Olive Garden Chicken Tortellini Alfredo is a classic dish with cheese-filled tortellini coated in a creamy homemade alfredo sauce and topped with crunchy bread crumbs and juicy chicken breast. Enjoy this restaurant favorite at home, any night of the week!
We are big fans of making copycat dishes at home and Olive Garden is one of my favorites to recreate. The recipes are relatively simple to make. While they do take several steps, they are easy to follow and the outcome truly tastes restaurant quality.
Not to mention the cost per serving is way less!
This Olive Garden cheese tortellini copycat recipe starts with seasoned chicken cooked until brown in a large skillet. Then to the same skillet, uses those drippings to create a deliciously creamy and richly flavored homemade alfredo sauce. Store bought tortellini are added, and then everything is mixed together. Topped with crunchy breadcrumbs, more cheese, and baked in the oven. Sounds delicious, right?
More Olive Garden copycat recipes
- Olive Garden Eggplant Parmesan
- Olive Garden Steak Gorgonzola - ONE OF MY MOST POPULAR RECIPES
- Olive Garden Chicken Veronese
- Olive Garden Stuffed Chicken Marsala
- Olive Garden Ravioli di Portobello
- Zuppa Toscana Olive Garden Recipe
Ingredients
- Thin cut chicken breasts: Thin cut chicken helps it to cook quickly without drying out. You can also buy regular chicken breast and slice them in half lengthwise yourself.
- Italian seasoning: The chicken itself is seasoned simply with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
- Cheese tortellini: You will find these in the refrigerator section of your grocery store. We like to get them at Costco because they come in a two pack for a good price. You can use any kind of tortellini you’d like here!
- Butter: This works as the base for the homemade Alfredo sauce.
- Shallot: Shallot adds a light onion flavor that's perfect for sauces such as this one. You can use yellow onion or garlic as substitutes.
- Heavy cream: A light recipe this is not. If you would like to lighten it up a bit, you could use half-and-half instead of heavy cream. I do suggest heavy cream, it really adds a nice richness to the dish.
- Parmesan cheese: For the smoothest sauce, grate parmesan cheese fresh, right before adding.
How to make Olive Garden tortellini alfredo at home
Step 1. Season thin cut chicken breasts with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning evenly on both sides.
Step 2. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add oil.
Add chicken breasts and brown on both sides making sure they are cooked through - about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Once cooked, remove from the skillet and set on a plate to the side.
Step 3. Cook tortellini according to packaging instructions.
To the same skillet, reduce heat to medium and melt butter. Add minced shallot and sauté for two minutes to soften.
Step 4. Add heavy cream and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Step 5. Whisk until sauce is smooth. Remove from heat.
Step 6. Stir cooked and drained tortellini into the finished sauce.
Step 7. Preheat oven to 375°F.
To a 7x11 glass dish, pour in tortellini and sauce mixture. Top with a sprinkle of breadcrumbs and an additional ¼ cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Step 8. Bake for 10 minutes until cheese is melted and brown.
Serve topped with sliced chicken breasts and enjoy.
Recipe tips
- For a super easy version of this recipe, you can use premade alfredo in place of the homemade sauce.
- You can choose not to bake the dish and instead plate it with the pasta and sauce topped with sliced chicken and a sprinkle of breadcrumbs.
- Everything cooks pretty quickly in this recipe. It’s best to prep all of your ingredients ahead of time so they’re ready to go with each step.
Did you enjoy this Olive Garden Chicken Tortellini Alfredo Copycat Recipe? I would love for you to let me know by leaving a comment and star rating. I can't wait to hear from you!
Olive Garden Chicken Tortellini Alfredo
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs. thin cut chicken breasts
- ½ tbsp. italian seasoning
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. pepper
- 1 tbsp. avocado oil
- 1 large shallot minced
- 1 stick butter
- ¾ cup freshly grated parmesan separated
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 24 oz. cheese tortellini
- ¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Season thin cut chicken breasts with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning evenly on both sides.
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add oil.
- Add chicken breasts and brown on both sides making sure they are cooked through - about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Once cooked, remove from the skillet and set on a plate to the side.
- Cook tortellini according to packaging instructions.
- To the same skillet, reduce heat to medium and melt butter. Add minced shallot and sauté for two minutes to soften.
- Add heavy cream and ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese and whisk until sauce is smooth. Remove from heat. Stir cooked and drained tortellini into the finished sauce.
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- To a 7x11 glass dish, pour in tortellini and sauce mixture. Top with a sprinkle of breadcrumbs and an additional ¼ cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Bake for 10 minutes until cheese is melted and brown.
- Serve topped with sliced chicken breasts and enjoy.
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