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Red Pesto Chicken Skillet Lasagna

Red pesto chicken skillet lasagna in meal prep containers garnished with basil.
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This Red Pesto Chicken Skillet Lasagna features lean ground chicken, lasagna noodles, spinach, fresh basil, a vibrant red pesto tomato sauce, and plenty of cheese in an easy one pan meal! It’s high in protein, so flavorful, and much easier than making lasagna the traditional way!

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3 small / 52-57 grams Asian Red Shallots (or use a regular shallot/eschalot) – finely chopped
  • 6 cloves / 30 grams Garlic – minced
  • 1–10 pieces / 3-30 grams fresh Red Chilies, to taste (optional – I used Thai Bird’s Eye red chilies but any variety will work, omit for milder dish – note 1*) – finely chopped
  • ¾ cup / 84 grams freshly grated Low Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese (or use store-bought shredded cheese)
  • 1 ounce / 28 grams freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese (or use store-bought shredded Parmesan cheese)
  • 9 ounces / 250 grams (12 pieces) Lasagna Noodles (use gluten-free lasagna noodles if needed) – broken into 4 pieces each
  • 1 teaspoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1.1 pounds / 500 grams Lean Ground Chicken (I used homemade minced chicken breast)
  • ½ TSP Kosher Salt (to season the chicken)
  • 1 tablespoon / 14 grams Unsalted Butter
  • ½ cup / 125 grams Red Pesto (store-bought or homemade)
  • 1 (14-ounce) can / 400 grams canned Diced Tomatoes (or crushed tomatoes, I used Italian chopped tomatoes with olive oil & garlic)
  • ¾ cup / 200 grams Tomato Passata (known as strained tomatoes or tomato purée in the USA)
    2 cups / 500 milliliters Chicken Broth (I used 2 teaspoons/12 grams Better Than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base dissolved in 2 cups of hot water)
  • ¾ – 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt, to taste
  • ¾ teaspoon freshly cracked Black Pepper, to taste
  • ½ tablespoon Italian Seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon Dried Mint
  • ½ – 2 teaspoons Crushed Red Pepper Flakes, to taste
  • ½ – 1 teaspoon ground Cayenne, to taste
  • ¾ cup / 200 grams Low-Fat Cottage Cheese (I used 3%, or use 2% or 4% whole milk cottage cheese)
  • ⅓ cup / 14 grams fresh Basil Leaves – finely sliced
  • To Serve: Sliced fresh Basil Leaves or Parsley

Instructions

Prep:

  1. Prepare the fresh ingredients: Chop the shallots, garlic and red chilies (if using) as indicated in the ingredients section. Use a block grater to grate the part-skim mozzarella and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. Break each lasagna noodle sheet into 4 pieces.

Red Pesto Chicken Skillet Lasagna:

  1. Cook the chicken: Heat 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil in a large deep edged skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the ground chicken and season with ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Cook for 3-4 minutes, breaking up the clumps with your spatula, until just cooked. Transfer to a clean bowl and set aside.
  2. Sauté the aromatics: Melt 1 tablespoon unsalted butter in the same pan over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and sauté until translucent – about 40-50 seconds. Then add the garlic and chilies and sauté for another 30-40 seconds until fragrant.
  3. Add the red pesto: Add the red pesto and sauté for a minute to combine.
  4. Build the sauce. Add the canned diced tomatoes, passata, chicken broth, and all of the seasonings – ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, ¾ teaspoon black pepper, ½ tablespoon Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon dried mint, ½-2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes, and ½-1 teaspoon ground cayenne. Stir to combine.
  5. Add the lasagna noodles: Add the broken lasagna noodles and evenly spread them out in the pan, making sure to submerge them in the sauce.
  6. Simmer: Bring the sauce up to a boil, then cover the pan and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 10-13 minutes, uncovering to stir every 5 minutes to prevent the lasagna noodles from sticking to the pan, until the lasagna pieces are al-dente and tender.
  7. Mix in the cooked chicken: Add the cooked ground chicken and mix briefly to combine.
  8. Add the cottage cheese: Stir in the cottage cheese until evenly combined – about 1 minute.
  9. Add the baby spinach: Add the baby spinach and mix until just starting to wilt – 1 minute.
  10. Stir in the basil: Add the sliced basil and mix to combine.
  11. Top with cheeses:
    • (OPTION 1) If you prefer not to switch on the oven, scatter the mozzarella and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese evenly over everything. Switch off the heat and cover the pan for 5 minutes to let the cheese melt.
    • (OPTION 2) Alternatively, if you’d like the cheese to brown a little and become bubbly, divide into individual meal prep dishes (optional), then top evenly with the cheeses. Broil for 3-4 minutes in the oven or bake at 375°F/190°C for 9-11 minutes. If using an oven-safe pan, you can scatter the cheese on top of the lasagna and then place in the oven to broil.
  12. Serve: Let the lasagna cool for 5-10 minutes. Garnish with more sliced basil and serve.

Equipment

Notes

  1. Fresh Red Chilies. To make this milder, leave out the fresh red chilies or use less. Also use less or omit the crushed red pepper chili flakes and ground cayenne.
  2. Nutritional information is approximate and will vary with ingredients substitutes and the brands you use. The nutrition information in the recipe card is based on dividing into 5 servings. If dividing into 4 servings, see the section on serving size in the post below for the relevant nutrition information.
  3. Check out the full article for ingredient notes and substitutions, storage and reheating, tips on customizing this recipe, and more!

Nutrition

Find it online: https://thatspicychick.com/red-pesto-chicken-skillet-lasagna/