You may know by this point that I’m slightly obsessed with one pot meals. They are just so practical and awesome! There aren’t a million pots/pans to deal with, and you can clean up the kitchen while your dinner is simmering away. IT’S SO SATISFYING.
I get a little bit too excited when I find a delicious one pot meal recipe…liiikkkeeee this one!
Mmmmm…Mexican food. I love Mexican food because you can pack a huge punch of flavor into your dish and exert minimal effort…it’s all in the seasonings ??.
That was a double thumbs up…..in case you missed it…????.
The key to this yummy one pot meal is the layers and layers of flavor achieved by a SUPA simple homemade Mexican seasoning.
The layers of flavor:
- Layer number one: Our chicken is liberally seasoned with delicious Mexican flavors (chili powder, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika ?) and seared in a pan before being removed to a plate to sit and wait patiently for a few delicious minutes.
- Layer number two: Our veggies are thrown into the same pot, picking up all the yummy bits the chicken left on the bottom of the pan and are also liberally seasoned with our flavor-bomb mixture.
- Layer number three: Our pasta and chicken stock are added in with the veggies along with a third hefty helping of our seasoning…all of that goodness simmers together to make a delicious One Pot Mexican Skillet.
Making flavorful, easy dishes is so satisfying, isn’t it?
Your answer should be YAAASSSSSSSSSS.
So last week was pretty awesome. We had a snow day on Monday…say whaaaaaattt?!? A snow day! Well, really it was an “ice” day…there was barely any snow. After driving a looooooong time over Thanksgiving break, that unexpected day off on Monday was ah-may-zing. With a capital A.
And then to top it off, we had Friday off as well for this big annual basketball tournament! A three day week, woop woop! I will say, however, that the carefree-ness of this long weekend was marred by my attempt to keep score for a few hours each day at the basketball tournament. I’m not complaining – it actually ended up being pretty fun, and I loved getting to watch my students play, but OH MY GOSH RUNNING THE SCORE AT BASKETBALL GAMES IS SO STRESSFUL!
I seriously think I shaved ten years off my life and sprouted a few gray hairs. First of all…I know zero about basketball. I never played it, and didn’t watch much of it when I was in school. Second of all…when you run the scoreboard in basketball, you have to keep track of score, fouls, which player got the foul and how many he/she has had so far, and TIME!! I don’t know how much you know about basketball, but you have to start and stop the clock each time the ref blows the whistle…which is constantly.
My teacher friend and I teamed up, though. She did the time and I did the score or vice versa. It ended up being pretty fun, but OH MY GOSH! So much pressure. I was yelled at several times by various people when I forgot to start/stop the clock…whoops ?.
It’s okay…I consoled myself with a small heaping bowl of this goodness when I got home ?.
I hope you had a wonderful weekend!!
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1½ teaspoons paprika
- 1½ teaspoons garlic powder
- 1½ teaspoons onion powder
- 1 pound chicken breasts, cut into chunks (about 1-2 inches)
- 1 bell pepper (red, orange, or yellow), diced
- 1 jalapeno, seeds and ribs removed, minced
- 1 red onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups whole wheat rotini pasta (any other pasta would work as well)
- 2 cups chicken stock
- ½ cup shredded Mexican cheese
- Cilantro for garnish (optional)
- To make the Mexican seasoning, stir the chili powder, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder together in a small bowl and set aside
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat with some olive oil
- Season your chicken chunks with 1 tablespoon of the Mexican seasoning and some salt and pepper
- Cook in the hot skillet until browned and just cooked through - it won't take very long!
- Remove the chicken to a plate, and add your vegetables to the same pot (add more olive oil if the pan gets dry) along with 1 more tablespoon of Mexican seasoning and a little salt and pepper
- Saute your vegetables until they have softened slightly, about 5 minutes
- Add your pasta in with the vegetables along with your chicken stock and 2 more tablespoons of Mexican seasoning. Season with salt
- Bring this mixture to a boil, and boil for 10 minutes (or until the pasta is al dente), stirring every few minutes
- Remove from the heat, add your cheese, add the chicken back in, and stir everything together
- Top with cilantro (optional) and serve!
If you make this or any of my other recipes, be sure to Instagram it and hashtag #thegarlicdiaries!
In the mood for more yummy one pot meals? Check these out:
“One Sheet” Brown Sugar Dijon Chicken
This was so delicious, one of the best things I have made in so little time. I made some modifications: I doubled the paprika, onion powder, and garlic powder, and added all-spice to the mix too. I actually coated the chicken in spices, almost like a crust, before saueteeing in the skillet. I added half a can of diced tomatoes without the juice to the vegetables (I think this was really key to the flavor I was able to develop). Used 2 bell peppers instead of just one. Added some chopped cilantro in while cooking in addition to some on top for garnish. I also used 3 cups of pasta instead of just one, and added 3/4 cup of extra stock (since the tomatoes released some water too). My partner devoured this too. Honestly next time I might use a whole box of pasta because my only complaint was that I didn’t have enough for leftovers, since it was gone in one day!
Sorry, I mean 3 cups of pasta instead of 2.
Great ideas on the modifications, Ash! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe and were able to make it fit your tastes :).
Hi! This looks amazing and I wanted to make it but I DO have 1 question. Their appears to be some tomatoes in the recipe but I don’t see that listed. Did you just add a can of diced tomatoes? Salsa?
Yours looks delicious so I just wanted to make sure mine comes out JUST as good :)
Thank you!
Hey Jamie! Good question. What you are seeing is actually just the red bell peppers :) – so you’re good with no tomatoes!
This one pot pasta looks wonderful, Annie! I love all of the ingredients you used here – so much flavor! Pinned! OH, and keeping score for basketball is MAJOR stressful. I helped out once when I was in high school and it was absolute chaos. My attention span is much too short for basketball scorekeeping haha!
Keri @ Fashionable Foods recently posted…Roasted Cauliflower Soup {with Cheese Quesadillas}
Thanks, Keri! SO STRESSFUL! Haha exactly – if you have a short attention span you are just screwed…which is me…hence why I kept getting yelled at ?.
Yay to a snow day, we had frost here over the weekend, but no snow. :( And double yay to one pot meals! I LOVE mexican, so those flavors turned into a delicious one pot pasta meal is totally up my alley! Gimme a shovel for my mouth and say Helllllo dinner! Love this, lady! Pinned!
P.S. OMG, I would die if I had to run the score board, I totally feel you on how it would be nice to watch your students play, but keeping the score? Ahhh! Cheers, doll!
Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary recently posted…Shredded Brussels Sprouts Salad with Baked Goat Cheese & Honey Balsamic
Thanks, Cheyanne! I do love one pot meals and Mexican flavors :). Yesss so stressful!
Anything that can be made in one pan makes me happy. Especially when it is mexican. I would have to add a ton more jalapeños though, as I am obsessed with them.
I would approve of the extra jalapenos :). I love them too!
I’m all about one pot meals, especially ones that involve Mexican flavors! This looks fantastic Annie. What a perfect meal!
Gayle @ Pumpkin ‘N Spice recently posted…30 Minute Thursday: One Pan Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo
Thanks, Gayle! Yes for one pot meals!