Top News

Pasta is the epitome of comfort food, but not only that, they're incredibly versatile and easy to knock up especially when you're in a rush. However if you're bored with making the same old thing, one chef has shared a speedy addition that can be added to pasta dishes to completely elevate your next meal.

Australian chef Nahi Maehashi, who goes by Recipe Tin Eats, revealed in a TikTok video from May earlier this year that she adds one simple addition to her pasta, calling it a 'game changer'. To give your regular pasta dishes an extra punch of flavour and texture, Nagi revealed her "two-minute game changer". Her secret ingredient? Whipped ricotta.

Nagi said: "So I have a neat trick for you to elevate your midweek pasta in just two minutes: whipped ricotta. Literally just ricotta, parmesan and milk whisked together until it's creamy.

"Look how it melts into a flood of creamy goodness onto that hot pasta. Does that not look like something you'd get in an Italian trattoria?"

The pasta dish is full of sun dried tomatoes and chicken. The whole recipe takes less than 20 minutes to make, the perfect dish to rustle up when you're in a hurry during the week.

Nagi's video has been viewed over 61,900 times, receiving 17,44 likes and 19 comments. Rach praised: "I love this idea coz ricotta is so cheap in the supermarket deli! Thanks Nagi you ALWAYS deliver the goods."

Claire commented: "I put this exact mix between my lasagna layers."

JennyLou wrote, "I just bought ricotta cause it was on sale and wondering what to do with it, you've answered for me Nagi," while Janice said, "I'd be happy eating that pasta too!!!"

Even though Nagi paired the whipped ricotta with a chicken pasta dish, this quick addition can be used for all types of pasta dishes, so add it to your go-to meal. Here's how you can recreate Nagi's recipe at home.

Ingredients

For the chicken

• 500g/1 lb chicken thigh fillets, cut into small bite size pieces (or breast or tenderloin)
• 1/2 tsp cooking/kosher salt (halve for table salt)
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

For the pasta

• 220g/ 7 oz sun-dried tomato stripes in oil, drained and reserved
• 3 tbsp oil from the sun dried tomato jar
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/4 cup dry white wine, optional
• 400g/14 oz canned crushed tomato
• 350g /12oz fusilli pasta or similar
• 1 litre /4 cups chicken stock/broth, low sodium
• 1/4 tsp cooking/kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 cup basil leaves, roughly chopped

For the whipped ricotta (whisked by hand)

• 1/2 cup ricotta, full fat
• 4 tbsp milk, plus extra if needed to loosen
• 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan

Method

Heat three tbsp sun dried tomato oil in a large pot over high heat. Seal surface of chicken sprinkled with salt and pepper (still raw inside), remove with a slotted spoon into a bowl.

In the same pot, cook garlic and onion for three minutes, then the tomato paste and sun dried tomatoes for one minute. Add the wine, simmer rapidly until mostly evaporated, add pasta and cooked chicken, stir to coat pasta in the flavours.

Add stock, tomato, salt and pepper, bring to simmer then lower to medium high so it's simmering rapidly. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes at first then more frequently towards the end (lower heat if it's catching on the base), until pasta is just cooked and liquid is mostly absorbed. It should be a little too soupy.

Stir in the basil, divide between bowls, dollop/smear ricotta on the top (by this time, excess liquid will be absorbed).Then tuck in.