Updated October 2026
If you don’t mind fusion cuisine, you will love this curried chicken pasta. It’s a true fridge-raid mash up using leftover roast chicken and beautifully dark Cavolo Nero leaves that are still sturdy. It’s so comforting and creamy and on the table in 15 minutes!
What you’ll love about this recipe
- Quick and Easy: On the table in 15 minutes!
- Flavorful: I squeeze a healthy amount of lemon to balance the sweetness I get from the gently sauteed shallots.
- No more food waste: Leftover roast and veggies or herbs that are a little past their best are all welcome. Make it your own with protein and veggie variations.
- No coconut milk: I love coconut milk, but I’d rather avoid the coconut taste in this dish, that’s not the flavor I’m after. I like the fragrant spices aroma to shine!
- Healthy yet yummy: The Cavolo Nero (or feel free to use spinach or even frozen peas) adds a pop of green and essential vitamins and minerals.
- Creaminess: A few heaped tablespoons of cream cheese brings on the creaminess that I crave from this pasta dish, but no heavy cream. Fusilli bucati’s corkscrew shape perfectly cradle the creamy sauce.
Ingredient notes
- Leftover roast chicken – it doesn’t matter what flavor, because you will be infusing new flavors. You can even use rotisserie chicken, promise I won’t judge!
- Shallots and garlic– you get a mild garlicky sweetness that doesn’t overpower the dish.
- Pasta – I used fusilli bucati, their corkscrew shape makes for a wonderful sauce carrier! Penne or any tube or short spiral shape works.
- Cream cheese – if you are dairy free, you can make this curried chicken pasta without cream cheese too, an extra splash of pasta water is all you need.
- Olive oil – always extra virgin for me
- Cavolo Nero– this sturdy kale cousin (in fact they are both from the same cabbage family), gives a little texture and wonderful dark green color to this pasta dish. Feel free to use kale or even spinach.
- Lemon – squeeze the juice, it is definitely needed to balance those sweet flavors
- Curry powder – this is where you go wild, use your favorites or make a homemade curry spice blend. I love garam masala it is so fragrant!
- Salt and pepper to taste, parsley or coriander to garnish (optional)
How to make leftover chicken curry pasta (step-by-step)
Time needed: 15 minutes
If you don’t mind fusion cuisine, you will love this curried chicken pasta. This recipe transforms sadly looking leftover chicken and veggies in a beautifully fragrant and creamy curry pasta. Make it fast during busy weeknights and thank me later!
- Cook the Pasta
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to package instructions, reserving about 1 cup of pasta water before draining.
- Prepare the Veg
You can do this while the pasta is cooking. Finely chop all the veg and set aside.
- Saute Everything
In a medium frying pan, saute the diced shallot, the garlic, the finely shredded Cavolo Nero and stir for a few minutes. Add the shredded cooked chicken to warm through well and maybe catch the pan for some nice browning. Watch it like a hawk, you don’t want to burn the mixture.
Add the curry spices to the pan toasting in a little olive oil, this will enhance the spice aromas. - Stir the Pasta
Tumble the hot cooked pasta, the cream cheese and loosen the sauce up with a little pasta water if needed. Adjust to your taste with a good squeeze of lemon juice and salt and pepper.
- Serve and Enjoy
Divide between bowls, garnish with some parsley or coriander (optional). Serve hot and enjoy!
Pro Tips
- Taste the pasta water for saltiness.
- Hold onto some pasta water before draining. It will help make a wonderfully silky smooth sauce.
- Make a little space in the pan to toast the curry powder in olive oil for a quick minute, this will enhance the flavors.
- Gently saute the shallots and garlic on medium to low heat, you don’t want too much browning.
- Don’t overcook the shredded chicken, it will become mushy. Just warm it through or try to crisp up some bits!
- Taste the sauce and adjust the seasonings if you need to.
- Don’t cook the greens for too long, you want them vibrantly green.
Plant count & leftovers
That’s six plants in one pan: shallot, garlic, Cavolo Nero, lemon, garam masala and a handful of parsley or coriander on top. Use wholewheat pasta and you’re at seven, which is a decent start if you’re tracking that 30-plants-a-week goal from a 15-minute dinner. Dark leafy greens like Cavolo Nero also brings plenty of fiber.
Then there are the leftovers. Pasta that’s been cooked and cooled forms some resistant starch, the kind your gut bacteria enjoy, which is one more reason I’m happy eating this cold from the fridge the next day as a pasta salad with extra lemon.
Servings
This recipe yields 4 portions, enough for a small family. There was a quite a bit leftover, enough for Dave’s and my lunch the next day.
What to serve with curry chicken pasta
I really like this pasta the way it is, and I often have the leftovers as a pasta salad for lunch the next day. But here’s some pairing to match:
- A few tangy florets of my naturally fermented cauliflower
- A small portion of this probiotic rich and pretty pink sauerkraut.
variations and substitutions
- VEGETARIAN: If you want this recipe vegetarian, skip the chicken and add more leafy greens or roast squash (check out how to make roast butternut squash in my roast butternut squash stuffed with feta recipe!)
- Don’t have fusilli bucati? Penne, rigatoni, or rotini would work well too. Even tagliatelle!
- Chicken: Swap the chicken with any other leftover roast or other protein like cooked shrimp, or tofu. You’d also love this pea pasta with salmon.
- Add some fresh chili if you like it spicier.
- Swap the Cavolo Nero with kale or spinach.
- Swap the cream cheese for sour cream or crème fraîche.
- Make it in a chicken pasta bake with more sauce and grated cheese on top!
- Make another weeknight favorite, this vegan curried butter beans has easy spices that I’m sure you’ve already got in your pantry.
If leftover chicken gets a bad reputation, this pasta is my answer to it. Warm spices, a few spoonfuls of cream cheese and plenty of lemon turn a few scraps into something you’d happily make on purpose.
recipe FAQ
Well, of course. Sometimes you just want to switch things up a bit. Mixing up curry flavors with pasta makes for a quick meal when you crave a comforting dinner, but want all of the flavor.
This leftover curried pasta keeps well in an airtight container for up to three days. You can also reheat or eat it cold as pasta salad for next day’s lunch.
I use garam masala because it’s fragrant and warming and not too hot, and lets the lemon and shallot come through. A mild or medium curry powder works too and gives a more classic, turmeric-yellow curry flavor. Either way, toast it in the oil for about 30 seconds before the pasta goes in. If all you have is hot curry powder, start with half a teaspoon and taste.
Yes, and it’s one of the best shortcuts for this recipe. Pull the meat off the bones, shred it into bite-size pieces and add it to the pan just long enough to warm through. Cooking it again makes it mushy, so you want it hot, not recooked.
Curried Chicken Pasta
Made this? A quick star rating above helps other readers find it.
Equipment
- 1 frying pan
- 1 saucepan
- 1 spatula or wooden spoon
- 1 garlic press optional
- 1 citrus press optional
- 1 Chopping board
- 1 knife
Ingredients
- 300 g pasta short shapes
- 1 shallot
- 3 garlic cloves
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 200 g leftover roast chicken or any type of cooked chicken
- 100 g Cavolo Nero (Lacinato Kale) stalks removed and finely shredded
- 1 teaspoon garam masala or curry powder
- 100 g cream cheese
- pasta water as needed
- 1 lemon juice squeezed
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 handful parsley or coriander to garnish, optional
Instructions
Cook the Pasta
- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to package instructions, reserving about 1 cup of pasta water before draining.300 g pasta
Prepare the Veg
- While the pasta is cooking, finely dice the shallot, mince the garlic, wash and strip the Cavolo Nero leaves and finely shred them.1 shallot, 3 garlic cloves, 100 g Cavolo Nero (Lacinato Kale)
Saute Everything
- In a medium frying pan saute the chopped shallot in two tablespoons of olive oil on low to medium heat. Once the shallot is translucent and getting a little color, add the garlic, the finely shredded Cavolo Nero and stir for a few minutes.1 shallot, 4 tablespoons olive oil, 100 g Cavolo Nero (Lacinato Kale), 3 garlic cloves
- Add the chicken to warm through well and maybe catch the pan for some nice browning. Be careful not to burn the mixture.200 g leftover roast chicken
- With a spatula make space in the pan, pour the rest of the olive oil and add the garam masala or curry powder to toast for half a minute or so, this will enhance the spice aromas.1 teaspoon garam masala
Stir the Pasta
- Mix again then tumble in the cooked pasta, adding more pasta water if you need to loosen up the sauce.
- Add the cream cheese and stir through carefully, loosening with a little pasta water if needed, so that the pasta keeps its shape.100 g cream cheese
- Add lemon juice, give it a taste, and adjust the seasoning.1 lemon, Salt and black pepper to taste
Serve and Enjoy
- Divide between bowls, garnishing with some parsley or coriander if you like. Serve hot and enjoy!1 handful parsley or coriander
