This easy One Pot Cajun Chicken Pasta is creamy, a bit spicy and packed with flavor, making it a perfect weeknight meal!
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When we go out for dinner, I rarely order a pasta dish. I'm picky about marinara sauce, I don't love alfredo and pasta recipes are something I make at home often. However, if there's some sort of creamy cajun pasta on the menu, I'm all about it!
But when I decided I wanted to create a one-dish cajun chicken pasta recipe for the blog, I couldn't believe how simple and delicious it was to make! It's got a creamy sauce, a good amount of cajun spice and few dishes, making it one of my new favorite recipes for busy weeknights.
Ingredients Needed
- Red Bell Pepper - Really, any color will work!
- Chicken Breasts - Though I used boneless skinless chicken breasts for this recipe, you could easily substitute chicken thighs.
- Andouille Sausage - I love the depth of flavor in smoked andouille sausage and the added texture and protein it brings the dish!
- Fire Roasted Tomatoes - Though I much prefer fire-roasted, you can also use drained diced tomatoes.
- Chicken Broth - I prefer to use no or low-sodium broth for this recipe.
- Seasonings - Cajun seasoning, paprika (I prefer smoked paprika!) and garlic powder. If you don't have cajun seasoning on hand, you can easily make a small batch of homemade cajun seasoning!
- Fettuccini Pasta - You can easily swap this for a different shape of pasta such as penne pasta, bow-ties, etc.
- Cream Cheese - I recommend using the full-fat cream cheese for this recipe so it melts nice and creamy.
- Half and Half - Heavy cream would work great, too! If you don't have either of those options, you can use ⅓ cup of whole milk instead.
How to make this Easy Pasta Recipe
First, you'll add the peppers, chicken and sausage to a large skillet over medium-high heat. If you don't have a large heavy skillet, you can simply use a Dutch oven or large pot.
Cook until the peppers have softened and the chicken is cooked through.
Then you'll add the tomatoes, broth, seasonings and pasta and stir. You'll bring this mixture to a boil and let it boil for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally so that the noodles don't stick to each other or to the bottom of the pan. At this point, the noodles will be al dente and the majority of the liquid will be soaked up by the noodles.
If the pasta seems really soupy at this point, you can scoop a little bit of the juice out and place it in a small bowl. (Once you add the final two ingredients and the pasta cools off a bit, it'll begin to thicken more, so hang onto it just in case!)
Add the cream cheese and half and half (or heavy whipping cream) to the tender pasta and stir until smooth and creamy!
Though I don't feel this cajun pasta needs any garnish, you could easily add a few green onions for color or a sprinkling of parmesan cheese and black pepper.
How to Adjust the Spice Level
This recipes certainly has a good amount of heat, however, it can easily be tamed down a bit.....or you can make even more spicy. Here are a couple good options....
To make it less spicy - Hold off on the cajun seasoning until the very end. Add just 1 teaspoon for a little bit of heat and continue adding more to fit your preferred heat level that'll be enjoyed by the whole family.
To increase the spice - Add ⅛ to ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper with the seasonings and/or add red pepper flakes at the end.
I have not tested that for this recipe. However, if you do give it a try, let me know how it turns out!!
I do not recommend it as it doesn't seem to melt quite as nicely as the full-fat version.
This makes a pretty large pan of pasta, which makes for excellent leftovers the next day!! Let the pasta come to room temperature, then store in an airtight container in the fridge.
Other Easy One-Pot Pastas
One Pot Enchilada Pasta - All the flavors of a beef & cheese enchilada come together beautifully in this creamy, easy pasta recipe.
One Pot Spaghetti - This recipe turns the classic into a weeknight favorite, thanks to fewer dishes, less time and more flavor!
Creamy Red Pepper Pasta Skillet - A jar of roasted red peppers brings a great depth of flavor and the cream cheese balances the flavor and gives this pasta a creamy texture.
One Pot Cajun Chicken Pasta
Equipment
- Large Skillet or Pot
Ingredients
- 1 large bell pepper, sliced red, yellow or green (about 1 cup sliced)
- 1 pound chicken breasts thinly sliced
- One 13.5 ounce package smoked andouille sausage sliced
- One 14.5 ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes drained
- 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning
- 1 teaspoon paprika I prefer smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 8 ounces dry fettuccini pasta
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- ½ cup half and half or heavy cream
Instructions
- Coat a large skillet or Dutch oven with cooking spray.
- Place the skillet over medium-high heat and add the sliced peppers, sliced chicken, and sliced sausage coins.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is fully cooked and the peppers are a bit softened.
- Add the drained diced tomatoes, chicken broth, cajun seasoning, paprika, garlic powder and fettuccini pasta; stir.
- Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring frequently so the noodles don't stick together, and continue to boil on medium heat for about 15 minutes, or until noodles are tender and most of the liquid has been soaked up.
- Stir in the cream cheese and half and half until smooth.
- Enjoy warm!
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