One-Pot Cajun Chicken Pasta

This one-pot cajun chicken pasta is super creamy, the perfect level of spicy, and so so good. Best of all, it's a one-pot recipe, so there's minimal cleanup.

I love crappy chain restaurant cajun pasta dishes. They're probably pre-made and microwaved, but I just can't resist creamy, spicy, saucy pasta. Chili's cajun chicken pasta and Cheesecake Factory's cajun jambalaya pasta are two of my favorites. This one-pot cajun chicken pasta is kind of a mix up of the two.

I made this cajun chicken pasta a one-pot recipe so it's perfect for easy weeknight dinners, and I loaded it with chicken and sausage, so it's filling and full of easy protein. It's creamy without being super heavy, and it pairs perfectly with veggies or salad.

Looking for other easy pasta recipes? Try our brown butter sage ravioli, copycat Applebee's three cheese chicken penne, sloppy joe pasta, and spicy sausage pasta.

Key Ingredients and Substitutions

• Sweet onion
• Bell peppers- Any color work, but I prefer red, orange or yellow rather than green.
• Andouille pork or chicken sausage- We used Gilbert's Andouille Chicken Sausage, but regular pork andouille sausage would be great too.
• Chicken breast or chicken breast tenderloins- I often use chicken breast tenderloins because they're easy to cut up into small pieces, but use whatever you have on hand/normally buy.
• Chicken broth
• Penne, rigatoni, or other tubular pasta- We have used penne and rigatoni. Both work great.
• Cream Cheese
• Typical pantry and fridge ingredients: Oil, whole milk, onion powder, garlic powder, ground cayenne, salt, black pepper, dried oregano, paprika, and crushed red pepper.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Cut the chicken into bite-sized chunks. Add it to a mixing bowl and toss with oil, onion powder, garlic powder, ground cayenne, salt, black pepper, dried oregano, paprika, and crushed red pepper until it is coated evenly.

Step 2: Add oil to a large pot or dutch oven and heat over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the chicken and cook, stirring frequently, until the outsides of the chicken are no longer raw, about 5 minutes.

Step 3: Add the onions, bell peppers, and sausage to the pot and cook until the onions and peppers begin to soften, about 3-5 minutes. Transfer the contents of the pot to a large bowl or plate and set aside. It's ok if things aren't fully cooked at this stage--they'll be added back in later.

Step 4: Add chicken broth, milk, and pasta to the pot. Allow it to come to a boil, and cook until the pasta is al dente, about 10-15 minutes.

Step 5: Once the pasta is done, add the chicken and vegetables back to the pot, along with cream cheese, onion powder, garlic powder, ground cayenne, salt, black pepper, dried oregano, paprika, and crushed red pepper. Continue cooking until the cream cheese melts and the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. If the pasta is too soupy at that point, continue cooking for a few minutes and then remove it from the heat--it gets thicker as it cools down.

One-Pot Cajun Chicken Pasta Recipe

Recipe by Mollie

This one-pot cajun chicken pasta is super creamy, the perfect level of spicy, and so so good. Best of all, it's a one-pot recipe, so there's minimal cleanup.

Course: DinnerCuisine: CajunDifficulty: Easy

5 from 3 votes

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Servings

6

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Calories

640

kcal

Total time

30

minutes

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Ingredients

• For the chicken:

• 1 pound 1 chicken breasts or chicken breast tenderloins

• 2 tablespoons 2 oil (we use avocado), divided

• ½ teaspoon ½ onion powder

• ½ teaspoon ½ garlic powder

• ¼ teaspoon ¼ ground cayenne

• ¼ teaspoon ¼ salt

• ½ teaspoon ½ black pepper

• ½ teaspoon ½ dried oregano

• ½ teaspoon ½ paprika

• ½ teaspoon ½ crushed red pepper

• For the pasta:

• ½ ½ sweet onion, diced

• 2 2 bell peppers, cut into thin strips

• 10-12 ounces 10-12 andouille chicken or pork sausage (see note)

• 3 cups 3 chicken broth

• 2 cups 2 milk (we use 2%)

• 1 pound 1 penne or rigatoni

• 4 ounces 4 cream cheese, softened

• ¼ teaspoon ¼ onion powder

• ¼ teaspoon ¼ garlic powder

• ¼ teaspoon ¼ ground cayenne

• ¼ teaspoon ¼ salt

• ¼ teaspoon ¼ black pepper

• ¼ teaspoon ¼ dried oregano

• ¼ teaspoon ¼ paprika

• ¼ teaspoon ¼ crushed red pepper

Directions

• Cut the chicken into bite-sized chunks. Add it to a mixing bowl and toss with oil, onion powder, garlic powder, ground cayenne, salt, black pepper, dried oregano, paprika, and crushed red pepper until it is coated evenly.
• Add oil to a large pot or dutch oven and heat over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the chicken and cook, stirring frequently, until the outsides of the chicken are no longer raw, about 5 minutes.
• Add the onions, bell peppers, and sausage to the pot and cook until the onions and peppers begin to soften, about 3-5 minutes. Transfer the contents of the pot to a large bowl or plate and set aside. It's ok if things aren't fully cooked at this stage--they'll be added back in later.
• Add chicken broth, milk, and pasta to the pot. Allow it to come to a boil, and cook until the pasta is al dente, about 10-15 minutes.
• Once the pasta is done, add the chicken and vegetables back to the pot, along with cream cheese, onion powder, garlic powder, ground cayenne, salt, black pepper, dried oregano, paprika, and crushed red pepper. Continue cooking until the cream cheese melts and the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes.

Notes

• We use chicken sausage, but pork would be delicious too. It seems like andouille sausage usually comes in 10, 11, or 12 ounce packages, hence the range. Any of those amounts will work.
• If the pasta is too soupy at that point, continue cooking for a few minutes and then remove it from the heat--it gets thicker as it cools down.
• We top our finished pasta with green onions or chives and parmesan, but that's optional.

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