Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta Recipe
This creamy Cajun chicken pasta recipe is totally craveable. Juicy chicken breasts seasoned in a Cajun spice blend tossed together with pasta in a dreamy, creamy garlic Parmesan sauce will knock your socks off.
Servings: 4 Servings
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1¼ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon Tony's Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 orange bell pepper, diced
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- ½ cup fresh parmesan, grated, plus more for garnish
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons capers
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 12 ounces fettuccine
- ½ cup pasta water, reserved
- 5 ounces fresh spinach
- Lemon wedges, for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package instructions.
- In another large pot or skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over high heat, then dust the chicken in creole seasoning and sear it for 3 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate. While the chicken is cooking, cut your vegetables.
- Add the onion and bell pepper to the pan, and saute over high heat for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Reduce the heat to medium and add the cream cheese, grated parmesan, and heavy cream. Stir until the cream cheese is melted.
- Add the capers and ½ of a teaspoon of salt to the pan, and stir to combine.
- Once the pasta is cooked, add the pasta to the pot or skillet with the cream mixture (add it straight from the pot of pasta water - no need to drain!), plus ½ of a cup of the pasta water. Stir, taste, and add salt if needed.
- Add the spinach and toss to combine.
- Slice the chicken, then serve over the pasta and enjoy!
Notes
Ingredient Modifications and Variations
- Use a different cut of chicken: if you don’t have chicken thighs on hand, use something else! Chicken breasts will work great here (they’ll just need a few extra minutes to cook through), or, if you want to make the cooking process super easy, debone a rotisserie chicken, toss it with Tony’s, and then sear that in olive oil to get it a little bit crispy and really full of flavor.
- Make it dairy-free: swap the cream cheese for a dairy-free cream cheese (Kite Hill and Miyoko’s both makes a really delicious one) and the heavy cream for a dairy-free version (I’d stay away from coconut milk here to keep any coconut flavors out of your pasta dish).
- Make it gluten-free: use gluten-free fettucine in place of regular wheat-based pasta for a gluten-free dish.
- Use a different shaped pasta: any pasta will work here (from linguini to farfalle), so no worries if you can’t find fettuccine!
Nutrition
Calories: 852kcal | Carbohydrates: 73.1g | Protein: 44.2g | Fat: 42.2g | Saturated Fat: 21.8g | Cholesterol: 229mg | Sodium: 1688.5mg | Fiber: 5.1g | Sugar: 8.3g