One Pot Creamy Spaghetti with Zucchini, Mushroom and Chicken 1 | The Missing Lokness

Happy Lunar New Year! I hope you got many red pockets! I got two from my parents. My parents would collect a few for Bryan and I from our relatives in Hong Kong. I am already married, so I am usually the one giving out red pockets. But since I am in the States and I don’t know many Chinese, the only one that I am giving out to is my sister. But last year when Bryan and I were in Hong Kong, we were handing out many red pockets to all my little cousins and friends who are single. That was a really fun experience.

Other than red pockets, we don’t do much to celebrate. One thing we have been doing for a few years is take picture and record a greeting video for our families in Hong Kong. Since we can’t be with them in person, it is nice to record a message and say hi to them. This year, I made some paper puppets for the video. Took me a couple of days, but they are so adorable! Totally worth it!

Our Paper Puppets (Bryan, Me, Sheep, & My Sister)
Our Paper Puppets (Bryan, Me, Sheep, & My Sister)
The Real Size Us
The Real Size Us

Enough about new year, let’s talk about food! Ever since my first one pot pasta, I just couldn’t have enough. It is so easy and delicious. This one is not in a tomato sauce. It is a simple cream sauce with just a little bit of cream. The starch in the spaghetti do all the magic to thicken the sauce. Umami mushrooms, sweet peas, fresh zucchini and savory chicken… Great blend of flavors! And pretty healthy! The original recipe does not have any meat. To satisfy my meat lover (Bryan), I tossed in some chicken cubes, which gave the pasta even more flavors. Absolutely made the the lazy one (me!!) I know you will like this! 🙂

One Pot Creamy Spaghetti with Zucchini, Mushroom and Chicken 3 | The Missing Lokness
One Pot Creamy Spaghetti with Zucchini, Mushroom and Chicken 2 | The Missing Lokness

One Pot Creamy Spaghetti with Zucchini, Mushroom and Chicken (Adapted from Damn Delicious)

2 servings

Ingredients:

–   2 boneless skinless chicken thighs (cut into ½-inch cubes)

–   8 ounces cremini mushrooms

–   2 garlic cloves (smashed and thinly sliced)

–   1 thyme sprig

–   8 ounces spaghetti

–   1 zucchini (thinly sliced and quartered)

–   1/3 cup frozen peas

–   ¼ cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving

–   ¼ cup heavy cream

–   salt

–   ground black pepper

Directions:

  1. For the mushrooms, rub and wipe off any dirt with paper towels. Trim the stems and slice thinly.
  2. In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat, warm 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the chicken cubes. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until slightly golden brown. Remove from pot and set aside.
  3. In the same pot, add mushrooms, garlic, thyme, 3 cups water and spaghetti. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer, uncovered. Cook until pasta is al dente and liquid has reduced, about 12 – 14 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add zucchini and pea after 3 minutes of simmering.
  4. Add the cooked chicken cubes. Stir in Parmesan and heavy cream. Cook for 2 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper to your taste. Transfer to serving plates. Top with extra Parmesan. Serve immediately.

Tips:

  1. If the spaghetti is too long and can’t fit in the pot, don’t worry. Once the bottom of the spaghetti soften, you can push down the spaghetti. Do that one or two times until all the spaghetti have submerged in water.
  2. Adding the zucchini and pea later in the cooking will prevent them from being overcooked and fallen apart.

Source: Read