Wednesday, January 20, 2016

One-Pot Cajun Pasta



Ingredients:
- Olive Oil (2 Tbsp.)
- 2 Diced Chicken Breasts
- Andouille or Smoked Sausage (8 oz, sliced)
- Garlic (3 cloves, minced)
- Yellow Onion (1/2, sliced)
- Red Pepper (1, sliced)
- Green Pepper (1, sliced)
- Mushrooms (2 cups)
- 16 oz box of the pasta of your choice (we used linguine)
- Chicken broth (5 cups)
- Heavy Cream (1/2 cup)
- Shredded Parmesan (1 cup)
- Cajun Seasoning (1 Tbsp.)
(You can use a store-bought Cajun spice mix or make your own! We used equal parts cayenne pepper, onion powder, paprika, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.)

Directions:
Pour olive oil into the pot. Add diced chicken breast to the pot, cover with cajun seasoning, and stir until the chicken is evenly seasoned. Then, add sliced sausage and stir. Cook the meat on medium heat for 5-10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

Once the meat is cooked, add in the garlic, onion, peppers, and mushrooms, and stir. Continue stirring for 3-5 minutes as the veggies cook down.

Add the dry pasta to the pot (if using long, thin noodles, break in half), then pour in the chicken broth. Stir until everything is well-mixed. Cover the pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, keep covered bring the heat down to a simmer for 10 minutes (stirring every two minutes). If there still extra chicken broth, you can discard it, cook longer until the liquid evaporates, or add a little cornstarch to thicken the liquid.

Lastly, add heavy cream and parmesan and stir until your pasta is well blended. Garnish with green onions, more parmesan, a sprinkle of cajun seasoning (if you want some extra spice), and salt and pepper to taste.
NOTES:
  • This recipe is a little spicier than some of you may like.  The Cajun seasoning I used was homemade, but not by me, so I don't actually know what was in it...  
  • I used Canjun Seasoned Andouille Sausage.  I used 12 oz instead of 8.
  • There was quite a bit of liquid left after simmering everything, so I added some corn starch to thicken it.
  • I added a little more cream and parmesan than it called for.
  • It reminds me of spicier version of something I've had before at home, but I can't remember what...Tasty though! 

1 comment:

Margaret Mary said...

A Cajun label on a Klejeski blog? Living on the edge here ...
(Looks good, btw.)