Serves 6-8

This recipe serves a crowd, but can easily be scaled down (or up!). It is dairy-free (just omit the cheese when serving) and the sauce is gluten-free so switching to a suitable pasta can make this a gluten-free meal also.  

Once the ingredients are prepared the meal will only take 20 minutes to cook so works well when cooking for a large group of people or for a weeknight meal as you won’t be spending a long time in the kitchen.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp oil

1kg chicken breasts, cut into one-inch pieces

1 red pepper, finely diced

1 fresh red chilli, finely diced

4 fat cloves of garlic, finely diced 

1 dried red chilli, crumbled (optional)

1 L passatta

15g parsley, finely chopped 

600g (penne) pasta (gluten-free if required)

Salt and pepper

Step 1: Season the chicken a large pinch each of salt and pepper.

Step 2: Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat and then add the chicken. Seal on all sides and then add the garlic, fresh chilli and red pepper.  Cook for a further couple of minutes, then add the passatta.  Lower the heat and cook for 10 minutes.

Step 3: Whilst the sauce is cooking cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.

Step 4: Check the seasoning of the sauce and add salt and pepper to taste. To make a spicier sauce crumble some of the dried chilli (a little at a time) to the desired heat.

Step 5: When cooked, drain the pasta and add to the sauce, coating the pasta evenly. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and serve.

Serve with a green salad and some grated parmesan, pecorino or grana padano, if not making this dairy-free.