A simple one-pot creamy cajun chicken pasta made with creole style ground chicken, high protein chickpea pasta, and a combo of cream and cheddar cheese. Every serving has 34 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber with just 31 grams of carbs and 335 calories, making this perfect for a healthy weeknight dinner or meal prep option.
How to Make Creamy Cajun Ground Chicken Pasta
The base of this cajun pasta consists of ground chicken and the “holy trinity” of creole cooking—onion, celery, and bell pepper. You’ll want to get a bit of browning on the chicken before adding olive oil and the vegetables.
Cook everything together, breaking apart the chicken and fully cooking. Then add some cajun seasoning and tomato paste, stirring everything together, and cooking for about a minute.
I used a Dutch oven, but a large sauté pan or skillet with a lid like I used in my chicken bacon ranch mac or chicken cheeseburger pasta recipes should work.
Use a bit of chicken broth to deglaze the pot before adding a full four cups and bringing everything to a boil and adding pasta. The recipe calls for Banza chickpea pasta shells, but you could use any pasta. I like shells with ground chicken make for a better eating experience, but other pasta shapes should be fine.
Once the pasta goes in the pot, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until just shy of al dente. The pasta will continue to cook as you bring the rest of the creamy sauce together.
Speaking of, the creamy components of this cajun chicken pasta are cream cheese and cheddar cheese. You can really get creative with these ingredients, though. My smoked cajun sausage pasta, for example, uses Trader Joe’s cajun alfredo sauce. While my cajun pasta bake uses a light alfredo with a bit of marinara.
Part of the beauty of one-pot pasta dishes is the thickened broth you’re left with. This makes for great sauces. You can pretty much add any type of cheese or creamy components.
This recipe uses cream cheese, but you might consider blended low fat ricotta or cottage cheese. See my Italian ground chicken soup or lemon ricotta pasta for examples.
I’m a sucker for broiled, bubbly cheese on top of pasta dishes. If you’d rather mix the cheddar straight in, that works perfectly fine. But I think the extra 5-10 minutes are worth it.
What to Serve with Cajun Chicken Pasta
Garlic bread is a no brainer. For a lighter option, you could use my cheesy garlic air fryer bread. Other pairings might include:
- cajun panzanella salad
- citrusy garlic air fried green beans
- Louisiana sunburst salad
- cajun kale and corn salad
- garlic parmesan roasted carrot sticks
- cajun broccoli
Okay, that should cover it. I always like to mention that recipe reviews are greatly appreciated! And if you have a question about this creamy cajun chicken pasta I forgot to cover, drop it in the comments below.
Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta
A one-pot pasta with cajun seasoned ground chicken and vegetables, high protein chickpea pasta, and two types of cheese.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Ground Chicken (97/3)
- 1 medium Onion, diced
- 2 stalks Celery, diced
- 1 large Bell Pepper, diced
- 1 Tablespoon (16g) Olive Oil
- 1/4 cup (60g) Tomato Paste
- 1 Tablespoon Cajun Seasoning*
- 4 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
- 8 oz Banza Pasta Shells, or your choice of pasta
- 4 oz Fat Free Cream Cheese, room temperature or softened
- 2 handfuls (10g) Fresh Parsley, minced
- 3 oz Shredded Cheddar
Instructions
- Brown the ground chicken in a large pot over medium-high heat. Flip and push to one side of the skillet. Add the olive oil and onion, celery, and bell pepper. Stir everything together, breaking the chicken apart.
- Once fully cooked, add the tomato paste and cajun seasoning. Cook for another 30-60 seconds, stirring everything together.
- Slowly add the broth to deglaze and get any fond off the bottom of the pot before adding the full 4 cups.
- Bring to a boil before adding the pasta and reducing to a low heat. Simmer for 6 minutes until the pasta is just shy of al dente.
- Turn off the heat and add the cream cheese and parsley. Let the cream cheese melt without over stirring.
- Once melted, stir everything together and top with cheddar. You can either stir in to melt like a cheese sauce or pop the entire pot under the broiler for 6-8 minutes. Top with fresh parsley, black and red pepper, and Tabasco or Crystal hot sauce, if desired.
Notes
*Be mindful of sodium content. I used Louisiana Fish Fry Products cajun seasoning, which has 1,160mg of sodium per teaspoon. You can also make your own cajun seasoning.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1 1/4 cup (about 10 oz)Amount Per Serving: Calories: 335Total Fat: 12gCarbohydrates: 31gFiber: 5gProtein: 34g