Recipes

Chicken Bryan Pasta Skillet

RECIPE BY: San

DATE: August 24, 2025

Total Time 35 minutes

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Chicken Bryan Pasta Skillet is a twist on a Carrabba’s Italian Grill dish that is ready in about 30 minutes.

Chicken pasta with lemon butter sauce, chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, and goat cheese is inspired by a restaurant dish my whole family loves. It’s loaded with flavor and so easy to make you’ll want it every week!

Close-up shot of pasta being lifted with two spoons.

Our favorite dish at our local Carrabba’s Italian Grill is the Chicken Trio, which is three chicken breasts served three different ways. My husband Jake loves the Chicken Bryan so much that he always subs one and gets two Chicken Bryan and one Chicken Marsala.

We were regulars there for about four years, so we got to know the owner and staff like they were family. Kellie, the owner of Carrabba’s while we were regulars, gave all her “favorite” customers a Carrabba’s cookbook for Christmas one year. This was the best idea ever!!!

We love their food so much and were excited to make it at home for our family and friends. You would think giving us this cookbook would have lessened our visits, but it didn’t. Every Friday night, we went to be catered to until we were stuffed to the brim.

A plate of chicken pasta.

Easy Skillet Chicken Pasta

You are going to love this recipe. We took their Chicken Bryan, a chicken breast garnished with lemon sauce, sprigs of fresh basil, chopped sun-dried tomatoes, and topped with a goat cheese medallion, and made it into a skillet pasta dish.

The first time I made this, Jake walked in, and he knew I had made something yummy, when he saw it. It was like a light trickled down from the heavens and an “AHHH” moment, with glorious music playing in the background, as he gazed at the skillet before him.

Then came the first bite, and he instantly fell in love. The sauce, chicken, and idea of his favorite dish from Carrabba’s reinvented into a pasta dish… well, let’s say I scored some major points.

Ingredients for Chicken Pasta

  • Cooked linguini or fettuccine
  • Chopped fresh basil
  • Chopped sun-dried tomatoes
  • Crumbled goat cheese
  • Boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into cubes
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and pepper
  • Sliced butter
  • Finely diced yellow onion
  • Minced garlic cloves
  • White wine
  • Fresh lemon juice
close-up shot of the finished pasta dish in the skillet.

Recipe Tips

  • When making the sauce, you don’t want the butter to melt instantly. Instead, thaw it slowly so it softens into an emulsified dressing. Softening all the butter and building the sauce should take 3-5 minutes.
  • To make the sauce ahead, you can store it for up to two hours at room temperature. To reheat the sauce, turn the burner on low and whisk until it is warm. This sauce will separate if you do not use low heat. If it does happen to separate, no worries—it will still taste the same, but it just won’t be as pretty.
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pasta skillet with chicken, spinach and lemon butter sauce

Chicken Bryan Pasta Skillet

Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Total: 35 minutes
Servings: 4 -6
Calories: 594 kcal
Chicken Bryan Pasta Skillet is made with lemon butter sauce, chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, & goat cheese medallions. Easy to prepare in under 40 minutes.
Chicken pasta skillet.
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Ingredients
 

Pasta

  • 1/2 pound linguine or fettuccine boiled to al dente and drained
  • 1 cup fresh basil coarsely chopped
  • 2 1/2 ounces sun-dried tomatoes drained and coarsely chopped
  • 4 ounces goat cheese crumbled
  • 2 chicken breasts cut into small cubes, about 2 1/2-3 cups
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • salt and pepper to taste

Lemon Butter Sauce

  • 13 tablespoons butter cut into 1 tablespoon squares
  • 3 tablespoons finely diced yellow onion
  • 4 garlic cloves minced
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 3 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • Kosher salt and white pepper

Instructions
 

  • Heat olive oil in skillet. Season the chicken with salt and pepper to your taste and cook in skillet until slightly golden brown on both sides and cooked all the way through, about 4 minutes on each side. Remove chicken on to plate and set aside. Wipe out skillet with a paper towel.
  • Prepare noodles by following directions on pasta box while making sauce. A quick note on the sauce before you get started, we are saucy people, I double the amount of sauce of this recipe every time I make it.
  • Reduce skillet heat to medium high. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter, then add minced onions and garlic. Cook until onion is tender but not browned, about 3-4 minutes. Increase heat to high, immediately add white wine and lemon juice, bring to a boil and cook for 3 minutes.
  • Reduce heat to low. Add 3 tablespoons of butter to the skillet, whisk and let it soften slowly into the sauce until melted. Add 3 more tablespoons of butter, continue to whisk until softened and melted; repeat until all 12 tablespoons are melted. Season with salt and white pepper to taste. Remove sauce from heat.
  • *Note you don’t want to the butter to instantly melt, you want to make sure that it is softening into the emulsified sauce. Softening all the butter and building the sauce should take 3-5 minutes. Sauce can be stored up to 2 hours at room temp, to re-heat sauce, turn burner on low and whisk until it is warm. This sauce will separate if you do not use low heat. If it does happen no worries, it will still taste the same.
  • Once noodles are ready, add chicken to the sauce. Return sauce to low heat and add in basil, sun-dried tomatoes, and noodles. Mix together and season if you would like with additional salt and pepper. 
  • Top with crumbled goat cheese. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Calories: 594kcalCarbohydrates: 35gProtein: 27gFat: 37gSaturated Fat: 19gCholesterol: 153mgSodium: 412mgPotassium: 832mgFiber: 2gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 1315IUVitamin C: 10.1mgCalcium: 76mgIron: 2.6mg

Chicken pasta skillet.
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Lemon Sauce Recipe from Carrabba’s Italian Grill: Recipes from around Our Family Table Cook Book

Hey, I'm Sandra! At A Dash of Sanity, you'll discover family-friendly recipes for every occasion. Whether it's speedy dinners or delectable desserts, I'm here to make your mealtime delicious, simplify your holiday baking, and unite your loved ones around the table.

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132 Comments

  1. This looks really good! My family would love this. We have always enjoyed the Chicken Bryan at Carraba’s.

    Reply

  2. Any dish that includes pasta is something I know I will love. I like the skillet idea. Will be adding this to the weekly menu plan.

    Reply

  4. your lemon butter look delicious! I must try it but with salmon I bet will taste amazing

    Reply

  6. I so have to try this! I have never visited a Carrabas Restaurant before, they are not so close to me (work or home) so having the recipe makes this a great way to try out this recipe! I love chicken. My personal fave is Chicken Piccata but I’m always open to trying something new!

    Reply

  17. Heavenly is how that both looks and sounds! I would have to 1/4 or 1/2 the recipe as I am cooking for me alone-but it might just be worth it!

    Reply