Creamy Pesto Chicken
Who doesn’t love a rich, indulgent chicken recipe? We’ve used green pesto and sun-dried tomatoes for a fresh, creamy sauce that’s so tasty and totally slimming friendly!
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NutritionPer Serving
- Calories376
- Carbs9.6g
- Protein39g
- Fat19g
- Sugars7.7g
- Saturates6.2g
Your dishes
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For the full list of ingredients and comprehensive instructions, please see the recipe card below. Before you scroll, there’s important stuff in the blurb!
If you’re after a meal that’s light, tasty and super quick for a midweek dinner, our Creamy Pesto Chicken is perfect. This indulgent dish is really quick and easy to make. It even uses a few ingredients you probably already have handy in your store cupboard!
The creamy chicken breasts are simmered in a flavourful green pesto sauce with green beans and sun-dried tomatoes. We’ve used jarred green pesto and tomatoes to speed things up a little – you can normally find both in the condiments aisle at the supermarket. Serve with chips, mash or fluffy rice for an easy dinner the whole family will enjoy!
If you want to cut the calories even further, you can use a handful of halved cherry tomatoes instead of sun-dried ones.
What diets is this Creamy Pesto Chicken suitable for?
This Creamy Pesto Chicken can be made gluten free as long as you swap out the following ingredients for gluten free versions;
- Chicken stock cube
As always, take extra care when cooking for people with allergies and be sure to use different utensils, cookware and preparation areas.
Do you need any special ingredients to make Creamy Pesto Chicken?
You can find ready-made jarred green pesto and sun-dried tomatoes in most supermarkets. They’re usually with the other condiments or in the chilled section.
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‘Loved this recipe - served it to dinner guests. My preference was to dice the chicken. Very tasty, and felt indulgent.’
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We’ve used ready-made jarred green pesto to speed things up a bit. You can buy it on Amazon for a little more expense!
You’ll want to use a large frying pan to make this dish. They’re handy for lots of different recipes!
How many calories are in this Creamy Pesto Chicken?
There are 376 calories per portion in this Creamy Pesto Chicken, which means it falls into our Everyday Light category.
To cut down the amount of calories even more, you can simply halve the portion size and serve with a healthy accompaniment!
This Creamy Pesto Chicken is perfect if you’re following a calorie controlled diet, and fits well with any one of the major diet plans such as Weight Watchers.
As a guide, an average man needs around 2,500kcal (10,500kJ) a day to maintain a healthy body weight. For an average woman, that figure is around 2,000kcal (8,400kJ) a day. Obviously, if your goal is to lose weight then you might want to adjust these slightly! You can read more about these recommendations on the NHS website.
Step 1
Spray a large frying pan with low calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and fry gently for 5 minutes until softened a little.
Step 2
Add the chicken breasts and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side to lightly brown.
Step 3
Add the chicken stock and simmer over a medium heat for 10 minutes. Turn the chicken over and partially cover with a lid. Simmer for a further 10 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked and shows no sign of pinkness and the juices run clear.
Step 4
Stir in the green pesto, green beans and sun-dried tomatoes and simmer, uncovered, for 4-5 minutes or until the beans are tender but not soft.
Step 5
Remove from the heat and stir in the reduced fat cream cheese until completely blended. If the sauce is too thin, keep simmering gently to reduce to your liking. If the sauce is too thick, add a little water and stir in.
Step 6
Taste the sauce and season with salt and black pepper if needed.
Step 7
Serve sprinkled with a few torn basil leaves and with an accompaniment of your choice.
What could I serve with this Creamy Pesto Chicken?
Creamy Pesto Chicken goes really well with these sides…
How do you know when Creamy Pesto Chicken is cooked?
You’ll need to cook this Creamy Pesto Chicken for around 35 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and no pinkness remains.
Here in the UK, the standard advice is to cook food until it has reached 70°C and maintained that temperature for 2 minutes. This is to keep you and your family safe!
How long can you keep Creamy Pesto Chicken in the fridge?
Once you’ve put it out, ideally you should eat it within 4 hours.
If you allow any leftovers to cool, make sure to refrigerate in a container with a lid and chill. You can keep leftovers of Creamy Pesto Chicken in the fridge for approximately 1 day or so.
Can I freeze Creamy Pesto Chicken?
Yes you can! This recipe can be frozen, but please remember to do the following;
- Freeze it as soon as it is cold enough.
- Use a container or bag that is suitable for freezing.
Don’t forget to add a label with what it is, and on what date you put it in the freezer!
How do I reheat Creamy Pesto Chicken?
From chilled: Place in a microwave proof container with loosely fitting lid and heat for 4-7 minutes or until piping hot throughout.
From frozen: Defrost thoroughly overnight in the fridge and heat, loosely covered in the microwave for 4 -7 minutes or until piping hot throughout.
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Creamy Pesto Chicken
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Prep Time
10 MINS
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Cook Time
35 MINS
- KCals 376
- Carbs 9.6G
Instructions
- Spray a large frying pan with low calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and fry gently for 5 minutes until softened a little.
- Add the chicken breasts and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side to lightly brown.
- Add the chicken stock and simmer over a medium heat for 10 minutes. Turn the chicken over and partially cover with a lid. Simmer for a further 10 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked and shows no sign of pinkness and the juices run clear.
- Stir in the green pesto, green beans and sun-dried tomatoes and simmer, uncovered, for 4-5 minutes or until the beans are tender but not soft.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the reduced fat cream cheese until completely blended. If the sauce is too thin, keep simmering gently to reduce to your liking. If the sauce is too thick, add a little water and stir in.
- Taste the sauce and season with salt and black pepper if needed.
- Serve sprinkled with a few torn basil leaves and with an accompaniment of your choice.
Looking for Slimming World Syns or Weight Watchers (WW) Points?
With ever-changing plans and point calculations, we have made the decision to remove WW Points from the website - referring to your individual plan or advice from your consultant is always going to give the most accurate results.
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Recipe notes
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10 comments
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Christine CrispinThursday 4th January 2024
Which book is this in please as I have all your books?
LisaThursday 11th January 2024
Hi Christine
This is one of our website exclusive recipes. If you prefer to work with a hard copy, there is a print button at the end of the recipe, which will take you to a printer friendly version. Happy cooking!
NickiTuesday 12th September 2023
Would it be possible to add which books your recipes come from or if they are new ones?
I have them all & it saves trying to find them in the books if they are not there!
LisaTuesday 12th September 2023
Hi Nicky
When you search for a recipe on our website, if it is in a book or planner, the page will tell you which book, and even the page number.
for example https://pinchofnom.com/recipes/sausage-traybake/
Hope this helps
RebeccaTuesday 23rd November 2021
Hi, roughly how many calories would this be if we swap sundired tomatoes for cherry tomatoes as you suggested? Thanks. Looking forward to trying this tomorrow evening!!
LisaThursday 25th November 2021
Hi Rebecca.
If you are changing ingredients in recipes we’d suggest you recalculate the calories yourself using a calorie counting app. There are loads of free ones available. This article on our website shows you how we calculate the calories in our recipes. Hope this helps! https://pinchofnom.com/how-to-work-out-calories-and-points-in-a-recipe/
CathSunday 21st November 2021
Would red pepper pesto work with this recipe?
SharonMonday 22nd November 2021
Hi Cath, yes red pepper pesto would work in this recipe.Thanks for sharing your idea!
KarinaSunday 21st November 2021
Hi could i do this in the slow cooker!
LisaThursday 25th November 2021
Hi Karina
This recipe isn’t really suitable for a slow cooker as you need to reduce the sauce down until its thick and creamy. This is best done in a frying pan. Hope this helps and enjoy the recipe!
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