Olive Garden Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara is one of the best pasta dishes the famous restaurant makes. It's packed with chicken, shrimp, bacon, and an irresistible creamy sauce!
Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara (Olive Garden Copycat) Recipe
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We love copycat recipes here and we especially love Olive Garden copycat recipes! This pasta dish might just be one of the absolute BEST dishes on Olive Garden's menu. It is a hearty pasta dish that the whole family will love.
Skip the takeout this week and try making this easy pasta dinner at home! You will be so impressed with how easy, tasty and budget friendly this recipe is instead of eating out.
What is Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara (Olive Garden Copycat)?
This famous restaurant dish features a rich and creamy carbonara sauce that is packed with crispy pieces of bacon. The pasta also has thinly sliced red peppers, sauteed chicken and shrimp which makes it a hearty and well rounded dinner.
The dish is made with spaghetti but you can also use spaghettini, capellini, fettucine or really any pasta you have on hand that you love! The carbonara sauce is simply divine. It is so rich and creamy, a must try for every pasta lover!
What to Serve with this Dish
- Olive Garden Salad Copycat
- Olive Garden Breadsticks Copycat
- Kale Apple Salad
- Focaccia Bread
- Feta Bruschetta
What is in Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara (Olive Garden Copycat)?
- Chicken - this dish is made with boneless skinless chicken breast. The chicken is incredibly tender and moist but if you prefer you can use boneless skinless chicken thighs.
- Shrimp - the combination of chicken and shrimp makes this a unique and fun dinner that the whole family will love. The shrimp pair perfectly with the creamy carbonara sauce!
- Bacon - everything is better with bacon. Carbonara is traditionally made with guanciale (cured pork). But it is hard to find so pancetta or bacon is often used as a swap. Olive Garden uses bacon... who doesn't love bacon?!
- Red Bell Pepper - thinly sliced red bell peppers add a beautiful pop of color and flavor to the pasta.
- Spaghetti - carbonara is traditionally made with spaghetti and that is how Olive Garden makes this dish. You can use spaghettini, capellini, fettuccini, linguine or any pasta you prefer. If you only have a smaller noodle such as penne, fusilli or rigatoni you can use that as well.
- Parmesan - a must for a rich carbonara sauce. It adds a rich cheesy and salty flavor to the sauce. The sauce is simply parmesan cream and egg yolks mixed together. It is then poured over the fresh cooked hot pasta. The heat from the pasta cooks the eggs and creates a thick and creamy sauce.
- Cream - the base of the sauce. We do not recommend swapping for milk or half and half. The sauce will not thicken as nicely as it does with cream.
- Egg Yolks - part of the sauce. The heat from the pasta cooks the eggs yolks and creates a rich and creamy sauce.
- Italian Seasoning
- Onion & Garlic
- Salt & Pepper
How to Make Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara (Olive Garden Copycat)
Full Printable Recipe at Bottom of Page
Cook the Proteins
1 In a small bowl add the shrimp and toss with 1 tablespoon of the Italian seasoning until evenly coated. Set aside.
2 In another small bowl add the diced chicken and toss with the remaining 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning. Set aside.
3 Dice bacon into bite site pieces and place in a large cold frying pan or skillet. Turn the heat to medium-high and cook bacon pieces until crispy. Once cooked, remove the bacon from the fat and set aside. Do not remove the fat from the pan, it will be used to cook the chicken and shrimp (or if you prefer you can remove the fat and use oil of choice in next step).
4 You should now start cooking the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water. Cook following instructions for al dente pasta. Once the pasta is cooked, reserve 1 cup of the cooking water (you will need the water to make the sauce!) and then drain the pasta.
5 Cook the chicken in the bacon fat (or cooking oil of choice) over medium-high heat. It will take about 5-6 minutes. Once fully cooked, transfer to a plate, cover with foil and set aside.
6 Add the shrimp to the same pan. Sauté until cooked through, about 3-4 minutes per side or until pink and cooked through. Once cooked, transfer to the same plate with the chicken and set aside.
Prepare the Pasta
7 Next, add the onion and garlic to the pan and sauté for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant. Add in the sliced red bell pepper and continue cooking for another 1-2 minutes.
8 In a bowl, whisk together freshly grated Parmesan, the egg yolks, 1 cup heavy cream, salt, and black pepper. Whisk vigorously until evenly combined.
9 Add the cooked drained pasta into the skillet, then remove the skillet from the heat.
10 While continuously tossing the pasta with tongs or stirring with a spoon, pour in a small amount of the egg yolk mixture, then a small amount of the hot pasta water. Repeat until all of the egg yolk mixture and water has been added. As you continue to toss and stir the pasta you will see the sauce start to thicken and cling to the pasta. Once the sauce is nice and creamy and coats the pasta add in the cooked chicken, shrimp, and bacon. Toss to combine.
NOTE: do not add all of the egg yolk mixture at one time! The eggs will cook too quickly and you may end up with scrambled egg pieces in your sauce. In order to get a rich and creamy sauce you need to gradually alternate between adding the egg yolk mixture and the hot pasta water. This will slowly cook the eggs in the sauce.
11 Garnish with parsley and freshly grated parmesan cheese. Serve and enjoy!
Tips for the Best Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara (Olive Garden Copycat)
- Sauce - for the best results we recommend using fresh grated parmesan cheese. Store bought parmesan cheese that is sold in jars often includes added ingredients. If using store bought be sure to check the label to make sure it is 100% pure cheese or else the cheese will not melt evenly in the sauce. Don't add the egg yolk mixture right into the sauce at one time. The eggs will cook too quickly and you risk ending up with a lumpy pasta sauce. We recommend using cream and not milk or half and half for best results.
- Protein - this recipe is customizable. Instead of using bacon you can use pancetta. Instead of shrimp you can use just chicken or swap the shrimp for a smoked sausage. This is a great dinner recipe to keep on rotation because you can always keep changing out the proteins to keep the recipe fun and fresh for your family!
- Veggies - pasta is a great way to sneak more veggies into your diet. This recipe is made with just red bell peppers but you can swap them out or add even more veggies to the recipe. We love to use any combination of bell peppers, asparagus, zucchini, spinach, broccolini and more. The possibilities are endless.
FAQs Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara (Olive Garden Copycat)
You can reheat it in the oven. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and place the carbonara in a covered, oven-safe dish. Heat for 10-15 minutes, or until heated through.
Reheat stove top by adding the pasta to a frying pan with a splash of milk on medium heat. Stir until warmed through.
For the quickest method, you can microwave on a microwave safe dish. Heat for 1-3 minutes, stirring halfway. Tip: add a splash of milk to get the sauce nice and creamy.
Allow it to cool completely and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
You can make this dish ahead of time by cooking the bacon, chicken, and shrimp, then storing them in an airtight container in the fridge until you are ready to prepare the rest.
Due to the eggs and heavy cream in the sauce, I would not recommend freezing because it will not thaw to the right consistency. You can prepare the dish 1-2 days in advance and reheat in the oven or microwave before serving.
Replace protein with vegetables or plant based meat products.
Follow the recipe as usual and use gluten free pasta of choice.
More Easy Chicken Dinners!
- Olive Garden Chicken Scampi
- Pasta da Vinci (Cheesecake Factory Copycat)
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta
- Chicken Marsala
- Creamy Tuscan Chicken
- Chicken Alfredo Bake
Enjoy!
- Sab
Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara (Olive Garden Copycat)
Ingredients
- 8 slices bacon
- 1 lb shrimp (peeled and deveined)
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast (cut into bite size pieces)
- 2 tablespoon Italian seasoning (or 1 teaspoon each, dried basil, parsley, oregano, rosemary and thyme)
- ½ onion (diced)
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 red bell pepper (thinly sliced)
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 lb spaghetti (or pasta of choice)
- 1 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- In a small bowl add the shrimp and toss with 1 tablespoon of the Italian seasoning until evenly coated. Set aside.1 lb shrimp
- In another small bowl add the diced chicken and toss with the remaining 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning. Set aside.1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast
- Dice bacon into bite site pieces and place in a large cold frying pan or skillet. Turn the heat to medium-high and cook bacon pieces until crispy. Once cooked, remove the bacon from the fat and set aside. Do not remove the fat from the pan, it will be used to cook the chicken and shrimp (or if you prefer you can remove the fat and use oil of choice in next step).8 slices bacon
- You should now start cooking the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water. Cook following instructions for al dente pasta. Once the pasta is cooked, reserve 1 cup of the cooking water (you will need the water to make the sauce!) and then drain the pasta.1 lb spaghetti
- Cook the chicken in the bacon fat (or cooking oil of choice) over medium-high heat. It will take about 5-6 minutes. Once fully cooked, transfer to a plate, cover with foil and set aside.
- Add the shrimp to the same pan. Sauté until cooked through, about 3-4 minutes per side or until pink and cooked through. Once cooked, transfer to the same plate with the chicken and set aside.
- Next, add the onion and garlic to the pan and sauté for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant. Add in the sliced red bell pepper and continue cooking for another 1-2 minutes.½ onion, 4 cloves garlic, 1 red bell pepper
- In a bowl, whisk together freshly grated Parmesan, the egg yolks, 1 cup heavy cream, salt, and black pepper. Whisk vigorously until evenly combined.4 large egg yolks, 1 cup Parmesan cheese, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 cup heavy cream, ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- Add the cooked drained pasta into the skillet, then remove the skillet from the heat.
- While continuously tossing the pasta with tongs or stirring with a spoon, pour in a small amount of the egg yolk mixture, then a small amount of the hot pasta water. Repeat until all of the egg yolk mixture and water has been added. As you continue to toss and stir the pasta you will see the sauce start to thicken and cling to the pasta. Once the sauce is nice and creamy and coats the pasta add in the cooked chicken, shrimp, and bacon. Toss to combine. NOTE: do not add all of the egg yolk mixture at one time! The eggs will cook too quickly and you may end up with scrambled egg pieces in your sauce. In order to get a rich and creamy sauce you need to gradually alternate between adding the egg yolk mixture and the hot pasta water. This will slowly cook the eggs in the sauce.
- Garnish with parsley and freshly grated parmesan cheese. Serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Lina says
Wow thanks for this. It was a huge hit with my family.