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Cowboy Butter Chicken Linguine

Cowboy butter chicken linguine with seared chicken strips and a glossy herb-spiced butter sauce. Linguine gets tossed until silky, with red pepper flakes, lemon zest, and fresh parsley for a vivid, aromatic pasta bowl.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: American
Calories: 690
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Chicken and pasta
  • 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into strips
  • 0.5 salt to taste
  • 0.5 pepper to taste
  • 1 Cajun seasoning to taste
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 12 oz linguine cooked; reserve 1 cup pasta water
Cowboy butter sauce
  • 6 tbsp butter
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 0.5 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 0.25 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
  • 1 tbsp fresh chives chopped
  • 1 cup pasta water reserved from cooking linguine

Equipment

  • 1 large skillet

Method
 

Cook the chicken
  1. Season the chicken strips with salt, pepper, and Cajun seasoning to taste. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over high heat and cook the chicken for 4-5 minutes until charred and cooked through, then remove.
Build the cowboy butter sauce
  1. Melt butter in the same skillet over medium heat. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute, stirring to prevent browning.
  2. Stir in Dijon mustard, smoked paprika, red pepper flakes, and cayenne pepper. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring until fragrant and darkened slightly.
  3. Add fresh lemon juice, parsley, and chives. Toss the cooked linguine with the cowboy butter sauce, adding reserved pasta water as needed for a silky coating.
Finish and serve
  1. Add the seared chicken strips back on top of the pasta. Serve immediately while the sauce is glossy and hot.

Notes

For best sauce cling, reserve and add pasta water 1-2 tablespoons at a time until the linguine looks glossy. Refrigerate leftovers in a sealed container up to 3 days; reheat gently in a skillet with a splash of water. Freezing is not recommended due to sauce separation. For a lighter option, use olive-oil-based chicken seasoning and reduce butter to 4 tablespoons if you don’t mind a thinner sauce.