Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta

Quick, easy and delicious, this Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta features perfectly cooked pasta, fried chicken, coated with delicious Cajun spices, and a simple cream and tomato sauce. Ready in just 30 minutes this easy Cajun pasta recipe is set to be your new favourite weeknight dinner!

Course Main Course, Pasta

Cuisine Cajun, Fusion, Italian

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Total Time 30

Servings people

Calories 814kcal

Author Eb Gargano

Ingredients

3 tablespoons Cajun Spice Mix/Rub (I recommend THIS ONE – See Note 1)
2 tablespoon olive oil
500 g chicken breast cut into small pieces
300 g penne (Or any pasta shape you like! This also works well with fusilli, spaghetti, tagliatelle and fettucine.)
1 small onion diced
2 small bell peppers cut into small pieces (I use 1 red and 1 yellow)
2 cloves garlic grated or crushed
400 ml passata
300 ml double cream
Salt and pepper to taste (See Note 1)
2 tablespoons parsley finely chopped, plus extra for garnish

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Place the Cajun spice mix and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large bowl and stir to combine.
Add the diced chicken to the bowl and stir to coat the chicken evenly with the spices. (I find it easiest to do this with my hands, but you can use a spoon if you don’t like getting messy fingers!) Set aside for 10 minutes to marinate. (You can use this time to put the pasta on to boil and prepare the rest of the ingredients.)
Cook the pasta according to packet instructions / your own preferences. When cooked, drain, reserving some of the pasta cooking water. (See Note 2.)
Meanwhile, heat a non-stick frying pan over a high heat for 1 minute.
Place the chicken in the pan and fry for 3 minutes or until browned on all sides but not quite cooked through. (It will finish cooking in the sauce later – See Note 3.)
Remove the chicken and all of the juices to a plate.
Turn the heat right down and place the frying pan back on the heat. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil, plus the diced onions and peppers. Fry for 3 minutes until softened.
Add the garlic and fry for 30 seconds, stirring frequently, taking care not to let the garlic go brown or burn.
Add the passata, then turn the heat up to medium-high and cook for 3 minutes until reduced.
Add the cooked chicken back to the pan together with the double cream, salt (if using – see Note 1) and pepper.
Bring back to the boil, then simmer for 2 minutes until a little reduced and thickened.
Add the chopped parsley and stir well.
Add the drained pasta, together with a very small splash of pasta cooking water. Stir together well. (If the pasta is looking too dry at this point, you can add an extra splash of pasta cooking water – but don’t go too mad. The sauce is supposed to be quite thick and cling to the pasta.)
Turn off the heat and serve, scattered more chopped fresh parsley.

Notes

Cajun spice mix/rubs vary enormously in their spice levels and salt content. The quantities are for one I recommend, and will give a mild to medium level of heat. If you don’t have a very high spice tolerance and/or you are using a Cajun spice mix/rub you have not tried before, I recommend you err on the side of caution the first time you make this! Additionally, check to see how much salt your spice mix/rub contains. The one I use contains a lot of salt, so I don’t add any additional salt, but if the one you use contains no salt, I recommend you add a little salt.
I recommend cooking the pasta until it’s nearly but not quite your desired texture as it will cook a little bit more in the sauce.
Take care not to overcook the chicken for this recipe. You should initially fry the chicken for 3 minutes – at this point it should be golden brown on the outside but still not cooked through on the inside. You will then cook the chicken for an additional 2-3 minutes in the sauce which will fully cook it through on the inside, without overcooking it. If you are at all unsure if your chicken is cooked or not, simply pick out the largest piece and cut it in half. If the middle is at all pink, cook for 1 minute and check again. If it is fully cooked, you are good to go!
Not suitable for freezing.
Nutrition information is approximate and meant as a guideline only.

Nutrition