Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta (Freezer Meal)

Name: Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta Recipe (Freezer Meal)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 3 min
Total time: 18 min
Ingredients: 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (cooked and diced); 2 cups ditalini pasta (or elbows); 2 cups chicken broth; 2 Tablespoons butter; 8 ounces cream cheese (1 package); ½ cup milk; ½ cup grated parmesan cheese; 4 ounces sun dried tomatoes (drained and chopped); ½ teaspoon garlic salt; ½ teaspoon black pepper; 1 Tablespoon dried basil; 2 cups fresh spinach leaves

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46 Comments

4.80 from 5 votes

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If you haven't made anything in your Instant Pot yet, then this Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta is the dish to try! It is easy to make, takes 3 minutes to cook, and will make your mouth water.

Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta (Freezer Meal)

This Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta is not only a delicious recipe but also so easy to make with simple ingredients!

Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta in a bowl

This creamy pasta is an easy weeknight dinner that will quickly become a family favorite.

Our whole family loves this delicious dinner and you can have it on the table in under 20 minutes!

Ingredient Notes

Boneless Skinless Chicken breasts cooked and diced
Ditalini pasta or elbows
Chicken broth or Chicken Stock
Butter
Cream cheese
Milk
Parmesan cheese
Sundried tomatoes drained and chopped
Garlic salt
Black pepper
Dried or fresh basil
Fresh baby spinach leaves

Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta in bowl

How to make Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta:

In the Instant Pot, add the pasta, chicken broth, butter, and chicken.
Place lid securely on and move the knob to sealing.
Set on manual, (or high pressure cook) for 3 minutes cooking time.
Once timer goes off, allow a natural pressure release for 5 minutes before releasing valve to remove remaining pressure.
Remove lid and stir the noodles and chicken.
Turn off manual button and push the saute button
Stir in the cream cheese, milk, garlic salt, black pepper, and Parmesan cheese.
Add in the sun dried tomatoes and spinach stirring until spinach is cooked down a bit.
Serve hot with your favorite salad and breadsticks!

Storing and Other Tips

Freezer Meal Instructions

This is one of my favorite recipes not only to make, but to freeze. Realize you do have to cook everything first before you freeze it.

Once everything is cooked, let it cool just a little. You don’t want it to be hot or it will trap a lot of moisture. Once it is cooled, then you can put it in a container.

I would suggest freezing it in a airtight container, in a foil pan or even in a freezer ziplock bag. All three ways will work just fine.

Because it is already cooked, all you have to do it take it out of the freezer, let it thaw over night, and heat it up in the oven or microwave (In a microwave-safe plate or bowl) It’s that simple.

Other Variations

You can also make this Instant Pot Creamy Tuscan Chicken Pasta recipe on the stove top!

Boil your noodles separate in water or chicken broth.

Over medium heat on the stove add:

2 tbsp butter
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup milk or heavy cream
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
4 oz sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 Tablespoon dried basil

Add in your noodles and fresh spinach until spinach is wilted and everything is well combined.

Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta in a pot

Serving Suggestions

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Questions & Reviews

Courtney says:

Hi! Does the chicken need to be cooked before putting it in the instant pot?
tammy says:

how many servings does this make?
min vel says:

I tried this tonight with my bf, and OMG this was restaurant quality!I truly appreciate you for making it on your youtube channel! Thank You!
Cyd says:

It makes about 6-8 servings.
Colin Campbell says:

This recipe was a good start, but I made the following changes. 1. Used boneless skinless thighs, raw. Started in sautés setting and browned the chicken with a great bbq rub. 2. Then removed the chicken added the trivit, and a cup of chicken stock, added the thighs back in and pressure cooked for 10 min. 3. Removed the chicken and trivit, supplemented the remaining stock to make 2 full cups of liquid. 4. Continued the recipe - but instead of milk used sour cream. These changes will add SO MUCH MORE flavor and creaminess. Enjoy!
Kris says:

Yes! But you could also sauté the chicken breast in the ip first, if you want. (:
Gretchen Lindsey says:

We just made and this was FANTASTIC ... we did not cook chicken before, but rather added chicken, noodles, butter, and broth and cooked for the 3 minutes. Maybe we shouldn't have done that (this was our very 1st IP meal), however chicken came out cooked and tender and noodles cooked perfectly!
Andrea says:

My husband hates cream cheese - is there any way that I can cook this without it?
Andrea says:

My husband will not eat anything with cream cheese in it. Is there anything I can use to replace it in this recipe?
Jenn says:

This was delicious! Super fast and easy to make but it tastes like it took forever! Thanks!
Denise Duncan says:

Do you cook the noodles before adding to the ip?
Cyd says:

No, the noodles will cook in the instant pot.
Tina F says:

This recipe is AMAZING!!! The whole family loved it. I will be making it again, and often! Thank you for sharing!
Anjanine Reilly says:

I bought my instant pot because of you ladies. I tried this recipe because you said this was the first recipe you should do. Wish it said the chicken should have been cooked first. I know you say put the meat on the bottom but you also say to make sure pasta and rice should be covered with liquid so I put the pasta on the bottom and the uncooked chicken on top. It burnt and stuck to the pot. I had to stop and scrub the pot for a long time to get the noodles dislodged. I just picked out all the chicken and put it on the bottom and added more broth and restarted it. I decided to see if there were comments and if it says anything. I am a pretty decent cook and was so excited to get this from my kids for my birthday. I am so disheartened now. Please let others know the chicken has to be cooked first so they don’t make my mistake and second guess their decision to try another one of your recipes. I have 5 of your recipes picked out for this week. Hopefully tomorrow goes better : ) I love you ladies so hopefully I can get this down!
Cyd Adamson says:

I am so sorry about your chicken in this recipe. I edited the recipe so it's not confusing. A lot of our recipes are on our youtube channel and that will help with the cooking. Here is the link for the Tucscan Chicken Pasta. https://youtu.be/r_5wbjSD83Y
Sharon C Perkins says:

I cooked my chicken in the IP first, then followed the directions. Goood doesn't even begin to cover how good it was!!!! As hubs said, this is a do-again!!!
Amanda says:

I have made this...5 times? 6? I've lost count, we love it so much. I add a lot more spinach because it's the only way I've managed to get vegetables into my 1-year old. I also use a small jar of Barillo red pesto (made with sun-dried tomatoes) to skip some chopping and also because the previously mentioned 1-year old has a hard time chewing the chopped sun-dried tomatoes. I anticipate this will be requested many many more times. My husband says it's better than eating at a restaurant.
Cyd Adamson says:

Hi Amanda. We are so glad you like the Tuscan Chicken Pasta. It's one of our favorites. And thanks for taking the time to leave us a comment. You made our whole day!
Cyd Adamson says:

Hi Sharon. So glad you like this Tuscan Chicken Pasta.
J says:

How long will this last in the freezer? Thank you!
Olivia says:

I’m confused, is the chicken supposed to go on the bottom or can it go on top?
Momma Cyd says:

So you cook the pasta, chicken broth, butter and diced chicken in the Instant Pot. Place lid securely on and move the knob to sealing. Set on manual, (or pressure cook) for 3 minutes. Once timer goes off, allow a natural pressure release for 5 minutes before releasing valve to remove remaining pressure. Then follow the directions from there.
Laura I Everett says:

This is delicious. My pasta is adente. I used elbow macaroni and admittedly due to not having supplies I substituted drained seasoned diced tomatoes for the dried ones and in place of garlic salt and basil i used italian seasoning and salt. Sosososo good.
Caroline H says:

I would like to skip the chicken. Would this change the cooking time at all?
Xan says:

You could sub Boursin cheese, but I don’t think you can even tell there is cream cheese in it. My daughter doesn’t like cream cheese and she loves this.
Momma Cyd says:

The cooking time should stay the same. The chicken is precooked.
Jean K says:

Making this for dinner tonight! Weight of chicken breasts vary quite a bit. How many ounces of chicken do you use in this recipe?
Jessica says:

Would I be able to half this recipe? Would the cook time change? Brand new IP user here and my husband works nights so it's often just me and my little for dinner. Thanks!
Momma Cyd says:

You can easily halve the recipe. Cook time will stay the same.
JP says:

Made this for the first time tonight, omitting the tomatoes, and it was DELICIOUS! Will definitely make this on the regular.
Paige Willey says:

great recipe. I use minced onions and Italian seasoning with a little olive oil to sauté the chicken and then I add 4oz of sour cream to the sauce. i was unable to find the sun dried tomatoes so i used Fire roast tomato's with garlic
Nancy C says:

Very good, will make this for pot luck.
Leann says:

Could I use gluten free lentil pasta? Would the time change?
Momma Cyd says:

Red Lentil pasta cooks just like traditional pasta.
Jessica Jepson says:

I have checked and double-checked and recalculated, and when I type this recipe into My Fitness Pal, I cannot get it to come out less than 608 calories per serving! I wonder if you might need to recheck your nutrition info?
Marion says:

If I want to increase to 3 cups of pasta do I use 3 cups of broth
Momma Cyd says:

Yes, you'll need the liquid for the pasta noodles.
Anne says:

Will this recipe still work in the Instant Pot when doubled?
Momma Cyd says:

Yes, just be sure your IP is big enough.
Jennifer says:

Is there a way to convert this recipe to cook in a slow cooker?
Momma Cyd says:

Here is the link for the oven. https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/20-minute-tuscan-pasta-freezer-meal/
Laura says:

Next time I’ll be doing less cream cheese and more Parmesan. I’d like to include an extra cup of chopped spinach next time too. This was able to feed my husband, myself, and our two toddlers for dinner (we didn’t have any leftovers). I did garlic powder instead of garlic salt and added the powder, along with the basil and black pepper, to the broth before pressure cooking (I misread the directions but it turned out fine). I also did freshly grated Parmesan and used better than bouillon to make the required 2 cups of broth. I skipped the chicken and just added 12.5 ounces of canned chicken, drained, at the end— I would strongly recommend against doing that… I tasted it before I did that and it was great (4/5) and then I added the canned chicken and it threw off the overall vibe and flavor. Minus one star because even for a cream cheese lover, that cream cheese flavor came through pretty strong).
Stephanie says:

i don’t see anywhere recommended method for hearing from frozen?
Momma Cyd says:

Because it is already cooked, all you have to do it take it out of the freezer, let it thaw over night, and heat it up in the oven or microwave safe plate or bowl Just until heated through.
Katy says:

So... When does the basil go in?😅
Momma Cyd says:

With the garlic salt and pepper. Thanks for catching that!