Wholewheat pasta tossed with sliced chicken, garlic, spinach, olive oil and parmesan. Fifteen minutes with cooked pasta.
Chicken and turkey are done at 74 C (165 F) in the thickest part, the USDA safe minimum. The library measures the meat cooked; start with about a quarter more raw. Pasta is measured cooked; 180 g cooked is about 80 g dry.
- Ready in15 minutes
- Prep5 min
- Cook10 min
- Serves1
Ingredients
- 110 g chicken breast (cooked weight)
- 180 g wholewheat pasta (cooked weight)
- 60 g spinach
- 15 g parmesan, grated
- 10 g olive oil
- 5 g garlic
Method
- If the chicken is raw, dice it and cook in the olive oil over medium-high heat for six to seven minutes until no pink remains and it reaches 74 C. If cooked, slice it and warm it in the oil.
- Add the crushed garlic for one minute, then the spinach until it wilts.
- Add the cooked pasta with a splash of its water and toss until everything is hot.
- Grate the parmesan over and season with black pepper.
What this plate gives you
The chicken breast carries about 34 g of the 51 g of protein and the wholewheat pasta and parmesan the rest, which takes it close to the 56 g a day the RDA gives a 70 kg adult. The wholewheat pasta is also the 10 g of fibre, a third of a 2,000-calorie day’s 28 g. At 640 calories it is a third of that day. There is no cream: the sauce is the oil, the garlic, the parmesan and a ladle of the pasta water.
Swaps
- Prawns for the chicken: about the same protein, quicker.
- Half the pasta: 130 calories fewer.
- Chilli flakes and lemon zest: no change to the numbers.
Keeping it
This reheats well with a splash of water. Cool it, refrigerate within two hours and eat within three to four days (the USDA FSIS leftovers rule).
