Chicken Verde Pasta

I have always loved salsa verde, chicken enchiladas suiza, and all things involving tomatillos and cilantro. It is just one of my favorite flavors. So, my idea here was to get the same flavor all in one pot and keep the fat fairly low. Usually, this sort of thing involves cooking the chicken, making the salsa, rolling the enchiladas, baking and a few more steps I left out. But, here I cooked it all together and used pasta that I cooked right in the skillet instead of tortillas, cutting way down on the time it takes to put together, but keeping the same flavor. Let me tell you, this is an awesome one-pot meal. It is super tasty, and I used non-fat or reduced fat dairy products and brown rice pasta to keep it healthy. Quick, easy, healthy, delicious and one-pot = perfect!

I used brown rice pasta, but pretty much any pasta would work, just keep a close eye on it because the cooking time might be a little different.

Usually, I would use non-fat Greek yogurt for this, and I put that in the recipe, but if you are able to find quark, it is even better as it is not quite as tangy. I used quark in the recipe pictured because I had just recently made a trip in to Atlanta and had some on hand. But, Greek yogurt works just as well. I just end up adding a little more salt when I use the yogurt.

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Chicken Verde Pasta

Author Michelle

Yield 6

Ingredients

• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast (I buy the thin sliced because they cook faster.)
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 6 tomatillos, roughly chopped
• 2 4.5 ounce cans chopped green chilies
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder (Use a real onion if you like them.)
• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped plus more for garnish if desired
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 pound brown rice macaroni (You can use regular macaroni if you like.)
• 4 cups shredded low-fat Mexican cheese blend
• 6 ounces fat-free Greek yogurt or quark
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. In a large skillet (I used a 12 inch cast iron.), combine chicken, broth, tomatillos, chilies, garlic, onion powder, and cilantro.
2. Cook over medium heat until chicken is cooked through (about 20 minutes).
3. Cut chicken into bite sized pieces. I did this right in the skillet.
4. Stir in pasta and olive oil and cook until tender. Stir frequently to keep the pasta from sticking to bottom of the pan. The olive oil helps with this a bit, but you still need to stir it. Mine took about 15 minutes, but the time may be different if you use a different type of pasta.
5. Turn heat off and stir in about 3 cups of the cheese and yogurt. Leave the pan on the burner and stir until all of the cheese melts and everything is well combined.
6. Stir in salt to taste.
7. Sprinkle remaining cup of cheese on top and place in the oven until it melts.
8. Garnish with additional cilantro if desired.

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