Effortless Chicken Scampi Shells (Print Version)

# Ingredients:

→ Chicken Filling

01 - Chop 900 g of chicken tenders into small pieces
02 - Split 3 tablespoons olive oil as needed
03 - Grab 1.5 cups shredded cheese (pick mozzarella, cheddar, or monterey jack)

→ Chicken Seasoning

04 - 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
05 - 1 teaspoon cayenne
06 - 1 teaspoon garlic powder
07 - 1 teaspoon onion powder
08 - Half a teaspoon dried oregano
09 - Half a teaspoon salt
10 - Half a teaspoon ground black pepper

→ Jumbo Shells

11 - 340 g jumbo pasta shells

→ Scampi Sauce

12 - Use 85 g unsalted butter, keep some to add later
13 - Mince 5 garlic cloves
14 - Set aside 1 teaspoon of the earlier seasoning mix
15 - Half a teaspoon of red pepper flakes
16 - Pour in 240 ml dry white wine
17 - 160 ml chicken broth or stock
18 - 80 ml water you saved from cooking pasta
19 - Juice and zest from 1 lemon
20 - 160 ml heavy cream
21 - Finely grate 30 g parmesan
22 - 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped fresh
23 - Add salt and black pepper as you like

→ Cheese Topping

24 - 1.5 cups shredded cheese—any kind works

# Instructions:

01 - Stir paprika, garlic powder, cayenne, onion powder, oregano, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Scoop out a teaspoon for later. The rest is for the chicken.
02 - Mix chicken with 1 tablespoon olive oil and almost all of the spice blend. Toss to coat. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a big pan over medium-high. Drop in chicken, cook until nicely browned and hits 74°C inside. Move it to a big bowl, cover it with foil, and stick it aside for now.
03 - Boil a pot of water with salt. Drop in shells and cook them so they’re al dente. Drain, and don’t toss the 80 ml of pasta water—set it aside.
04 - With the pan you used for chicken still hot, melt about a third of the butter. Toss in the garlic and cook it for 2 minutes. Add your wine and let that bubble away until it shrinks to about 160 ml. Now add what's left of the butter, the extra seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, broth, all that lemon, cream, parmesan, and parsley. Let it cook down until thicker, then add the saved pasta water. Stir a bit more, taste, and tweak the flavor if you want.
05 - Toss 1.5 cups of shredded cheese with the cooked chicken. Spread 120 ml of scampi sauce in the bottom of a greased 33x23 cm baking dish. Fill shells with the cheesy chicken mix and lay them side by side in the dish.
06 - Pour whatever scampi sauce is left over the stuffed shells. Sprinkle the last 1.5 cups of shredded cheese over everything. Bake at 190°C for 15 to 20 minutes—pull it out when the cheese is bubbly, melted, and looks appetizingly golden.

# Notes:

01 - Put the whole thing together ahead if you want, just cover it up and stash in the fridge. Bake it right before serving.