Chicken and hummus pasta with spinach and tomatoes uses hummus as a sauce to coat the pasta for a delicious, flavorful and super easy dinner.
A quick hello from the beach! The kiddos and I are down for a long weekend with my parents, and I'm loving the wide open days and the wide open skies. It's a good way to start summer.
OK, let's move right along to today's recipe.
I’m a hummus lover through and through.
Whether I’m making my own healthy hummus, getting into all the toppings with this Mediterranean layered hummus dip, getting festive with this holiday hummus or making hummus pita pizzas with veggies or chicken hummus bowls, I’m always reaching for some hummus.
I even use hummus mixed with salsa for a delicious dressing in this chicken quinoa salad.
So many ways to love hummus. ❤️
And today it’s chicken and hummus pasta.
Yup, hummus pasta. We’re using hummus to make a little sauce for our pasta and then adding in our seasoned and cooked chicken and some spinach and tomatoes.
The hummus gets coated on all the hot cooked pasta and makes such a luxurious and flavor “sauce” of sorts.
(It’s an idea I’ve had for years and to be honest, I wasn’t sure if it would work. I’ve tried it a few different times in slightly different ways as I recipe tested this for you all and from the very beginning, I was happy to find it most definitely does work!)
And it makes such an easy summer dinner! Just cook the chicken, cook the pasta, and pretty much toss everything together.
Plus, this is great served warm as soon as it’s ready, but also really good at room temperature. That makes it a great dish to bring to a party or potluck.
Or you can pack it up for a day at the pool or lake or beach.
Check out my 17 healthy pool dinners post for more ideas for meals that travel well in the summertime.
OK, let’s get to cooking.
Now, I’ve got some notes and tips coming up below on how to make chicken and hummus pasta. Just tryin’ to be helpful.
If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
Notes on making chicken and hummus pasta:
- Chicken: The recipe below calls for seasoning and cooking boneless, skinless chicken breasts on the stove. You could also grill the chicken if you prefer. And in a pinch, you could even just use some rotisserie chicken to mix into the pasta.
- Hummus: Feel free to use your favorite brand of hummus or make your own. You could even try using a flavored hummus, such as roasted red pepper, to change up the flavors in this recipe a bit if you'd like.
- Pasta: I’ve used bow-tie pasta here, but penne would also work great to help that hummus adhere to the pasta pieces. Feel free to use whole wheat pasta or even substitute a gluten-free pasta.
- Tomatoes: Cherry or grape (or cherub) tomatoes are my year-round go-to, but you could also use fresh summer tomatoes if you have some.
- Spinach: The spinach just slightly wilts into the pasta for this dish. If you’d like it more wilted, put the spinach in your large bowl before you add the hot pasta (after it’s been drained) right on top of it and the heat will help wilt the spinach more fully.
And of course, you know I love me some veggies. So if you’d like to add extra veggies to this dish, go for it!
I also think this would be great with some diced avocado mixed in when serving up the pasta. So if you love avocado, give that a try!
Now, let’s talk about what to do with the leftovers. Because this keeps great, which is another thing I love about it!
How to store leftover chicken and hummus pasta:
- The leftovers, once cooled, will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Enjoy cold, at room temperature or reheat in the microwave before serving.
- Add a splash or two of chicken broth, if needed, to loosen up the sauce a bit and revive the pasta when reheating.
There you have it.
I hope you give this dish a try for a fun new twist on a pasta salad.
Summertime, summer parties, days at the lake or pool or beach… we are ready for it! And we are going to be eating so well.
Enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
Chicken and Hummus Pasta
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced
- 1 ¼ teaspoons paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
For the pasta:
- 12 oz. bow tie pasta
- 1 (10 oz.) container hummus
- 1 (10 oz.) container cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
- 2 cups fresh baby spinach
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Season the chicken pieces on all sides.
- Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook, turning occasionally, until cooked through, about 6-7 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt generously. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. Once finished, reserve ½ cup of the pasta cooking liquid then drain the pasta in a colander and transfer to a large bowl.
- Toss the hot cooked pasta with the hummus, adding a few splashes of the reserved cooking liquid to help the hummus adhere to the pasta and form a sauce.
- Then add the chicken, tomatoes and spinach and mix well to combine.
- Serve immediately or serve at room temperature. Leftovers, once cooled, can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
Nutrition
James
Thanks for the chicken and hummus pasta recipe.