Chicken Orecchiette and Pea Pesto

Tired of popping your peas into soup? Pulse it up to make it into an indulgent and refreshing pea pesto, perfect for some home-cooked dinner time pasta. In this recipe, we use orecchiette together with some breast fillets for a delicious, filling and super convenient meal.

Yield: Serves 4
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 20 mins
Difficulty Level: 2/5

Ingredients

• 375 g orecchiette pasta
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 300 g chicken breast fillets, thinly sliced
• ½ cup sundried tomatoes, chopped

PEA PESTO

• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• ⅓ cup finely grated parmesan, plus shaved, to serve
• ¼ pecans, roasted
• ¼ cup olive oil
• ¼ cup picked basil leaves, plus extra, to serve
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 clove garlic, crushed

Steps

01. In a large saucepan of boiling salted water, cook orecchiette following packet instructions, then drain.

02. PEA PESTO: In a small food processor, pulse peas, parmesan, pecans, oil, basil, lemon juice and garlic until finely chopped.

03. In a frying pan, heat oil on medium. Cook chicken, turning, for 5 mins until cooked through. Toss through the orecchiette, sundried tomatoes and pea pesto. Cook for 2 mins until heated through.

04. Serve orecchiette topped with shaved parmesan and basil leaves.

Photo: bauersyndication.com.au