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This Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta is so easy to make and only takes 30 minutes! Everyone will be reaching for a second bowl of perfectly cooked pasta mixed with juicy pieces of bite-sized chicken tossed in a creamy Cajun sauce.
This dish is so creamy and packed with flavor. It’s the perfect weeknight dinner as it comes together so quickly with only a handful of ingredients. Your family will love this as it’s the perfect blend of smoky and spicy flavors that is so addictive.
If you’re looking for other delicious pasta recipes, why not also try my Creamy Tomato Basil Chicken Pasta! Both pasta recipes are uncomplicated and made in 35 minutes or less, making them absolutely perfect for a busy weeknight.
Why You’ll Love This Chicken Cajun Pasta
- It’s fast. You can get dinner on the table so quickly with this easy cajun chicken pasta recipe. It’s all about the timing! Get the pasta going and you can prepare the rest of the dish while the water is coming up to a boil for the pasta.
- It’s so flavorful. The creamy Cajun based sauce for the chicken and pasta is absolutely delicious. There’s so much flavor packed into the sauce that you’re going to want to lick the bowl clean!
- It uses everyday ingredients. The last thing I want to do is have to run out to the grocery store before dinner. So this Cajun chicken pasta is made with ingredients that are almost always in my kitchen.
What You’ll Need
- Chicken: I use chicken tenderloins but you can use a different cut.
- Seasoning: I use paprika, Cajun seasoning, salt, black pepper to season the dish.
- Aromatics: To add flavor to the dish, I use garlic and onion.
- Olive oil: Or use any neutral oil of your choice.
- Pasta: I use rotini pasta but you’re welcomed to change it up.
- Liquids: I use half and half and chicken broth to make the Cajun sauce that coats everything.
- Cheese: I always use the full fat cream cheese to make the sauce creamy and parmesan cheese to help thicken the sauce.
- Chipotle pepper: To add a nice hit of heat to the Cajun chicken pasta, I add some chipotle peppers.
How To Make Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta
- Cook pasta: cook according to package directions. Preserve one cup of the pasta water if you don’t have chicken broth.
- Marinate the chicken: Cube the chicken and add them to a bowl. Then marinate them by adding the salt, Cajun seasoning, minced garlic and paprika together and olive oil to the bowl and mix to coat well.
- Cook the chicken: Bring a large skillet to medium heat and add in 1 tbsp. of olive oil. Pan sear the chicken until fully cooked and golden brown. Remove and set aside in a bowl covered with foil wrap.
- Make the sauce: In the same skillet, add in 1 tbsp. of olive oil and sauté the onion until tender then add in the minced garlic, cream cheese, chicken broth, chipotle pepper sauce, salt, half and half and spices. Mix together well and simmer on medium low heat for about 3-4 minutes until the sauce thickens up, mixing occasionally to prevent sticking.
- Combine everything: Once the sauce thickens up, add in the pasta into the pan. Coat well with the sauce and then add in the chicken and parmesan cheese to cook all together with the pasta for another 2-3 minutes on medium low heat.
- Garnish and serve: Remove from the heat, garnish with some fresh parsley, chili peppers and serve immediately.
Tips and Notes
- If you cannot find half and half, you can swap it for half a cup of heavy cream and half a cup of milk.
- Be sure to use full fat cream cheese and not the spreadable cheese from a tub.
- You can check the doneness of the chicken by using a meat thermometer. Stick the thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken, if it reads 160F then it’s ready.
- When filling your pot to cook the pasta, use enough water that once the noodles begin to cook and expand, there will still be plenty of room for the pasta to move freely.
- Prevent your pasta from sticking together by stirring it immediately after you drop it into the pot.
- Drain your pasta enough to remove most of the water, however, don’t let drained pasta sit and dry off, as the pasta will become too firm. Instead of chicken broth, you can use pasta water for the sauce too so be sure to save some if you’d like.
- Don’t put oil in your pasta water! You’ll just end up with greasy pasta.
FAQs
This chicken Cajun pasta only uses a couple tablespoons so there’s always extra left in the can. Keep it refrigerated and then during the week, you can make my Spicy Chicken Chipotle Pasta or you can actually freeze the leftover chipotles and the canned sauce! Freeze them in ice cube trays so that you can just pull out what you need from the freezer later.
Cajun seasoning is made up of a mixture of garlic powder, paprika, black pepper, onion powder, cayenne pepper, thyme, oregano, red pepper flakes, and salt. I use one that doesn’t contain any salt as it helps prevent the Cajun chicken pasta becoming too salty since we’re adding salt as well.
It’s not super spicy but it does have a bit of a kick to it since Cajun seasoning has cayenne pepper in it plus we are using chipotle peppers. However, the creamy sauce helps mellow out the spicy notes.
Refrigerate leftover Cajun chicken pasta in the sauce in airtight containers for 3 to 5 days. To reheat, simply microwave until the chicken is warmed through.
Instead of using chicken tenderloins, you can use chicken thighs or chicken breasts. As long as you remember to cut the chicken into similar sized bite sized pieces, you
Other delicious pasta recipes
- Garlic Parmesan Shrimp Spaghetti
- Simple Tomato Pesto Pasta
- Creamy Broccoli Mac N’ Cheese
- Caprese Pasta Salad
I hope you enjoy all the recipes I share with you, including this delicious Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta recipe. I hope you try it, enjoy it, rate it, and share it with your friends and family!
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Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
For the Cajun Chicken Pasta
- 2 pounds chicken tenderloins, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning, no-sodium-added blend
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 8 ounces rotini pasta, or any pasta of choice
For the Creamy Cajun Sauce
- 1 cup half-and-half, or equal parts heavy cream and milk
- 1½ cups low-sodium chicken broth or pasta water
- 2 ounces full-fat cream cheese
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese, optional for thickening the sauce
- 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning, no-sodium-added blend
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 tablespoons chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water if you don’t have chicken broth.
- Cut the chicken into 1-inch cubes and place them in a bowl. Add the salt, Cajun seasoning, minced garlic, paprika, and olive oil. Mix until the chicken is evenly coated.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Pan-sear the chicken until fully cooked and golden brown. Transfer the chicken to a bowl and cover with foil.
- Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the same skillet and sauté the onion until tender. Add the minced garlic, cream cheese, chicken broth, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, salt, half-and-half, and remaining sauce spices.
- Mix the sauce ingredients well and simmer over medium-low heat for 3–4 minutes until the sauce thickens. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
- Once the sauce thickens, add the cooked pasta to the skillet and toss until coated. Add the cooked chicken and Parmesan cheese, then cook everything together over medium-low heat for another 2–3 minutes.
- Remove the skillet from the heat. Garnish the Cajun chicken pasta with fresh parsley and chili peppers, then serve immediately.
Notes and Recipe Tips
- Use enough water when boiling the rotini so the pasta has room to move and cooks evenly.
- Stir the pasta as soon as you add it to the boiling water to prevent the pieces from sticking together.
- Add the drained pasta to the sauce promptly instead of letting it sit in the colander, where it can dry out and stick together.
- Avoid adding oil to the pasta water, as it can coat the pasta and make it harder for the creamy Cajun sauce to cling to it.
The instructions are not clear. Are you supposed to marinate with the seasonings and also add the seasonings to the sauce?
Yes. In the recipe card below the blog post, I have them sectioned out to show where each ingredient goes.
Great flavor but a tad spicy for our liking. Next time I will omit the chipotle pepper. Other than that it was great. Super easy to make and the family loved it.
Glad your family loved the recipe! Feel free to adjust the spices to your preference. Thanks for the review.