This Cajun Chicken Alfredo is an easy weeknight meal with the most perfect homemade Alfredo sauce. Your family will love this delicious dinner.
Our family loves delicious pasta recipes. I swear that my kids could have pasta every single night for dinner and not get tired of it. I’m pretty sure that pasta is one of my many love languages.
One way we like to keep it interesting is by mixing in different seasonings. I love my homemade Cajun Seasoning. It works so well with the Homemade Alfredo Sauce in this Cajun fettuccini Alfredo with chicken.
Absolutely delicious and very easy! Served with small salad. Huge hit!!
How to Make Cajun Chicken Alfredo
This Cajun chicken Alfredo recipe has a few moving parts, so the key is multitasking. This is a brief overview of how it comes together. Be sure to get the full recipe including all measurements at the bottom of the post.
- Cook the pasta. Cook the fettuccine according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- Make the blackened chicken. While the pasta is cooking, cut the chicken breasts into cutlets. Rub with Cajun seasoning and cook for about four minutes on each side in a hot skillet.
- Make the Alfredo sauce. While the chicken is cooking, melt a little butter in a pan and whisk in heavy cream. Simmer for 15 minutes, then melt in Parmesan cheese and stir in Cajun seasoning.
- Put it all together. Toss the cooked fettuccine with the sauce. Top with sliced chicken, Parmesan, parsley, and diced tomatoes. Enjoy!
By starting the next step before the previous step is done, you can keep this recipe moving and make it a 20 minute meal. You can see all this come together in the video in the recipe card.
Cooking Fettuccini
While cooking noodles for any pasta dish seems like an easy step, there are a few things you want to make sure to do so it comes out perfectly.
- Use plenty of water. Make sure your pasta has plenty of water while it cooks. It needs to do more than just cover the pasta, it also needs room for the pasta to expand. One pound of pasta needs four to six quarts of water.
- Bring it to a roaring boil. You want to see big, constant bubbles before adding the dry pasta.
- Salt the water. I always add about a teaspoon of kosher salt to my water before adding the dry noodles to add flavor.
- Set a timer. Follow the directions on the package and set a timer as soon as the noodles are added to the water. Once the noodles are al dente, drain and set aside.
- Drizzle with olive oil. Once your noodles are done cooking and drained, drizzle them with a little olive oil and toss to prevent them from sticking together and drying out until the rest of the meal is ready.
Cajun Seasoning
This recipe calls for homemade Cajun Seasoning, and one of the reasons for that is that you can control the spices in it. I go into a lot more detail in my post about this seasoning mix. It adds flavor to the chicken as well as combines to create a creamy Cajun Alfredo sauce.
That being said, if having to make your own seasoning mix will hold you back from making this recipe, buy some Cajun seasoning!
Cajun Seasoning Recipe
Cutting Your Chicken into Cutlets
One of the things that keeps this recipe quick is thin chicken. Having a thinner chicken breast allows it to come to 165 degrees Fahrenheit more quickly. Rather than pounding the chicken thin, I opted to cut the chicken into cutlets. You can buy chicken cutlets at the store, but I prefer to buy chicken breasts and cut them myself.
Use a very sharp knife to butterfly the chicken breast open, then cut all the way through like in the photos below.
Instant Read Meat Thermometer
Blackened Chicken
When cooking the chicken for this creamy Cajun chicken pasta Alfredo, we use a technique in which you coat the chicken cutlets with seasoning and then cook it in oil or butter at high heat. The heat blackens the seasonings on the meat and gives the outside a dark brown or black appearance. This cooking method creates a delicious flavor that is perfect in Cajun Alfredo pasta!
You will know your blackened chicken is done when it reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. I recommend using an instant-read thermometer to check this. Keep it tented with foil while you prepare the other parts of this recipe to prevent it from drying out. The chicken can be made in advance and kept in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Blackened Chicken
Homemade Alfredo Sauce
With the kick and addition of Cajun seasoning, this Cajun Alfredo sauce recipe starts with my homemade Alfredo sauce. It is made with just three simple ingredients and tastes so much better than store-bought sauce.
For best results, I recommend grating the parmesan cheese from a block rather than buying cheese that is already shredded. Pre-shredded cheese is covered in preservatives that keep it from clumping together in the bag, but also prevent it from melting well in recipes. Grating it yourself will taste fresher and melt better which is crucial in this recipe. You will be so glad you took the extra couple of minutes to do this.
Homemade Alfredo Sauce
FAQ
You want shredded Parmesan in this recipe (rather Parmesan that you purchase grated fine). The texture will be much better. I would also encourage you to buy a brick and shred your own. It melts a lot better.
Absolutely! I stuck with fettuccine because that’s the classic that goes with Alfredo, but use what you like.
It may look in the photos like the chicken is burnt, but it is blackened. This is a technique in which you season meat with seasoning and then cook it in oil or butter. It’s delicious.
Make it With Shrimp
This recipe is also delicious made with Blackened Shrimp. I have a separate recipe that I share below, but you can also just swap the chicken for blackened shrimp when you put the dish together at the end.
Cajun Shrimp Pasta
Leftovers
This pasta dish is best enjoyed fresh and warm. Because the sauce isn’t made with flour, it separates while reheating. If you do have leftovers, you can try reheating the pasta and chicken separately. Add the pasta to a skillet and add a small amount of heavy cream, and slowly reheat it over very low heat while stirring.
Leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator for up to five days.
Other Great Cajun-Inspired Dishes
If you make this creamy Cajun chicken pasta Alfredo recipe or any of my other recipes, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think!
Cajun Chicken Alfredo
Ingredients
- 16 ounces fettuccine cooked according to package instructions (453.592 grams)
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (453.592 grams)
- 3 tablespoons Cajun seasoning divided
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 cups heavy cream (473.176 ml)
- 1 cup shredded Parmesan plus more for topping
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 diced tomato
- fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- Bring a large stock pot to a roaring boil. Add 2 teaspoons of kosher salt. Add the fettuccine and cook according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- While the pasta is cooking, slice the chicken in half widthwise to make chicken cutlets, or thin-looking chicken breasts. You can see this in the video below. Season the chicken on both sides with 2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning.
- Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the seasoned chicken to the skillet. Cook for about four minutes on each side or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Set the chicken aside, tented with foil.
- While the chicken is cooking, in a medium saucepan, melt the butter. Once melted, add the heavy cream. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. The sauce should reduce and thicken.
- Stir in the Parmesan cheese and allow it to melt completely. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Toss the cooked fettuccine with the sauce. Slice the chicken and top the pasta with the chicken, Parmesan, parsley, and diced tomatoes.
- Enjoy immediately!
daniel duchesne says
très bon excellent
Chris says
So, I’m wondering about using shredded rotisserie chicken, and just warming it up with the cajun seasoning. What do you think?
It wouldn’t be my preference for this. The way we cook the chicken makes it blackened chicken which really adds a lot to the dish.
Carolyn says
Absolutely delicious and very easy! Served with small salad. Huge hit!!!❤❤❤
I’ms o glad you liked it!
Jody says
This recipe is absolutely amazing with the flavor, I recommend everyone to try it.
I’m so glad you like it!
Tiffany says
My family loves this recipe, it is requested often. I do double the ingredients for the sauce, I like my pasta extra saucy. 😁
I’m so happy this is a hit with your family!
Shauna Richards says
I keep a binder with all the recipes that I have made that are great! Believe me, there are more recipes out there that we have tried that we dislike than like. This Cajun Chicken Alfredo is a keeper. We love it. Thank You so much for sharing.
I’m so glad that you love this one as much as we do!
DICK BIRKENHAUER says
Love your recipes !!! sometimes you need a change from the usual recipes – you filled the bill ! thanks, Dick Birkenhauer
I’m so glad you are enjoying them!
Ann Shultz says
Love your recipes 😋. Thank you for sharing.