


• · Take your chicken and slice them into strips by cutting horizontally across the breast.


• · Top each plate with one breast.


• · Now you can get fancy by adding any additional chopped parsley you might have left over or some grated parmesan… Or both! Just something to make it look pretty.


• And finally, eat it!