This One Pot Southwestern Alfredo Pasta is super easy to throw together, makes the perfect weeknight meal, and is absolutely delicious! It all comes together in one pot and it is so fast.
Happy Monday, friends!
I am coming at you hot this fine Monday morning with a delicious recipe that is an older popular one. It is a one pot pasta recipe that you are going to absolutely fall in love with if you haven’t made it already.
I came up with this recipe about three years ago when I was doing a TV spot for a brand and they really wanted me to showcase an easy back to school meal. It doesn’t get much easier than this One Pot Southwestern Alfredo Pasta. This recipe is perfect for when you are out of dinner ideas.
How to Make Southwestern Alfredo Pasta
This recipe could not be more simple to make. I love recipes like this that feel like they have been slaved over, but are actually super simple. Here is a brief overview of how it comes together, but be sure to scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post for the full recipe.
- Sauté the red peppers and green chiles. Once they are done, remove them and set them aside.
- Cook the pasta. Fill the pot (no need to clean it) with water, and cook the pasta according to package instructions. A minute before the pasta is done, throw in the frozen corn.
- Add the remaining ingredients. Drain the pasta and corn, and return them to the stock pot. Add the red peppers and green chiles back in. Also add in the taco seasoning, alfredo sauce, black beans, and chicken. Stir to combine.
- Enjoy! Garnish each bowl with sour cream, a lime wedge, diced jalapeños, and cilantro if desired. Enjoy warm!
Homemade Taco Seasoning
Taco seasoning adds such great flavor to this pasta dish. I love to make my own taco seasoning with a few simple seasonings I always have on hand. You can customize the flavor to be exactly how spicy you like it, and skip all of the added preservatives and additives of storebought taco seasoning.
Homemade Taco Seasoning
Cooked Chicken
Part of what makes this recipe come together quickly in one pot is using cooked chicken. Some options are to use leftover chicken, grab a rotisserie chicken from the store, or my favorite, keep frozen cooked chicken in your freezer. It is a great hack for busy weeknight meals!
You could also make this recipe with cooked shrimp.
Freezing Cooked Chicken
Adding Green Chilies
When I first published this recipe, I didn’t have the green chilies in there. Almost immediately I started getting comments on the blog and on social media that all said the same basic thing, “I made this, it is totally amazing, but I added green chilies!” Also, since making this recipe I took a trip to the Southwest and realized that they literally put green chiles on every. single. thing. You all were totally right, this recipe needed green chiles, I don’t know what I was thinking.
Storing and Reheating Leftovers
Store any leftover pasta in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Reheat only the portion you plan to eat in the microwave or on the stovetop, adding a splash of water if it seems dry.
Other Great Dinner Recipes
If you plan on making this dinner recipe and you still need some other great easy chicken dinners, I have more ideas for you:
If you make this chicken alfredo pasta or any of my other recipes leave me a comment and let me know!
One Pot Southwestern Alfredo Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red pepper diced
- 3.4 ounces can of diced green chiles
- 2 cups dry penne
- 1 cup frozen corn or the corn from two ears
- 2 cups cooked chicken
- 1 cup black beans rinsed and drained
- 14 ounces jarred alfredo
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
Instructions
- Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and then the diced red pepper and green chiles. Cook until the red peppers are soft, remove from pan and set aside.
- Add 4 cups of water to the saucepan, bring to a boil, and add the penne. One minute before you need to remove the pasta (according to package directions), add the frozen corn. Drain the cooked pasta and warmed corn and return to the pan.
- Stir in the cooked pepper and chiles, chicken, and black beans. Then stir in the alfredo sauce and taco seasoning.
- Serve, topping with sour cream, diced tomatoes, and jalapeños if you like!
did you make this
One Pot Southwestern Alfredo Pasta
Elena says
Cook time?
Hi Elena! You aren’t baking this, so there really is no cook time. You saute your red peppers, and you cook the noodles, and use the noodle water to heat up the frozen corn, but that’s about it.
Kayleigh says
What kind of chicken do you use?
I use just cooked breast meat. This would be a great recipe to use left over rotisserie chicken.
Sammie says
Pretty good, but wow that was a lot of taco seasoning. It overpowered the dish for sure.
Tandra says
Very good recipe! I added tomatoes, onion, garlic, a little tomato sauce, and sour cream to the top! Very delicious!
Allison | Ocean State of Style Blog says
I just recently stumbled upon this recipe on Pinterest, and so I made it for dinner! I did add some extra peppers (red and green) because they are my favorite, but this recipe was seriously SO good!
I’m so glad you liked it!
Shari says
THis was a breeze to whip up. It’s a get quick dinner.
I’m so happy you liked it Shari!
Melanie Moseleh says
This was such a success in my house… good thing I doubled the recipe! We added Monterrey cheese which made it even better. Served with homemade salsa and chips.
I’m so happy your family enjoyed it!
Taylor says
Hey it calls for cooked chicken we decided to take that on our selves. So do you have an suggestions on how to cook it? I’m lost.
I really love just using a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store in this, but if you want, you could chop up some chicken tenders and saute them in the pan with a little olive oil, salt and pepper until cooked through before hand.
Cindy says
I actually used canned chicken and it was great!
Katie says
Looks so good! I want to try it tonight but I don’t use canned/jars of Alfredo sauce so I’m worried it won’t have as much flavor… What would you recommend for a more seasoned flavor?
Can you try making your own Alfredo sauce? It’s a pretty key part to the recipe.
Jillian Kuhl says
How does only 2 cups of noodles make 4 big servings? Am I missing something?
Serving sizes are always a matter of opinion. Please keep in mind that this recipe calls for a lot of other ingredients that are really filling like corn, beans, and chicken. My family definitely felt like this recipe resulted in four big servings, but it’s definitely possible that your family will look at those serving sizes and see them as too small.
Jeanne says
Since I’m pescatarian.. wonder if I can make this wo the chicken.. sure I can but what do you suggest in lieu of the chicken?
If I were going to do a vegetarian spin on this, I would use a whole can of black beans and a whole can of kidney beans in place of the chicken. Maybe another cup of pasta too.