Reviewed: Nov. 21, 2009

Meh. I'm surprised this made it into Allrecipes' "Tried & True" Quick & Easy Favorite's cookbook (sorry!). This was quite mediocre. Just like Lampchop's Mom suggested, this is basically a "snooty" version of Chicken Helper. I was really hoping for a great tasting update of a childhood favorite (yes, I LOOOVED all the Helpers - beef, chicken tuna), but this was bland, bland, bland! I even s&p'd my chx. REALLY well, add. 1 sm. chopeed onion & 3 cloves of minced garlic. As many have advised (thanks!), I too used only 2 pans. I can't see the pt. in using 3 sparate pans PLUS a casserole dish (my gosh!) - just boil your pasta, and, while it's cooking, brown your chx./veggies 2gether, add the sauce ing., bring to a gentle boil, reduce as directed and then add the cooked pasta and voila! One thing to note: Fresh herbs can be $$$, esp. if you're on a budget (and my herb picking/garden season is long gone here in the "Windy City"). The $'s spent on fresh chives (parsley was relatively inexpensive, but chives were $1.99) was a waste when considering how much I actually used! One more thing to note: I wish I would have mix. all of my sauce ing. 2gether (in a bowl, w/ a whisk) B4 add. to the skillet. The cheese part was kinda grainy. Served w/ garlic butter crescents, this was a decent meal, but nothing to rave about. My fiance & I didn't even have 2nd's or save the leftovers :( Thx. anyways!

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Mickey

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: De Soto, Missouri, USA

Living In: Elgin, Illinois, USA

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Reviewed: Nov. 10, 2009

Killer. It's like a snooty Chicken Helper. I did add fresh garlic, one sliced onion and half a package of fresh mushrooms because I didn't have enough chicken. I sprinkled just a touch of crushed red pepper flake in the sauce. Very, very good. (My husband thought it was too rich, so next time I might see if I can't slim it down a bit. He also suggested I try this with rock shrimp.)

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tat2whttrsh aka Lambchop's Mom

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Seattle, Washington, USA

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Reviewed: Aug. 6, 2009

This is reminded me of an alfredo sauce with chicken and peppers. Also, you can prepare this in two pans, not four! One for the Rotini, and one for everything else. Gives it more flavor that way. The only thing i changed is i added salt and pepper to the chicken while it cooked and some freah chopped garlic tossed in with the bell peppers. I expected more flavor out of it tho.. and more parm cheese would only make it taste more like alfredo..

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Chefette Trisha

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

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Reviewed: Jul. 30, 2009

I used chicken nuggets instead and it turned out great. My two year old kept saying, "I lub it!"

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Shana

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Reviewed: Jun. 2, 2009

This recipe is very good. We will definitly be making it again. Also, I agree with chefsingledad on his point of using only two pans. It works just fine that way.

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owlstj

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Reviewed: Jan. 19, 2009

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SFS77

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: Jan. 18, 2009

Absolutely amazing, in my top ten recipes of all time!

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mariellef

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Reviewed: Jan. 11, 2009

I thought this was pretty darn good. I have to agree with CHEFSINGLEDAD though, hence only four stars. Four pans are unnecessary. I chose to use the same pan and it turned out great. My family just ate it up and loved it. I did not use the green and red peppers as our family doesn't like them, but I did add in some ground black pepper. Also, I didn't have any half and half on hand, so I used an equal amount of evaporated milk instead.

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WifeyJo

Cooking Level: Beginning

Living In: Cannon Falls, Minnesota, USA

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Reviewed: Jan. 3, 2009

Pretty good! I didn't have peppers, so I used onions and frozen broccoli/ cauliflower, sauteing the onions with the chicken and then tossing in the frozen vegetables at the end (put a lid on it, they steamed nicely and even caramelized a little--and they could also be added to the pasta at the end of the boiling, two birds with one stone). My half-and-half separated as soon as it heated, so I ended up thickening the sauce with a little flour/water before pouring it over. Though it wasn't creamy, it tasted fine. I added minced garlic in with the herbs, and the sauce didn't look pretty but it smelled heavenly. Then our dinner guest was a little late, so I put it in the oven topped with mozzarella to stay hot. Everyone liked it, most people had seconds, though if I make it again I'm going to add a lot more seasoning.

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jenonymous

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

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Reviewed: Dec. 9, 2008

Pretty good- this is basically like an alfredo sauce with chicken and peppers. I used two whole peppers because I'm always for adding more veggies and used fat free evaporated milk instead of the half and half. Also, this recipe CAN be made in two pans, not four! One for pasta, and one for everything else.

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Laura D.

Cooking Level: Beginning

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Reviewed: Nov. 8, 2008

This recipe is easy and very good. I never have heavy cream so I needed to use milk. Due to timing I needed to put it in the oven to keep warm for dinner. The 15 minutes in the oven evaporated enough of the milk to thicken it and crisped up the top which really was a hit with the kids. I did use an oven safe skillet. I also added one chicken bouillion cube to my milk/ butter mixture for some extra flavor. I have made this 3 times in 2 weeks and it is gone by the second day.

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TURNER3

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

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Reviewed: Jul. 10, 2008

This recipe is DELICIOUS! My husband is NOT a fan of casseroles, but this is a little bit more like a pasta dish than a "casserole". (We're from The South where anything called a "Casserole" is mixed with mayo or COMS and covered in a layer of crumbled crackers with tons of cheese and baked for a while.) I made this for him and his bandmates one evening this week and it received stellar reviews!! It's perfect for the spring/summer because it's so light tasting. The flavor of the basil and bell peppers mixed ... that's trick, I think! I changed a couple of things. I followed one reviewer's idea of using only two pans -- one for boiling the pasta and the other for everything else. Excellent idea. Who wants to wash an extra two pots?! And I also added a dose of garlic to the chicken and bell pepper while it cooked. (Maybe ~1/2 tsp.) This will definitely be a repeat at our house! Yum!!

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Rita

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Charleston, South Carolina, USA

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Reviewed: Apr. 17, 2008

Easy and good. A real family favorite or a great dish to enjoy with friends. I did as the pervious posters suggusted and did the chicken first, I did set it aside and cook up the sause just beause my pan wouldn't have been big enough to hold it all. I also added about 3/4 teaspoon chopped gaarlic to the chicken.

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Ashley N

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Reviewed: Apr. 2, 2008

WHOOO-HOOOO!!! This one's a winner! I read the reviews before I made mine, and here's what I did: I preheated my large skillet nice n hot (just before the olive oil in it started to smoke). Then, I added the diced chicken. As the chicken started to cook, I added salt & pepper (a fair amount). While the chicken was going, I heated 2 cups of heavy cream and 2 T butter. I didn't have a drop of milk in the house, and I didn't want to use a whole stick of butter, so... there ya go. :) Now, back to the chicken: About halfway through the cooking, I tossed in 3 healthy cloves of minced garlic, 2 diced scallions, 1/2 green pepper, and 1/2 yellow pepper (no red in the store that day). I also used 1 cup of Parm instead of 2/3 (all you cheese lovers out there know what I'm talkin' about, wink, wink). And I doubled the dried spices, while omitting the chives (didn't have any, and I had already used fresh scallions anyway). This dish is absolutely wonderful. For those who noted a bland taste, I would recommend seasoning the chicken with salt and pepper, and also tossing in garlic AND scallions along with the peppers while chicken is still cooking. Doing this allows the flavor of all these wonderful veggies to enhance the chicken and the entire dish. I reheated this one stove top the next day: I poured about 1/5 cup of chicken broth into a sauce pan. Then, I added the Chicken Rotini and stirred occasionally while cooking it over medium low to medium heat. Tastes fresh! Deliciou

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DivineHealth7

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Charleston, South Carolina, USA

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Reviewed: Feb. 29, 2008

It was not a family favorite. My hubby did not like it (a very picky man)however my kids did.

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Mary

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Syracuse, New York, USA

Living In: Long Island, New York, USA

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Reviewed: Dec. 7, 2007

So easy and very tasty!

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STRAWBERI

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: Oct. 29, 2007

very easy and quick to make. Tastes great!

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Stefanie

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Reviewed: Oct. 16, 2007

I thought this dish was excellent. I cook a lot and it didn't seem to be a ton of work but I did have a stack of dishes at the end...not a huge surprise with a pasta entree. Anyhow, I added quite a little garlic and fresh mushrooms. I wish I would have added cornstarch because it was a little thin. Also, just a word of caution, if you follow the directions exactly, the noodles and chicken will be sitting quite a while and will likely be cool by the time the sauce is done cooking (which takes quite a while). Try to cook as much at once as possible or put the cooked portions someplace to keep them warm.

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Carmen

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Reviewed: Aug. 21, 2007

This is GOOD!!! I did add mushrooms along with the peppers. I also added minced garlic to the chicken while browning. YUM!!! My side dish was the strawberry and spinach salad.

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Leslie

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA

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Reviewed: Jul. 31, 2007

It's a little time-consuming chopping all the vegetables, but everything else was quite easy from there! Provides a delicious end result; I shredded the chicken and used tricolor rotinis. Definitely a repeat dish.

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