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These One Pot Creamy Garlic Noodles are as easy as they are delicious! No creams or large amounts of butter, making this meal a winner all-around!
Featured with this recipe
- Ingredients in Creamy Garlic Noodles
- Best Noodles to Use
- Add Chicken for a Full Meal
- Adding Vegetables
- More Add-In Possibilities
- Tips For Making Garlic Noodles
- What to Serve with Creamy Garlic Noodles
- Frequently Asked Questions about Creamy Garlic Noodles
- More Easy Noodle Recipes
- How to Make One Pot Creamy Garlic Noodles
- One Pot Creamy Garlic Noodles Recipe
These one pot (well, technically one “pan”) creamy garlic noodles are a HUGE hit with my whole family. We have made them at least once a month for the last several months using all sorts of variations. My kids are crazy about this easy pasta recipe and request it all the time (and I am happy to oblige because it’s SO easy)! This creamy garlic pasta recipe doesn’t use heavy cream or large amounts of butter, but it tastes JUST as good as recipes that do. Cooking the noodles in the chicken broth and milk is like magic. The recipe starts with UNcooked noodles so no draining, and only ONE POT to clean! A total win-win.
Ingredients in Creamy Garlic Noodles
This yummy pasta dish has a very fettucine alfredo texture and flavor, without all the heavy whipping cream. Here’s what you need:
- Butter – just a few tablespoons, divided.
- Garlic – four or five cloves, minced. For a stronger garlic flavor you can even use a dash of garlic powder or garlic salt in the sauce mixture.
- Chicken broth – about 28 ounces or just under four cups.
- Milk – Start with two and a half cups and add more if needed to thin out the sauce.
- Linguini – Cook pasta until al dente, or with a little bite to it, before adding to the sauce. You can use any cooked pasta you like for this dish: penne pasta, spaghetti noodles fettucine, anything you have on hand.
- Kosher salt and black pepper – to taste
- Basil – one teaspoon fresh basil but you can use dried if you have that too.
- Parmesan cheese – I like using fresh grated parmesan cheese (Parmigiano Reggiano), you can also use the powdered kind if that’s what you have on hand.
- Broccoli (optional)- about four cups. This is totally optional, and you can add other veggies too!
- Chicken breasts (optional) – two chicken breasts, grilled and cut into strips You can also cook the chicken directly in the pot. See below for more instructions.
Best Noodles to Use
For this garlic noodles recipe, we like to use linguini noodles. They are thick enough to absorb the sauce without getting too heavy. You could also use spaghetti noodles, fettuccini noodles, or even egg noodles. Bowtie pasta or rotini would be fun to try as well. Try to avoid anything thinner than spaghetti, like angel hair pasta. The noodles will cook way too fast and then get clumpy. No matter what noodle you use, keep checking it until it’s cooked through. You can’t really go by package directions because it is being simmered at a lower heat.
Add Chicken for a Full Meal
To make this a full meal, just add a little chicken. I love adding grilled chicken but you can add baked, shredded, or pan-fried. To keep it a true “one pot” meal, pan frying the chicken is the way to go.
- First, season the chicken with Italian seasoning and cook it up in the same skillet you want to cook the noodles in (before cooking the noodles).
- Then, sauté the chicken until it is cooked most of the way through and remove from the pan, place on a plate, and cover. Wipe the pan out (be careful because the pan will be hot) and make the noodles as per the recipe below.
- Lastly, add the chicken after a few minutes into the noodles simmering and follow the rest of the recipe as directed.
Adding Vegetables
If you want to add vegetables, toss them in 10 minutes or so before serving. You can add veggies like broccoli, peas, asparagus, red peppers, sliced zucchini, etc. You can make these noodles as a full meal or as an easy side dish — totally up to you!
More Add-In Possibilities
This versatile dish can be switched up a million different ways, with just the tweak of a couple ingredients. Try adding some of these next time you need an easy side dish or main course:
- Cooked garlic shrimp (I like using the garlic shrimp from this recipe)
- Grilled Rotisserie Chicken
- Smoked sausage
- Cooked bacon
- Fresh herbs such as parsley or basil
- Peas
- Sautéed mushrooms
- Fresh spinach
- Roasted vegetables
- Lemon zest (if you love lemon flavored noodles try our delicious lemon infused noodles recipe!)
- Onions – add sautéed onion or green onion for garnish
Tips For Making Garlic Noodles
- Keep it to a simmer – If you cook these on too high of a heat, the noodles will cook too fast and won’t absorb the liquid as well.
- Add liquid – If you noodles look like they are getting too thick, just keep adding a splash or milk of broth to keep the consistency.
- Add other flavors – Boost the flavor by adding Cajun seasoning, oregano, Italian seasoning, or lemon pepper.
- Reheating leftovers – Store leftovers in an airtight container and keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. When reheating leftovers, add a splash of milk a little at a time until you reach your desired creamy consistency.
What to Serve with Creamy Garlic Noodles
While this one pot supper certainly stands on its own, you can add a side of garlic bread and any number of salads. A simple green salad or a fruit salad pairs perfectly with this creamy, rich dish. Here are some more tasty side dish ideas:
Frequently Asked Questions about Creamy Garlic Noodles
For this recipe the answer is simple: add a splash of milk. You’ll be amazed at how a little milk will loosen a thick sauce and make it super creamy once again. You could also add a little heavy cream.
If you find you need a little more kick or flavor to this dish, add some fresh parsley, some lemon zest or black pepper. If you want to add a little spiciness, you can add some Cajun seasoning like Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning.
Yes, using milk makes the noodles creamier. Plus because you don’t drain the pasta in this dish, the starch remains, giving the sauce an extra creamy texture.
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More Easy Noodle Recipes
Who doesn’t love noodle recipes? Especially when they are easy! All of these noodle recipes can be made in about 30 minutes or less! Try some of these scrumptious noodle dishes:
How to Make One Pot Creamy Garlic Noodles
One Pot Creamy Garlic Noodles
Video
Ingredients
- 4 Tablespoon butter divided
- 4-5 cloves garlic minced
- 28 ounces chicken broth (3 ¾ cups)
- 2 1/2 cups milk add more if needed
- 1 pound linguini
- kosher salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon basil
- 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese
- 4 cups broccoli optional
- 2 chicken breasts grilled and cut into strips (optional. See notes above on how to make chicken part of the “one-pot” meal if you don’t want to grill)
Instructions
- In a large, 5-6 quart skillet, heat 2 Tablespoons of butter over medium heat. If you don't have a large skillet, a stock-pot works well, too. Add garlic and cook for about a minute.
- Add chicken broth, milk, remaining 2 Tablespoons of butter, pasta noodles, salt and pepper, and basil. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
- Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer stirring occasionally for 16-20 minutes or until noodles have cooked through. If you are wanting to add broccoli, add it after about 10 minutes into the simmering process.
- Stir in Parmesan when noodles are finished cooking and add a little milk if necessary if necessary to reach your desired consistency.
Notes
- Keep noodles to a simmer – If you cook these on too high of a heat, the noodles will cook too fast and won’t absorb the liquid as well.
- Add liquid – If you noodles look like they are getting too thick, just keep adding a splash or milk of broth to keep the consistency.
- Add other flavors – Boost the flavor by adding Cajun seasoning, oregano, Italian seasoning, or lemon pepper.
My gosh, this food is so good. I just cooked it for my four other siblings and they all loved it. I am totally putting this recipe on my favorites list
I made this for the first time and it was a winner. I will be making this a lot.
Very good recipe, but the directions and your video are confusing. In the directions you say add the cheese after noodles are done, however in your video you added it with everything
You can add it either way!
We added about 5 cups total of asparagus and broccoli. Really tasty. Thanks for such an easy one-pot recipe.
This recipe is AMAZING!!! I put the chicken and broccoli in, and all I changed was adding a bit more basil, and some Italian seasoning and i seasoned the chicken with complete seasoning when I cooked it. Will definitely be making this again, and adding shrimp instead. Absolutely delicious meal. My entire family loved it! Thank you for sharing!!
Fantastic recipe! Easy to make and absolutely delicious. It’s rare to find an online recipe that I’m willing to hand write in my recipe book, but this one made the cut. My kids loved it too.
I gotta thank you for this, with recent unrest here in South Africa I really didn’t want to stand in queues by the shops that are still open, to *maybe* get some stuff, so all I had was spices, old stock, noodles, milk and two cloves of garlic at home. I don’t normally cook so I was doubly stumped on what to do for lunch.
I don’t have any veggies or protien to go with it, but hey, at least I now have something decent-tasting and edible!
Google led me here 🙂
I didn’t have everything for this recipe, but I made it work with what I had, didn’t spend a CENT, and it tasted amazing! Just like a Michelinis microwavable dinner but SO much better! Love this and I’ll definitely be doing it over and over again. Stock cubes can be used too- just remember to prepare your stock before hand!
So easy and so flavorful! We opted to roast our broccoli, and put our chicken on top. It was delicious. Thanks for the recipe!
Made this tonight with a side of baked salmon. Excellent!
This was an easy and quick weeknight meal! Used spaghetti and ground chicken (because they were what I had on hand) along with broccoli. Based on certain reviews about excess liquid at the end, I reduced the chicken stock by about 1/2 c and I used a mixture of milk and heavy cream. Turned out very creamy and delicious! Next time I will bump up my seasonings but would definitely make again. Thank you for the recipe!
So , easy ! Loved it !
This was absolutely delicious! I was a little skeptical about all the liquid and no step to drain it but I stuck to the recipe and it was perfect! It wasn’t thick and heavy like other similar recipes. Happy husband. Happy toddler. Happy mom! Gonna try the One Pot Thai Peanut Pasta next! Thanks for sharing your recipes!
What other pastas could work well with this recipe?
I think you could do it with any shape of pasta!
Just cooked this tonight. Love the flavours. Only thing I found was the sauce didn’t thicken much and my pasta cooked way too quick for it to be simmered for 20 minutes. Other than that, this was delicious and my got the tick of approval from my husband. Will definitely be making this again!
This is a “skinny” recipe ??
It depends on what kind of diet you are following. It doesn’t have heavy cream like most creamy pastas have – so that helps!
This sounds so easy and delicious! I will try it by grilling the chicken first time I make it but then in colder months maybe I will do it all in one pan (when you don’t feel like removing all the snow from the grill haha!) I am sure it is good either way tho 🙂
It is so good no matter how you make it! Definitely love it with the grilled chicken this time of year though, so good!
Does the lid stay on after you add the Broccoli ? Do not want it too watery so thought I would check.
Actually, I don’t use a lid at all for this recipe. I let it simmer uncovered so it doesn’t get watery and the sauce gets nice and thick. Hope this helps!
Just made this recipe. My husband said, “I wish everything you cooked off Pinterest tasted this good.” Enough said 😊
Wow! What a compliment! Thank you (and your husband)! 😀
How many calories is this meal??
We don’t have calorie counts on our site yet but you can plug the recipe into a nutrition calculator online and you should be able to find it easily. Hope this helps!
Hi. So, I really was hoping this would be yummy, but I something went wrong. I made it the same as the video, but the milk or the cheese curdled. 🙁 and the broccoli took forever to cook and the pasta got overcooked. Sad times over here.
Oh no! I don’t know what could have gone wrong. The milk will separate if it gets too hot. It only needs to be at a low simmer. I’m not sure why the broccoli took so long. Were you able to access the recipe and follow the instructions there or could you just access the video?