This Cajun Chicken Pasta recipe has to be one of my all time favorite meals. Tender chicken breast is perfectly cooked in a creamy cajun alfredo sauce and mixed with your favorite pasta. It’s a simple recipe that comes together quickly to make the perfect weeknight dinner meal!

CAJUN CHICKEN PASTA INGREDIENTS

Chicken Breast - Boneless, skinless chicken breast

Pasta - I love using linguine pasta for this recipe but almost any pasta would work

Heavy Cream - to help make that creamy alfredo sauce

Cajun seasoning - grab your favorite cajun spice seasoning mix

Onion, Bell Pepper, Garlic - the combination of these 3 ingredients sauteed in a little bit of butter gives this cajun chicken pasta lots of extra flavor!

Parmesan Cheese - helps finish the delicious sauce. I like grabbing the freshly grated parmesan cheese. It tastes better than the other prepackaged cheese and it melts smoother over the stove.

HOW TO MAKE CAJUN CHICKEN PASTA

Full instructions are included in the recipe below, but here’s a quick overview:

Step One: Add the pasta to a large pot of salted boiling water and cook according to the box instructions. Reserve a little bit of the pasta water, drain and set aside once done.

Step Two: In a large saute pan on medium heat, add avocado or olive oil and cook seasoned chicken breast until fully done. Remove chicken from skillet and transfer to a plate.

Step Three: In the same skillet or pan, melt butter and saute onion, bell pepper & garlic. Cook until onion is translucent and garlic is fragrant. Next add heavy cream, parmesan cheese and the rest of the cajun seasoning. Simmer on low heat. Stir well until cheese is fully melted. Add salt & pepper to taste.

Step Four: Add the pasta to the sauce. Mix well. Stir in chopped chicken breast or slice your chicken breasts and lay them on top of the pasta. Garnish with fresh parsley or green onions and enjoy!

LET’S TALK PASTA!

I’ve tried several different pasta types with this recipe. My favorites are linguine pasta and bowtie pasta. Whichever brand you choose, make sure to cook according to the package instructions and salt your boiling water well. Once your pasta is done, reserve about ½ a cup of pasta water before draining the rest. The reserved pasta water helps to thin the sauce if it becomes too thick.

WANT TO MAKE YOUR PASTA SAUCE MORE CREAMY?

If you’re looking for a creamier pasta sauce then add in a little bit of cream cheese. Just 2-4oz is all you need. Make sure to set your cream cheese out for about 20 minutes before you start cooking so the cream cheese has a chance to soften. Then break the cream cheese up into smaller pieces before adding it to your sauce so it melts quicker.

CAN I USE MILK INSTEAD OF HEAVY CREAM?

Short answer is yes. You can use a combination of 1 1/2 cup regular milk, 2-4 oz cream cheese and ½ cup of parmesan cheese to give you a creamy sauce. However, you have to be careful when heating up regular milk. If your temperature is too high your milk may curdle. This is why heavy cream or half-n-half is often a better option because the higher amount of fat in heavy cream helps eliminate the risk of it curdling.

WHAT TO EAT WITH CAJUN CHICKEN PASTA?

The great thing about pasta dishes is that they really are a complete meal all in one. Toss in a few extra vegetables like frozen green peas towards the end of the cooking time and this recipe gets even better.

You can also add a side of Sauteed Green Beans or Roasted Broccoli.

Most of the time I like to keep it simple and just add some garlic bread with this dish!

MORE EASY DINNER IDEAS!

Chicken Sausage Stir-Fry
Chicken Fajitas
Sheet Pan Sausage, Potatoes & Brussels Sprouts
Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta

CAJUN CHICKEN PASTA VIDEO

CAJUN CHICKEN PASTA

★★★★★

5 from 1 review

Author: Marsha Eileen
Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 4 1x

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Scale

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (cut in half lengthwise)
12 oz linguine pasta (or your favorite pasta)
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 small red bell pepper, diced
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
1 ½ cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons cajun seasoning (divided)
1 tsp kosher or sea salt
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp onion powder
Salt & Pepper to taste
Fresh parsley to garnish (optional)

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

In a large pot of salted boiling water, add your pasta and cook according to box instructions. Once done, reserve ½ cup of pasta water, drain the rest and set pasta aside.
On a cutting board, cut the chicken breast in half lengthwise. Season with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, salt, garlic powder, onion powder and 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning. Rub seasoning into the chicken breasts thoroughly.
In a large saute pan, heat 2-3 tablespoons of avocado or olive oil over medium heat. Add seasoned chicken breasts and cook for 4 minutes on each side until done. Chicken should reach 165°F with a digital meat thermometer. Once done, remove to a plate and set aside.
In the same skillet, melt butter and add diced onion and bell pepper. Saute for 2-3 minutes then add minced garlic. Saute for another minute.
Next slowly add heavy cream and turn heat down to medium-low. Stir well.
Add grated parmesan cheese and 1 tablespoon of cajun seasoning. Stir well. Taste the sauce and add a sprinkle of salt to taste if needed.
Once parmesan cheese is melted add the cooked pasta back to the skillet with the sauce. Mix well until all the pasta is fully coated with cajun alfredo sauce.
Slice the chicken breasts into strips or cut into bite size pieces. Add chicken on top of the pasta or mix in with the pasta and cajun sauce.
Garnish with fresh parsley or green onions (optional) and enjoy!

Notes

If you’re using fine table salt make sure to cut the salt measurement in half.

Use a digital meat thermometer to make sure chicken breasts are fully cooked to 165°F. Avoid checking to see if your chicken breasts are done by cutting into the chicken when it's still cooking. This will cause you to lose a lot of juices and flavor.

Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 25 min

Keywords: cajun chicken pasta, chicken pasta, pasta recipe, cajun chicken