The protein cooking time listed in this recipe has been updated.
As of December 2025, we’ve revised cooking times for all our proteins to reflect improved food safety guidance.
Check out the latest recommended times in our Cooking Guidelines.
Speedy Chicken Romesco Pasta
Looking for the perfect weeknight pasta? Dip your fork into this smoky romesco penne, starring British free-range chicken, black olives and fresh peppers. Aged balsamic vinegar creates depth of flavour. Cavolo nero brings the greens. Brown rice penne boosts the fibre. Plus, it all comes together in 15 mins!
Ready in 20
High protein
Low sat fat
Serving size
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp aged balsamic vinegar (Sulphites) (Aged Balsamic Vinegar (Cooked Grape Must, Wine Vinegar), Xanthan Gum)
- 2 British Free Range chicken breasts
- 1 pepper
- 1 onion
- 120g brown rice penne (Eggs)
- 30g pitted black olives (Olives, Water, Red Wine Vinegar, Sea Salt, Grape Must)
- 4 tbsp romesco sauce (Red Pepper, Tomato Puree, Rapeseed oil, Red Wine Vinegar, Water, Roasted Pine Kernels, Onion, Smoked Paprika, Ground Fennel Seeds, Garlic, Chopped Chilli, Waxy Maize Starch, Sea Salt, Lactic Acid, Ground Black Pepper, Chilli Powder, Natural Smoke flavour)
- 1 handful of fresh chives
- 40g cavolo nero
Nutritional Information
Calories: 613
Protein: 50g
Carbs: 58g
Fat: 20g
Ingredients
- 1 onion (use half)
- 1 handful of fresh chives (use half)
- 1 British Free Range chicken breast
- 1 pepper (use half)
- 40g cavolo nero (use half)
- 1 tbsp aged balsamic vinegar (use half) (Sulphites) (Aged Balsamic Vinegar (Cooked Grape Must, Wine Vinegar), Xanthan Gum)
- 4 tbsp romesco sauce (use half) (Red Pepper, Tomato Puree, Rapeseed oil, Red Wine Vinegar, Water, Roasted Pine Kernels, Onion, Smoked Paprika, Ground Fennel Seeds, Garlic, Chopped Chilli, Waxy Maize Starch, Sea Salt, Lactic Acid, Ground Black Pepper, Chilli Powder, Natural Smoke flavour)
- 120g brown rice penne (use half) (Eggs)
- 30g pitted black olives (use half) (Olives, Water, Red Wine Vinegar, Sea Salt, Grape Must)
Nutritional Information
Calories: 613
Protein: 50g
Carbs: 58g
Fat: 20g
Speedy Chicken Romesco Pasta
Looking for the perfect weeknight pasta? Dip your fork into this smoky romesco penne, starring British free-range chicken, black olives and fresh peppers. Aged balsamic vinegar creates depth of flavour. Cavolo nero brings the greens. Brown rice penne boosts the fibre. Plus, it all comes together in 15 mins!
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Cooking Instructions
- Bring a large saucepan filled with salted hot water to a boil. Add the penne and boil for 7-8 mins, until cooked. Reserve 100ml pasta water (50ml for 1 person), then drain.
- Meanwhile, cut the chicken into 4cm pieces. Heat a large frying pan with 2 tsp oil on medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 4 mins, turning occasionally, until golden. Season with sea salt and black pepper.
- Finely dice the onion and pepper, then add to the pan. Cook for 5 mins, then stir in the cavolo nero. Add a splash of water and cook for a further 3-4 mins, until the veg is softening and the chicken is cooked. Check your chicken is cooked through by cutting a large piece in half; the flesh should be white and the juices running clear. Cook for longer if necessary.
- On a clean chopping board, finely chop the chives and halve the olives. Stir the romesco sauce, vinegar, cooked penne and the reserved pasta water into the frying pan. Season to taste with sea salt and black pepper and cook for 1 more minute, until the sauce is coating the pasta.
- Serve the romesco chicken penne in bowls, garnished with the olives and chives.
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