Want to spice up pasta night? This Cajun Chicken Alfredo Recipe is a must-try! It's on the dinner table in under an hour, making it perfect for a busy weeknight. Juicy chicken coated in a flavorful cajun spice blend and served with a creamy homemade alfredo sauce over fettucine pasta is a flavor explosion that's sure to impress.
Note: This recipe was originally published in February 2020, but has been improved and re-photographed. We hope you enjoy the new look!
We all love an easy dinner, especially when it's creamy cajun chicken alfredo! Making your own at home is easier than you think. Any home cook can master this classic pasta dish. It's loved by the whole family, with just a little bit of a kick.
In the mood for delicious pasta? Try this creamy salmon pasta, this lobster pasta or this cajun shrimp and sausage pasta!
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❤️Why we love this recipe
- A delicious classic. A classic pasta dish that's rich, creamy, and has so much flavor. With just the right amount of kick, it's major comfort food!
- Protein packed. The juicy and tender chicken breast adds a protein-rich element to the dish, making it filling and satisfying.
- Simple ingredients. This recipe is made with 9 simple ingredients that you probably already have on hand in your pantry and kitchen. Anything you need can be found at your local grocery store.
- Quick and easy recipe. Getting a complete meal on the table in under an hour is not an easy task, but this recipe is straight forward and quick to make.
🍝Ingredients
Here are the ingredients we used for this recipe. You can find more information for substitutions below.
- Boneless skinless chicken breast - Chicken thighs can also be used.
- Cajun seasoning - We like making our own homemade cajun seasoning blend, but you can use your favorite cajun seasoning. If using store bought, you probably don't need any extra salt, as these versions usually have a lot of added sodium.
- Unsalted butter
- Fresh garlic
- Chicken broth or chicken stock
- Heavy whipping cream
- Parmesan cheese - Freshly grated. This is important. Pre-shredded bags of cheese don't always melt properly, because they have additives in them, so you'll want to grate it yourself.
- Pasta - We'd recommend using fettuccine or linguine pasta.
- Pasta water - Liquid gold! Starchy pasta water can help loosen up the noodles if they begin to dry out, and turn revive a dried up sauce, turning it back into a creamy sauce. Make sure to save some before draining the pasta.
- Parsley - Optional, for garnish.
Visit the recipe card for the full quantities and nutritional information.
✨Substitutions & variations
Here are a few suggestions on additional flavors to try, or simple variations to this recipe.
- No cajun seasoning - Use creole seasoning, or you can make a quick seasoning blend of black pepper, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, oregano, and thyme.
- Add veggies - To add more vegetables to this dish, cook down tomatoes and/or red bell peppers and onions when starting the sauce. You could also stir in some fresh spinach at the end.
- Lighter option - Make a lighter cream sauce made with whole milk or half and half.
- Thicker sauce - To thicken the sauce, add some room temperature cream cheese.
- Spicier - Add more cayenne or red pepper flakes.
- Gluten free - The only swap you'll need to make is to use a gluten free pasta, and make sure to check your store bought seasoning blends to ensure there's no gluten as well.
- Keto friendly - Often we make this recipe low carb and keto friendly, by serving it with a keto friendly pasta of choice, or cooked spaghetti squash, or zucchini noodles.
- Use leftover (pre-cooked) chicken - For a super quick and easy meal, you can use leftover chicken, although we want to mention that the flavor won't be quite as good!
🔪Prep work
- Dry chicken breasts off with paper towels.
- Mince garlic.
- Grate parmesan cheese.
- Preheat a large skillet over medium heat.
- Cook the pasta for just a few minutes under the package instructions until it's al dente. Undercooking the pasta will make sure it doesn't get overcooked later, since the noodles will continue to cook in the sauce. *Make sure to save a cup of pasta water to thin the sauce, and for reheating purposes later.
- Measure out all remaining ingredients.
📋Instructions
Season the chicken breasts liberally with the cajun seasoning blend and kosher salt on all sides. (Image 1)
To a hot skillet, add 2 tablespoons of butter. Add chicken, and sear on all sides over medium-high heat, until the internal temperature reaches 165°F with an instant read thermometer (affiliate link), about 5-6 minutes per side. (Image 2)
Once cooked, remove from the skillet and set aside to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing into pieces. Don't drain any of the drippings from the skillet.
Reduce the heat to medium, and add the rest of the butter, and a little splash of chicken broth to the skillet. Add in the minced garlic. (Image 3)
Cook until fragrant, stirring often for about 1 minute, then, immediately deglaze the pan with the rest of the chicken broth. (Image 4)
Reduce to low heat. Add in the heavy cream. (Image 5)
Stir in parmesan cheese slowly, adding in small handfuls, stirring to melt before adding the next handful. (Image 6)
Season with the remaining cajun seasoning, and salt to taste.
Add the cooked pasta, and a little bit of pasta water, along with parsley. (Image 7)
Toss to combine, adding more pasta water until the sauce clings to the noodles. (Image 8)
Add the chicken pieces back over top, sprinkle with more parsley and freshly grated parmesan. Enjoy!
✨Tips & tricks
- Cook the chicken fresh and season it well for the best flavor. While you can use pre-cooked chicken, the flavor just won't be quite the same.
- Cook the pasta until it's al dente (cooked but still firm) to prevent it from becoming mushy. We'd recommend cooking it 1-2 minutes under the package directions. As we mentioned before, the pasta will continue to cook in the sauce.
- Heavily salt the pasta water. You want about 2 tablespoons of kosher salt per every 1 pound of pasta. The salt will flavor the noodles!
- Reserve some pasta cooking water. It's great for thinning the sauce, and for reviving leftovers the next day.
- Taste the sauce as you go and adjust the seasoning as needed to achieve the desired level of saltiness and spiciness. Especially if making this recipe for the first time, you'll want to make sure the taste is to your liking.
- To prevent the alfredo sauce from curdling or separating once the heavy cream has been added, be sure to stir it frequently and cook it over low heat. Do not boil it.
- Use freshly grated parmesan and add it slowly. Make sure each handful of cheese is melted and incorporated before adding the next. Again, low heat (or even off the heat) is your friend here.
- Let the chicken rest for a few minutes before slicing it to help keep the juices inside instead of leaking out.
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💭Frequently Asked Questions
Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Do not freeze.
If possible, keep the sauce separate from the pasta to keep the pasta from absorbing too much liquid.
Reheat gently on the stovetop or in the microwave with a splash of pasta water.
Yes, you can make the chicken and alfredo sauce ahead of time and store them in separate containers in the fridge for up to 4 days.
When you're ready to serve, simply reheat the chicken and sauce and toss them with freshly cooked pasta, and pasta water.
The cajun seasoning adds some heat to the dish, but we wouldn't consider this recipe to be super spicy. The level of heat can be adjusted to your liking by adding more or less seasoning, more red pepper flakes, or cayenne pepper.
The following makes a very large batch, and we only use 1 - 2 tablespoons and reserve the rest for other recipes. DO NOT use the whole batch of the spice mix in this recipe!
- 2 tablespoons oregano
- 2 tablespoons smoked paprika (or regular paprika)
- 2 tablespoons garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons onion powder
- 1 tablespoon thyme
- 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
- ½ tablespoon red pepper flakes (optional, and not a traditional ingredient)
More Recipes To Consider
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📖 Recipe
Cajun Chicken Alfredo
Equipment
- tongs
Ingredients
- 1.5-2 tablespoons cajun seasoning (To taste. If using store bought, go easy on the added salt, as most brands have added salt.)
- 1.5-2 teaspoons kosher salt (to taste)
- 1.5 pounds boneless chicken breasts
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 8 cloves fresh garlic, minced
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 16 ounces fettuccine, cooked (or pasta of choice)
- 1 cup reserved pasta water
- 6 ounces parmesan cheese, divided
- handful of fresh minced parsley, divided
Instructions
- Cook the pasta for just a few minutes under the package instructions until it's al dente. Undercooking the pasta will make sure it doesn't get overcooked later, since the noodles will continue to cook in the sauce. *Make sure to save a cup of pasta water to thin the sauce, and for reheating purposes later.
- Season the chicken breasts liberally with the cajun seasoning blend and kosher salt on all sides. To a hot skillet, add 2 tablespoons of butter. Add chicken, and sear on all sides over medium-high heat, until the internal temperature reaches 165°F with an instant read thermometer, about 5-6 minutes per side. Once cooked, remove from the skillet and set aside to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing into pieces. Don't drain any of the drippings from the skillet.
- Reduce the heat to medium, and add the rest of the butter, and a little splash of chicken broth to the skillet. Add in the minced garlic. Cook until fragrant, stirring often for about 1 minute, then, immediately deglaze the pan with the rest of the chicken broth.
- Reduce to low heat. Add in the heavy cream. Stir in parmesan cheese slowly, adding in small handfuls, stirring to melt before adding the next handful until completely melted and smooth. Season with the remaining cajun seasoning, and salt to taste.
- Add the cooked pasta, and a little bit of pasta water, along with parsley. Toss to combine, adding more pasta water until the sauce clings to the noodles. Add the chicken pieces back over top, sprinkle with more parsley and freshly grated parmesan. Enjoy!
- Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Do not freeze. If possible, keep the sauce separate from the pasta to keep the pasta from absorbing too much liquid. Reheat gently on the stovetop or in the microwave with a splash of pasta water.
Notes
- Cook the chicken fresh and season it well for the best flavor. While you can use pre-cooked chicken, the flavor just won't be quite the same.
- Cook the pasta until it's al dente (cooked but still firm) to prevent it from becoming mushy. We'd recommend cooking it 1-2 minutes under the package directions.
- Heavily salt the pasta water. You want about 2 tablespoons of kosher salt per every 1 pound of pasta. The salt will flavor the noodles!
- Reserve some pasta cooking water. It's great for thinning the sauce, and for reviving leftovers the next day.
- Taste the sauce as you go and adjust the seasoning as needed to achieve the desired level of saltiness and spiciness.
- To prevent the alfredo sauce from curdling or separating once the heavy cream has been added, be sure to stir it frequently and cook it over low heat. Do not boil it.
- Use freshly grated parmesan and add it slowly. Make sure each handful of cheese is melted and incorporated before adding the next.
- Let the chicken rest for a few minutes before slicing it to help seal in the juices.
Nutrition
These nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy and are only estimates. We cannot guarantee the accuracy.
Marla says
I made this tonight and I am very happy with it! It turned out delicious. This time I used a store bought Cajun spice (Urban Accents) and I used Palmini noddles, to make it quicker and easier. Next time I will try making your seasoning blend. Thank you for sharing your recipes.
Briana says
Hey Marla, That is great to hear! We're so glad you enjoyed! Thanks so much for giving it a try. 🙂
Sharon Mayer says
The BEST EVER!!!! TRY IT!!
Briana says
YAY! Thank you Sharon, you are awesome. So glad you like it so much!
Daralyn says
Pretty sure it should be 165F instead of 65F?
Briana says
Hi Daralyn,
Yes! You're absolutely right. Thanks for pointing that out. Just a typo!