This chicken broccoli ziti recipe is sure to become a weeknight dinner staple! The broccoli chicken ziti combination has been on my “to create” list for a while and while originally I was going to go in a baked and cheesy direction, our trip to Italy inspired me to keep it simple, highlighting the flavors of this chicken broccoli pasta in a more understated way. And I think you’ll love how it turned out! We have chewy pasta, tender chicken and broccoli, and crunchy breadcrumbs. Perfection and while I may be biased, I think this is the best chicken broccoli ziti recipe out there!
If you love easy pasta dish recipes for weeknight dinners (happens at least once a week at our house!), be sure to try my orecchiette with sausage, 10-minute pesto tortellini, or sheet pan pierogi dinner next time and serve with my favorite NA sparkling rose.
Estimated reading time: 8 minutes
Table of Contents
What You’ll Love About Chicken Broccoli Ziti
- Deliciously simple flavors
- Tender broccoli, satisfying chicken, chewy pasta, and crunchy breadcrumbs
- Made with nutritious ingredients (it’s got protein, vegetables, and carbs!)
- Just 10 minutes prep time
- Just 20 minutes cook time
Ingredients
You’ll need just 8 basic ingredients to make this simple chicken broccoli ziti recipe:
- Panko – Using panko over traditional breadcrumbs is recommended as their flat shape helps add major crunch to the dish. Traditional bread crumbs can be so small (unless they are homemade!) that it doesn’t get as crunchy as we want it.
- Butter – Use high quality butter for best flavor.
- Broccoli – Look for fresh and bright green broccoli. You can use crowns of broccoli or use prepared broccoli florets that are already cut and washed. (You will still want to trim these to ensure they are similar sizes.)
- Ziti – You can’t really make this broccoli chicken ziti recipe without the ziti, but you totally can use a different pasta shape if you want or need to. Try something similar like penne, rigatoni, or mostaccioli.
- Olive oil – Use high quality cooking olive oil to saute the chicken and a finishing olive oil for drizzling before serving.
- Chicken breast – I’ve used boneless skinless chicken breast, but you could also use chicken thighs, just adjust cooking time as dark meat can take longer to cook.
- Garlic – Use fresh garlic cloves so that you can slice them. Frozen or jarred garlic can also be used in a pinch.
- Parmesan cheese – Use a fresh Parmesan cheese for best results.
How to Make Broccoli Chicken Ziti
Ok, let’s make this broccoli and chicken pasta!
- Toast bread crumbs. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a nonstick pan over medium heat and toast panko until it is golden brown.
- Cook pasta. Boil pasta to al dente in a large pot, according to package instructions, but drain 2 minutes early. RESERVE SOME PASTA WATER!
- Prep ingredients. Clean and trim broccoli florets. Cut chicken into small pieces. Thinly slice garlic.
- Cook chicken. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and remaining 1 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken, season with salt, and cook until browned.
- Cook broccoli. Add broccoli and garlic to chicken and toss everything together. Season with salt and cook, until chicken is cooked through and broccoli is tender.
- Combine pasta. Add pasta and half of pasta water to skillet and toss everything together. Add more pasta water if mixture seems dry.
- Finish. Top pasta with broccoli and chicken with a drizzle of finishing olive oil, toasted bread crumbs, freshly grated Parmesan, and freshly cracked pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make this gluten-free?
Yes, you’ll just need to make a few swaps in this recipe for chicken broccoli ziti to make it gluten-free. Swap the panko for your favorite gluten-free bread crumbs and swap the pasta for your favorite gluten-free pasta.
How many calories are in chicken broccoli ziti?
The exact nutrition will vary based on recipe and ingredients. The full nutrition estimates can be found below the recipe card, but each serving has an estimated 642 calories.
Storage Instructions
Store leftover chicken broccoli and ziti leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
How to reheat chicken broccoli ziti
Reheat pasta in a hot skillet until cooked through for best results, or microwave until warm.
How to Serve Chicken Broccoli Pasta to the Whole Family
I get it, feeding kids can be tough! But following the Division of Responsibility and knowing your job and your child’s job makes it SO much more enjoyable. You’ll be able to feed your kids any meal, which will help ensure that they are eating a variety of nutritious foods – with plenty of play food sprinkled in. 😉
As with any meal, I would recommend serving this alongside a few items you know your kids will eat (at our house it’s milk, fruit, and bread and butter). If this is a new food, try serving a tiny portion in pinch bowls “taster bowls” so they can sample it.
All of my articles on feeding kids can be found here and if you want a FULL list of all of the videos I have with hacks, tips, scripts, and ideas for feeding kids, check out my instagram or tiktok page.
What to Serve with Chicken and Broccoli Pasta
I created this chicken ziti broccoli recipe as a complete meal, but if you have a family with large appetites or want to stretch it a bit, serve it with one of these easy sides.
- Garlic bread
- Baguette and butter
- Simple green salad
- Lemon arugula salad
- Roasted grape tomatoes
More Easy Pasta Recipes
If you like this chicken broccoli and ziti recipe, you might also like some of these other easy pasta recipes:
- Udon Vegetable Stir Fry Noodles
- Shrimp Linguine with Garlic Breadcrumbs
- Orecchiette with Sausage
- Bucatini Cacio e Pepe
- Penne Pomodoro
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Chicken Broccoli Ziti with Crispy Bread Crumbs
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Skillet
Description
This easy weeknight chicken broccoli ziti recipe with crunchy bread crumbs is delicious, made with nutritious ingredients, and ready in just 30 minutes!
Ingredients
Instructions
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter in a nonstick skillet over medium heat and toast breadcrumb mixture for 2-4 minutes, until golden brown. Set aside.
- Cook pasta according to package instructions, but drain 2 minutes early. BE SURE TO RESERVE 1/2 CUP PASTA WATER.
- Meanwhile, clean and trim broccoli. Chop florets into small, 1-inch pieces. Cut chicken into small, 1-inch pieces. Thinly slice garlic.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and remaining 1 tablespoon of butter to extra large skillet. When it’s hot, add chicken to pan and season with ½ teaspoon of sea salt. Cook for about 4-5 minutes, until browned.
- Add chopped broccoli and garlic to pan, tossing everything together. Season with remaining ½ teaspoon of sea salt and cook for about 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until broccoli has softened and chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
- When pasta is finished cooking, add drained pasta to pan, along with 1/4 of the pasta water.
- Toss everything together and add extra pasta water if mixture seems dry.
- Top with a drizzle of olive oil, toasted bread crumbs, freshly grated Parmesan cheese and freshly cracked pepper to taste.
Keywords: chicken broccoli ziti recipe, broccoli chicken ziti, chicken broccoli pasta, chicken and broccoli pasta
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Brenda
My kids loved this meal, I wasn’t sure they would because it’s all mixed together, it’s a keeper.
★★★★★
Emily
HA! I know how that goes. 🙂
Pam Riordan
Didn’t have a sauce of some sort, not much flavor and very dry…I added crushed tomatoes.
★★★
Emily
Hi Pam! Yes, it’s supposed to be a very simple dish. Did you add cooking water to make it glossy? That definitely helps ensure it doesn’t get dry. And a drizzle of olive oil before serving is highly recommended! The tomatoes sound like a yummy addition as well.