Creamy Chicken Curry Pasta

I have been known to stock up on those convenient little packet pastas when they are on sale so that on the odd occasion, when I just can not be bothered, I have a handy go to meal at my fingertips.

Like most people I know, my teenage years were fuelled with these convenient meals, purely because if I lived on these, I could do my groceries for about $20 each week and it meant that there was all of 5 minutes cooking time between me and my dinner each night.

Recently I discovered this recipe for Creamy Chicken Pasta and with a few minor tweaks here and there, it was a dead ringer for the Chicken Curry Pasta we used to buy....except much fresher, tastier and generally a million times better.

Possibly assisted by the fact that Mr B cooked it while I laid on the couch. Is it just me or do things always taste better when someone else cooks them while you're relaxing?

Creamy Chicken Curry Pasta - Serves 2

160g fettuccine
2 Tablespoons butter
1 small carrot, minced (about 1/3 cup)
1 rib celery, minced (about 1/3 cup)
1 small shallot or 1/2 small onion, minced
salt and pepper
2 Tablespoons flour
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 tspn curry powder
1 cup milk

Break fettuccine into quarters or sixths (depending on your preference). Cook pasta in a large pot of salted, boiling water until just under al dente (this is important as it will continue cooking in the sauce). Drain the pasta and set aside.

Melt the butter in a large frypan over medium heat. Add the carrot, celery, and shallot. Season with salt and pepper and cook for a further 5-7 minutes until tender.

Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables, whisk and cook for 1 minute. Slowly add the chicken stock, milk and curry powder, whisking constantly to avoid lumps. Turn the heat up to medium-high until bubbling then turn heat back down to medium. Season with more salt and pepper if required and then cook, stirring occasionally for a further 5 minutes or until thickened.

Add pasta to the sauce and stir to combine. Cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat. Sauce will continue to thicken as it cools.

We served ours with some buttered crusty bread and it was incredible!

Variation - For a cheese and cracked pepper pasta, skip the carrot, celery and curry powder and add 1 cup grated cheeses (mix of parmesan and sharp cheddar) with some cracked black pepper.

Enjoy!

Mrs B x