If you love chicken bacon ranch anything, you will absolutely love this creamy chicken bacon pasta recipe. This decadent pasta dish is made with ranch seasoned grilled chicken, crispy bacon, and a creamy sauce made with a hint of ranch seasoning. The sauce is similar to an alfredo sauce, but I seasoned it slightly with ranch seasoning to give it a little ranch-esque kick.

Chicken and Bacon Pasta

This recipe is so flavorful and takes less than 30 minutes to make. It is the perfect one pot meal for busy weeknights. The creamy sauce goes so well with the pasta, ranch flavored chicken, and creamy bacon. This is peak comfort food – perfect for when the weather is starting to get colder and you need something to warm you up.

You all know how much I love bacon by this point and I love using bacon in pasta dishes because just a little bit goes a long way. Bacon has a strong flavor, so you don’t need to use a whole bunch in this recipe. I used 4 slices and then cook the chicken in the bacon fat. Cooking the chicken in the bacon fat makes it extra flavorful and delicious.

Once the chicken is cooked, I then remove the rest of the bacon fat from the pan. Cleaning out the pan once you cook the chicken and removing the bacon fat helps you achieve a cleaner whiter sauce. This step is not necessary but I like to do it to get a whiter sauce. If you don’t remove the bacon fat you do not need to add the additional butter.

Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta

My chicken bacon ranch sliders are one of the most popular recipes on my blog. I love this combo of flavors and so many of you seem to love it too. I seasoned my chicken breast with ranch seasoning before cooking it. And I also added some ranch seasoning to my cream sauce when it was cooking. This recipe is not over the top “ranchy”, but it has a perfect little oomph of ranch.

Here is what you need to make Creamy Chicken Bacon Pasta

Pasta – A lot of people prefer to make long pasta with their cream sauces, however, I like to use short pasta because I feel like it mixes in with the other ingredients better. Also, I find it easier than long pasta to scoop up when I am using a fork or a spoon.
Chicken Breast – I used raw chicken and then season it with ranch seasoning and cook it in the bacon fat. I would not substitute this with fully cooked chicken because it will not take on the same flavor as cooking the chicken fresh.
Bacon – My current favorite bacon right now is the applewood smoked no added sugar bacon from trader joe’s. The slices are a little thicker and I just think it is really tasty and I like how it does not have added sugar.
Ranch Seasoning – I buy the Hidden Valley brand seasoning. It does not actually have a lot of sodium in it, so it’s mostly just the herby
Garlic – I used 4 cloves. You can use a little less or a little more.
Heavy Cream – I am using a cup of heavy cream in addition to 3/4 cup reserved pasta water to create a thick and glossy sauce for your pasta. Please do not try to substitute this ingredient.
Parmesan Cheese – Freshly shredded works best here because it will melt into the cream sauce easily. You can also use pre-shredded, it just may take a longer time to melt.
Reserved Pasta Water – After your pasta is done boiling, make sure to set aside 3/4 cups of pasta water. This water has starch in it that will help thicken your sauce. I do this by turning off the heat, and then sticking a clean measuring cup into the pot to collect the water. Be careful as the water is very hot.

How to make Creamy Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta

INGREDIENTS

8 oz Pasta I prefer short pasta
1 lb Chicken Breast
4 oz Bacon I used applewood smoked no sugar added
1.5 tbsp Butter
4 cloves Garlic minced
3 tsp Ranch seasoning I used Hidden Valley ranch seasoning
1 cup Heavy Cream
3/4 cup Reserved Pasta Water
1 tsp Sea Salt
1/4 tsp Black Pepper
1/2 cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

Boil your pasta. Cook it until it is al dente as it will cook a little longer in the cream sauce. Also, do not discard all of the pasta water. Make sure to reserve 3/4 cup of pasta water before you drain your pasta. This will help thicken your sauce.
Cook your bacon. I pre cut my bacon into little pieces. It cooks faster this way. Once the bacon is crispy, add it to a paper towel lined bowl or plate. Leave the bacon fat in the pan
Cut your chicken. I started out with two chicken breasts. I cut each one down the middle and then I cut each piece into 1/2″ strips. Season your chicken with 2 tsps of ranch seasoning and 1/2 tsp of sea salt.
Add your chicken to the bacon fat in the pan. Cook for 4-5 minutes per side. You want to get a light golden brown sear on each piece. Once they are cooked, add them to a plate to rest.
Clean out your pan. This will ensure that your sauce stays very white.
Add butter to the pan and turn the heat to medium. Add minced garlic to the pan and let it get lightly golden brown. Then, add cream, parmesan, and reserved pasta water. Bring the mixture to a boil and then bring it down to low while mixing it.
Let your cream sauce reduce for about 3 minutes and once it starts to get slightly thicker, add your pasta. Add the remaining teaspoon of ranch dressing, another 1/2 tsp of sea salt, and some black pepper.
Once the sauce gets thick, remove from heat and add in your bacon and chicken.