This Creamy Cajun Pasta is the perfect mixture of creaminess, smokiness, and spice. This pasta is loaded up with veggies, from mushrooms and bell peppers, to peas and zucchini. It’s easy to make and comes together in just 30 minutes, making it the perfect weekday dinner. Plus it’s super customizable, so you can modify it to fit your tastes.
Cajun Pasta Variations
What’s wonderful about this recipe is that you can change it up however you like to keep things interesting!
Add protein. We made this a veggie pasta, but feel free to add your favorite protein. Chicken or shrimp pair beautifully with this recipe, but you can also try steak, bacon, andouille sausage, or Italian sausage (chicken, turkey, or pork). You can even keep it plant-centric by adding chickpeas as your protein source.
Change the heat. We are babies when it comes to heat, so we kept the spice to a minimum. If you tend towards the spicier end of the spectrum, turn up the heat with an extra dose of Cajun seasoning.
Modify the creaminess. We intentionally used 2% milk and flour as our creamy base, keeping this recipe low-fat and guilt free. If you want something a little creamier, you can always replace 2% milk with whole milk, half and half, or heavy cream, although it will considerably alter the fat content. Other healthy swaps include reduced fat cream cheese (try 2 oz.) or 1 to 1 replacement of 2% milk with low-fat evaporated milk. We learned the nifty evaporated milk trick recently when making our creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup.
Mix up the veggies. This recipe is packed with veggies, but feel free to sub in any veggies, like broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, summer squash.
Change up the Pasta/Grain. Any pasta works wonderfully with this recipe–rigatoni, penne, spaghetti, linguine, bowties. You can also make it lower carb by subbing in oven-roasted spaghetti squash or zucchini (or other plant-based) noodles.
How to Make Creamy Cajun Pasta
Start by preparing the vegetables. Mince the garlic. Chop the bell peppers and zucchini. Thinly slice the onion and mushrooms. Halve the tomatoes.
Bring a large sauce pot of water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions, about 7 to 8 minutes for al dente pasta. Drain and return the pasta to the pan. Drizzle lightly with olive oil to prevent sticking.
At the same time that the pasta water is boiling, start cooking the vegetables. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic, bell pepper, and onion. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, or until fragrant.
Add the mushrooms and zucchini. Cook 4 to 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms begin sweating. Add in the tomatoes and frozen peas. Season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Cook another 1 to 2 minutes, or until the peas are warmed. Cover and remove from heat.
At the same time that the vegetables are cooking, start on the sauce. In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour. Add the vegetable broth and milk and whisk vigorously. Season with Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Simmer the sauce over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes, or until it begins to thicken, whisking regularly to prevent burning.
Transfer the vegetables to the same pot as the pasta. Cover with the desired amount of sauce (you will likely have extra sauce). Stir together to incorporate. Divide the pasta among plates and top with Parmesan cheese, if desired. Enjoy!
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How to Store & Reheat This Pasta
We recommend storing this pasta in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Please note that the longer it is in the fridge, the more moisture the noodles will absorb from the sauce, so the pasta may become softer and bloated over time.
To reheat, we recommend warming over medium heat on the stove with an extra splash of milk and chicken broth (we do equal parts). You can always reheat it in the microwave as well for 2 to 3 minutes, as needed.
Let us know if you enjoyed this recipe for Creamy Cajun Pasta by dropping a comment and/or rating below! We love to hear from you! Also, be sure to check us out on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for more healthy recipe inspiration.
Check out these other yummy pasta options:
- Butternut Squash and Spinach Lasagna Rolls
- Summer Peach Pasta Salad
- Spaghetti with Red Wine Tomato Sauce
- One Pot Cheesy Hamburger Pasta
- Healthier Turkey Swedish Meatballs
- Roasted Red Pepper and Sausage Skillet
Creamy Cajun Pasta
Ingredients
Cajun Pasta
- 16 oz fettuccine (or other pasta)
- 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 orange bell pepper, chopped
- 1 yellow or red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 zucchini, chopped
- 8 oz mushrooms (baby bella or button), sliced
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 c frozen peas
- 1 tsp garlic powder, divided
- ½ tsp salt, divided
- ¼ tsp black pepper, divided
Creamy Cajun Sauce
- 2 Tbsp vegan or low fat butter (see notes)
- 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
- 2 c low sodium vegetable broth
- 1 c 2% milk
- 2 tsp Cajun seasoning
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 1 Tbsp grated Parmesan (optional garnish)
Instructions
- Prepare the vegetables. Mince the garlic. Chop the bell peppers and zucchini. Thinly slice the onion and mushrooms. Halve the tomatoes.
- Bring a large sauce pot of water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions, about 7 to 8 minutes for al dente pasta. Drain and return to the pan. Drizzle lightly with olive oil to prevent sticking.
- While the water is boiling, start cooking the vegetables. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic, bell pepper, and onion. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the mushrooms and zucchini. Cook 4 to 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms begin sweating. Add in the tomatoes and frozen peas. Season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Cook another 1 to 2 minutes, or until the peas are warmed. Cover and remove from heat.
- At the same time that the vegetables are cooking, start on the sauce. In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour. Add the vegetable broth and milk and whisk vigorously. Season with Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Simmer the sauce over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes, or until it begins to thicken, whisking regularly to prevent burning.
- Transfer the vegetables to the same pot as the pasta. Cover with the desired amount of sauce (you will likely have extra sauce). Stir together to incorporate. Divide the pasta among plates and top with Parmesan cheese, if desired. Enjoy!
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