This Cajun chicken pasta takes me back to the 90’s. I feel like there used to be some variation of it on the menu of every casual dining restaurant, but I haven’t had anything like it in years!
The inspiration for this recipe comes from Amy at Fearless Homemaker, who I was paired up with for this month’s Secret Recipe Club. Her photos of this dish looked so amazing that I simply had to make it right away!
I did end up making some changes though. The original recipe is meant to be cooked in a crock pot. I was planning to do that as well, but then I noticed it only cooks for 4 hours. Since I had been planning to let it cook all day while I was at work, that wasn’t really going to work for me. I cooked mine on the stovetop instead, letting it simmer for about a half hour so all of the flavors could mingle. The original recipe also had a creamier sauce with plain yogurt mixed in. Since my sauce was so hot from the stove, I knew my yogurt would break and curdle so I left it out (actually, I tried tempering it but, as expected, it did in fact seize up on me). With less dairy to balance things out the sauce was pretty spicy, but we liked it a lot. If you’re not a big fan of heat, omit the cayenne pepper and one of the jalapenos.
Cajun Chicken Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 red bell peppers, sliced
- 2 jalapeno peppers, sliced
- 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 14 oz can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup milk
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 pound whole wheat pasta, cooked
Directions
- Place chicken in a large bowl. Add seasonings and toss to coat.
- Heat oil in a dutch oven or other large pot set over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken. Cook until golden brown, about 1-2 minutes per side. dd the onion and garlic and cook until just softened, about 5 minutes. Add the peppers and cook another 5 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes and chicken broth. Bring to a simmer; reduce heat to medium and cook 30 minutes.
- Whisk together the milk and cornstarch. Stir into the sauce and simmer 10 minutes.
- Serve sauce over pasta.
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