Midweek Meal: Skillet Chicken with Rigatoni, Broccoli, Tomatoes

Thursday night and I'm looking for an easy dinner recipe. How about a one pot meal? This one is adapted from America's Test Kitchen's Skillet Chicken, Broccoli, Ziti and Asiago Cheese. I didn't have sun-dried tomato so I substituted fresh tomatoes, seeded and sliced into strips. No ziti so I used rigatoni. Andy wasn't too enamored of the rigatoni and I'm inclined to agree with him. Next time I'll use penne if ziti isn't available. I didn't have any heavy cream either so I used milk. No Asiago so I used a mixture of cheddar and Gouda. In other words, I used whatever was on hand in my pantry and refrigerator!


Ingredients

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch squares

table salt and ground black pepper

2 tablespoons vegetable oil (or olive oil)

1 medium onion , minced (about 1 cup)

3 medium cloves garlic , minced (I love garlic so I added twice the amount)

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

8 ounces ziti or penne (2 /12 cups)

2 3/4 cups water

1 2/3 cups low-sodium chicken broth

12 ounces broccoli florets (4 cups)

1/4 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes , rinsed and chopped coarse

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 ounce grated asiago cheese or parmesan cheese(1/2 cup), plus extra for serving

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Preparation

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add the chicken in a single layer and cook for 1 minute without stirring. Stir the chicken and continue to cook until most, but not all, of the pink color has disappeared and the chicken is lightly browned around the edges, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken to a clean bowl and set aside.

2. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil, onion, and 1/2 teaspoon salt to the skillet. Return the skillet to medium-high heat and cook, stirring often, until the onion is softened, 2 to 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, oregano, and pepper flakes, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

3. Add the ziti, 2 cups of the water, and the broth. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until the liquid is very thick and syrupy and almost completely absorbed, 12 to 15 minutes.

4. Add the broccoli, sun-dried tomatoes, and the remaining 3/4 cup water. Cover, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the broccoli turns bright green and is almost tender, 3 to 5 minutes.

5. Uncover and return heat to high. Stir in the cream, Asiago, and reserved chicken broth.Simmer uncovered until the sauce is thickened and the chicken is cooked and heated through, 1-2 minutes. Turn off the heat. Stir in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve, passing more Asiago cheese at the table, if desired.