It’s been a while since I’ve made a one-pot pasta! But this weekend I got a craving for a creamy, smoky, spicy, easy one pot dish, so I set to work! This One Pot Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta is incredibly easy to make, so it’s perfect for weeknight dinners. I have a few variations for you below (spicy, non-spicy, creamy, non-creamy) so be sure to read on! :)
This post contains some affiliate links, which means that we make a small commission off items you purchase at no additional cost to you.
“Good, easy, simple recipe. The sauce is perfect, and creamy, the spices are great, the only thing i did different was add a little lemon juice and it enhanced the flavor. My fiancé and I are obsessed with this meal!”
Julietta
What is Cajun Chicken Pasta?
This tasty pasta dish is one of my favorite easy weeknight meals. Everything happens in one pan, and there’s so little to clean up afterward. I mix tender cubes of chicken with plenty of savory (and hot!) spices, tomatoes, pasta, and cream cheese to create this flavorful one pot Cajun chicken pasta dish. It’s super simple to make, costs less than $10 total, and feeds the whole family!
Ingredients for One Pot Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta
Here’s what you’ll need to make creamy Cajun chicken pasta:
- Spices: Smoked paprika, oregano, thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and salt infuse this dish with a savory and spicy flavor.
- Fats: Olive oil helps the chicken cook without burning, and butter adds richness and flavor to the dish. You can use all oil if you prefer. I like the flavor olive oil adds, but vegetable or canola oil both work well and cut costs a bit.
- Chicken: Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are my favorite lean protein for this dish. You can also use chicken thighs if you prefer.
- Onion: Yellow onion adds a sweet and earthy flavor to the dish.
- Penne Pasta: Cooks perfectly right in the pan. Any short pasta shape will work, but skip longer noodles.
- Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes: Add a smoky and acidic flavor to the dish.
- Chicken Broth: Helps create a rich and flavorful sauce. You can also dissolve chicken bouillon in water to help cut costs.
- Cream Cheese: Makes this dish rich and creamy.
- Green Onions: Add a pop of freshness and color to the dish.
Serving Suggestions
This is a one pot meal, so you could totally end it right there and be completely satisfied. But I like to add a salad or some bread to round it off. My classic Caesar salad really plays up the creaminess of this dish. Or try some homestyle cornbread for a little sweetness to balance out the heat!
Recipe Tips!
- Adjust the Heat: This pasta is spicy. BUT you can adjust the heat by adjusting the amount of cayenne pepper in the Cajun seasoning. You can cut it in half for just a little heat, or if you are completely spicy intolerant, leave the cayenne out altogether. That makes me kind of sad, but I completely understand. Sometimes your body and brain don’t want the same thing. :)
- Make it Creamy (Or Not): If you can’t do cream cheese, feel free to replace it with a splash of heavy cream or half-and-half. I’d probably use about 1/4 cup of heavy cream or 1/2 cup of half-and-half. OR, if you don’t want it creamy at all, that works too. This pasta was quite delicious even before I added the cream cheese, but the creaminess does balance the heat and acidity very well.
- Make it Extra: If you want this pasta to be super over the top, try adding some cooked bacon, or a final dusting of Parmesan cheese. That little bit of extra umami flavor will really take this Cajun Chicken Pasta over the top! Or, in place of or in addition to, you could add shrimp.
Other Chicken Pasta Recipes You Might Like:
- One Pot Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta
- White Cheddar Mac and Cheese with Chicken and Broccoli
- Chicken Broccoli Pasta with Lemon Cream Sauce
- Greek Chicken Pasta Salad
- Monterey Chicken Skillet
One Pot Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta
Servings 4Ingredients
Cajun Seasoning
- 2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.20)
- 1 tsp oregano ($0.10)
- 1 tsp thyme ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp onion powder ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
Chicken Pasta
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.16)
- 1 Tbsp butter ($0.13)
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast ($5.47)
- 1 yellow onion, diced ($0.32)
- 1/2 lb. penne pasta (uncooked) ($0.75)
- 15 oz. fire roasted diced tomatoes ($1.00)
- 2 cups chicken broth ($0.26)
- 2 oz. cream cheese ($0.50)
- 3 green onions, sliced ($0.25)
Instructions
- Combine the ingredients for the Cajun seasoning in a small bowl. Cut the chicken into 1/2 to 3/4-inch cubes. Place the cubed chicken in a bowl, pour the Cajun seasoning over top, and stir to coat the chicken in spices.
- Add the olive oil and butter to a large deep skillet. Heat the oil and butter over medium-high until the skillet is very hot and the butter is melted and foamy. Add the seasoned chicken to the skillet and cook for a couple minutes on each side, or just until the outside gets some color. The chicken does not need to be cooked through at this point.
- Add the diced yellow onion to the skillet and continue to sauté for about 2 minutes more, or just until the onion begins to soften. Allow the moisture from the onion to dissolve any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet.
- Next, add the pasta, fire roasted diced tomatoes (with the juices), and chicken broth to the skillet. Stir just until everything is evenly combined, then place a lid on top and allow the broth to come up to a boil.
- Once boiling, turn the heat down to medium-low and let the pasta simmer for about ten minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, until the pasta is tender and the liquid is thick and saucy.
- Add the cream cheese to the skillet in chunks, then stir until it has melted into the sauce. Top the pasta with sliced green onions and serve.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Stainless Steel Pots and Pans
- White Cutting Boards
- Glass Mixing Bowls
Notes
- The deep skillet I use is a 4-quart capacity.
- Depending on your cookware, you may need to adjust the heat up or down to maintain a simmer in the broth. Be sure to stir often to prevent the pasta from sticking.
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Video
how to make One Pot Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta – step by step photos
Stir together the ingredients for the Cajun seasoning in a small bowl (2 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp thyme, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1/4 tsp cayenne, 1/4 tsp black pepper, 1/4 tsp salt). Cut one pound boneless, skinless chicken breast into 1/2 to 3/4-inch cubes. Place the chicken cubes in a bowl, pour the Cajun seasoning over top, then stir to coat the chicken in the spices.
Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil and 1 Tbsp butter in a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Once the skillet is very hot and the butter is melted and foamy, add the seasoned chicken pieces. Cook for a couple of minutes on each side, or just until they get some color. The chicken does not need to be cooked through at this point.
Add one diced yellow onion and continue to sauté for just a couple minutes more, or until the onion just begins to soften. The moisture from the onion should help dissolve any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet.
Add 1/2 lb. penne to the skillet along with one 15oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes (with the juices) and 2 cups chicken broth.
Give everything a brief stir to make sure it’s all combined, then place a lid on top and allow the broth to come up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn it down to medium-low, and let it simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes.
Simmer until the pasta is tender and the broth has become thicker and more saucy in texture.
Add 2 oz. cream cheese to the skillet in small chunks. Stir until the cheese has melted into the sauce.
Top with sliced green onions and SERVE! This One Pot Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta is going to be on regular rotation in my house. :)
I think this bowl of pasta is begging for some Freezer Garlic Bread, what about you?
Delicious! So filling, comforting, I’ve made this twice now. I’m gluten free so I use chickpea pasta, she secret is I don’t measure out a full 2 cups of chicken broth, but I pour in JUST enough liquid to almost fully cover the pasta, and stir and cook it, adding a bit more liquid as necessary until the pasta is done. That way it’s not too liquidy. I also add a chopped up bell pepper, shredded cheese to the sauce, and more seasoning to taste!
Turns out perfect every time!
I’ve made this several times at home and for potlucks. And it’s always a hit. I add andouille sausage and use less chicken. I also add bell peppers and celery to the onions. It’s delicious. I’ve even fed it to 30 Scouts on a campout and it was a favorite of the Scouts and parents.
Can I freeze portions of this?
I think you should be able to!
I would need to say that I have 3 teenagers at home and being a single dad my options rotate from my mom’s recipes. Taco, enchiladas, spaghetti, fried chicken, and so ii don’t try new things because my kids won’t agree or someone will end up eating top Ramen. But this is a great dish and all my kids ate it and were happy. I’ll be making it again!
Oh I’m definitely doing that! Thanks!!
This is our favorite go to recipe! It is so easy and quick it’s usually our go to for a busy week. The flavors are amazing in this one, it’s a bit spicy for those who watch for spice. We substitute regular noodles for chickpea noodles for dietary restrictions. They do take a bit longer to cook so we add a bit more water/broth.
I know this is an old recipe and unlikely to be updated, but I made it last night and after simmering for the allotted time I still had a lot of thin liquid in the pot. The pasta was also shy of fully cooked.
In step 4 it says to put a lid on and bring to a boil then in step 5 it says to stir frequently. Should the lid be left off at that point to allow more liquid to evaporate? Also, the written instructions say for the liquid to be “saucy” but the instructions with pictures show the “drag a spoon through the sauce and it leaves a clean line in the pan for a moment” test. I’m an experience cook and understood this but less experience cooks may not. It could help to add this explicit information to the written recipe. So basically, I’d recommend considering adding a note about whether to keep the lid on or not once it comes to boil, and more explicit guidance on how to test if it’s “saucy,” and considering it chicken thighs may work better since they won’t dry out as much. Still a very yummy recipe!
Okay, here’s how to fix this recipe.
PS I don’t use onions. Maybe double that too? Up to you.
2 tsp smoked paprika (could definitely do 3)
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
3/4 tsp cayenne pepper (so 1/4 and a 1/2)
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt
Honestly you can double the oregano but I wouldn’t do it with the thyme.
As well you want two big handfuls of shredded mozzarella cheese, a splash of heavy cream, and 2-3oz of cream cheese BLOCK. Whipped makes a difference so don’t do it.
I also add 3 sprinkles of Accent MSG, that’s on the side with the tiny holes. (FYI- MSG isn’t bad for you.) But if you have issues with it, use salt. Just double it to be 1/2. The reason why I don’t do that is bc MSG acts like salt.
Any enjoy your yummy seasoned food. Beth has a good start here, but it’s lacking.
Yesss to your MSG note! I want to do a video about it.
Perhaps you should have a recipe blog of your own.
Love it! My husband and kids asked for seconds. I added a chopped red pepper.
I’ve always made this with chicken thigh but the other day I tried it with canned tuna and it was delicious!
So good! Gave an elevated “hamburger helper” vibe. I switched for ground chicken sausage i had in my freezer and doubled the cream cheese. Sooo yummy 8/10
good, easy, simple recipe. The sauce is perfect, and creamy, the spices are great, the only thing i did different was add a little lemon juice and it enhanced the flavor. My fiancé and I are obsessed with this meal!
Great meal with garlic bread and salad
Made this last night after not making it for a while and it did not disappoint. I used less chicken and low fat cream cheese, it turned out well and so quick and easy and delicious!
This meal is great for large groups. I saw some comments saying the sauce was too watery, just omit the broth and add heavy whipping cream instead!! The juices from the diced tomatoes, combined with the heavy cream & seasoning makes for a very unique spicey creamy cajun sauce. Also, sautee the onions and the garlic before you add the seasoned chicken it really brings the flavor to life as well.
Had to add sooooo much more salt to this at the end because it literally had no flavor :( my pasta was too mushy as well, but idk if it’s because I used protein (chickpea) pasta instead
Sauce would not thicken at all and ended up being a soup. So sad to waste the ingredients on this
May have had too much liquid. After the pasta cooks I leave the lid off and let the liquid reduce until there is maybe a half a cup before adding cream cheese. I have made this recipe at least a dozen times and it usually turns out great.
I loved this recipe- it was just delectable! I didn’t add cream and I thought it was just perfect! Would defo recommend :)
This was delicious!! I also made a few tweaks due mostly to inventory.
●I thought the spice blend was perfect, just added an extra 1/4 teaspoon of both the cayenne and the black pepper, as we like it on the spicier side.
●I had boiled a whole chicken last night to make broth so I used the 2 cooked breasts. I sautéed the onions first, then added the chicken and the spice mix.
●I added some fresh baby spinach cause I wanted to use it up! It was delicious.
●I didn’t have fire roasted tomatoes so I used a can of kirkland diced tomatoes.
●I didn’t have cream cheese so I added 3 oz of sour cream (full fat) and some shredded parm.
Thanks for providing such a quick, awesome recipe!! Looking forward to trying more of your stuff 😀
The recipe states one onion. Since onions are in so many sizes, could you possibly estimate the measurement amount of chopped onion? One cup or more?
One cup would be good!
I just love me a good, versitile, easy recipe!
I read through the reviews, and some of y’all made me laugh. Thanks for that.
I did make the recipe as written and I would also make a few tweaks for myself. My daughter would not change a single thing.
Changes I will make:
1. Brining my chicken – 10 minutes in a salt water bath does wonders, adding just enough saltiness to liven up the dull flavor of fresh chicken cubes.
2. Exchange 1 tsp of smoked paprika for regular paprika. I agree with a previous reviewer that the smoked paprika, being so bold in flavor, left the recipe a bit over-powered and unbalanced. Certainly not worth giving this recipe 3-stars, though. C’mon man, really?
3. Longer cook time, which I end up doing, as the noodles were too aldenté for my liking. 20 minutes was just right. Happily, this reduced the cooking liquid and the end result was creamy and saucy.
Things to try in the future:
Taco season and salsa, in place of the other seaseons and tomatoes.
Chili season sounds fantastic, too.
I’m looking forward to making this again. A 5-star keeper!
Agreed on *ALL* points.
One of my Fav’s – I omitted the tomatoes and adding a little bit of water in it’s place. I also added a bag of frozen steamed spinach near the end. I’m making this again tonight and will most likely add white wine in place of the tomatoes.
Extremely paprika-heavy, and couldn’t get the sauce to thicken right even with double the amount of cream cheese plus a little heavy cream.
I liked that this was a quick, easy meal to prepare with common ingredients that I already had on hand. I found that the oregano and thyme were a bit strong, however. If I were to make this again, I would put about 1/4 to 1/2 of the amount for those two herbs.
Can I just used cajun seasoning from the store? And how much?
You can, but just be mindful of the salt amount and don’t add any additional salt until you’ve tasted it at the end. We formulated this Cajun blend have the perfect salt amount for the recipe and some store-bought Cajun seasonings have a lot of salt. I know a lot of other readers have done it with success, though! I would do about 2 Tbsp Cajun seasoning.
How do you reheat this dish?
Honestly, we’d just pop a portion in the microwave for 1-2 minutes or reheat it all on the stove on medium-low until warmed through.
how to make the sauce thicker?
The sauce should be pretty thick by the time the pasta is cooked through! If it’s still too liquidy for you, you can add a bit more cream cheese to make it creamier or perhaps you could spoon out some of the sauce and add a teaspoon or so of cornstarch to it to make a slurry and add it back in to the pasta to thicken the sauce.
I was looking for something creamy but not made with heavy cream and rather quick to prepare. I followed the recipe closely with only a couple of variations as needed.
In my opinion, it was quite salty, but that could’ve been due to the chicken broth I used. My first alteration was adding an extra cup of water for the noodles to soften enough. The Cajun seasoning wasn’t very Cajun—it seasoned the chicken and gave the pasta a nice flavour, but it wasn’t as robust as you’d expect from Cajun cuisine.
The other alteration I made was using light cream cheese instead of standard cream cheese. I let each person add it to their desired consistency.
Overall, this is a good base recipe that you can play with as needed. My partner enjoyed it.
Would you say this dish would freeze and reheat well? I’m trying to meal prep some dishes for postpartum. This dish is one of our favorites.
I think it should freeze fine! There’s always a chance it could separate as you reheat it but it should come back together. Congratulations!
We loved this recipe! I doubled and added 1/2 red bell pepper and 1/2 green bell pepper for a little extra veg. Overall, delicious recipe. The cajun spice combo was perfect. It had a little kick, but not overwhelming. This recipe is absolutely hitting the regular rotation.
I would like to double the recipie. How should I adjust the cooking times?
It’s hard to say exactly without knowing about how big your pan is that you’re using, etc. I would just keep an eye on the pasta and check it’s doneness every so often once the liquid has reduced according to the photos. It likely wont take too much longer than the recipe time if you’re using a big enough pan.
This was awesome! My husband said don’t lose this recipe. It was quick and easy with TONS of flavor. I didn’t have two items, so I had to substitute. I used sour cream in the place cream cheese and Italian Better than Boulion in place of chicken boulion. Definitely a keeper. Thank you!
I have made this about 10 times in the last 2 years and we Love it – both the flavor and the simplicity. Over time we have settled on these 2 changes:
– Double the pasta to 1 pound. Therefore also double the broth, fire roasted tomatoes and cream cheese.
– Add about a pound of andouille sausage (more cajun! more meat!)
I buy sausage at costco, its already cooked, so just needs to be warmed. i slice it and add towards the end.
This essentially doubles both the meat (sausage and chicken) and the pasta so the balance is preserved, and the andouille sausage screams cajun.
This is a reliable and tasty recipe – Thanks!!!
Can I swap the chicken to tofu for this recipe if I want to make it vegetarian? If so would the same seasonings work and would it also be 1lb of tofu for a serving of 4? T
That’s correct! Everything else should be the same. We haven’t tried this with tofu so I cant speak to the success of the flavors, etc, but it could be done.
I made this recipe as written tonight and unfortunately, I cant say there was really anything cajun about it. It was rather bland and simple. It is not creamy and could probably use some heavy cream to get it right. If you have a basic taste palette, this may work for you as it is simple, quick and cheap. I was just really hoping for some kick from the cajun flavor.
I added some wine to the mix and before serving added some cream cheese – if was so good…😆
Made without onions/green onions and it was fantastic. We’re both onion haters lol. A nice kick to it.
New favorite dinner!! Dang, that was good!! The spice mix is so perfect. I added sun dried tomatoes at the end and that was a delightful pop! Thanks for this amazing recipe!
My husband is not a fan of onions or tomatoes, so I left both things out. I was worried this would affect the outcome but it still tasted DELICIOUS and I could not be happier with the results!
my mother’s husband is also not fond of onions and tomatoes, she makes this with bell peppers instead. it’s good that way too!
I increased the pasta cooking time because there was still a lot of broth left and added some habenrio powder this recipe turned out great
This is a huge winner with my picky husband. I love it too. I’ve made it several times now with NO substitutions, except once when I used rotini pasta instead of penne.
This is a delicious meal! I made some revisions and added some light cream, parmesan cheese & tri color diced peppers. I omitted the tomatoes also. My family kept going back for more! Thanks!
Instead of cream cheese I’ve been using Alioli and it’s amazing so garlic’y
What kind of aioli? Do you have a recipe, I’ve been looking for a really good garlic aioli!
I rarely ever comment on anything. This dish was absolutely delicious. I made this for a date night, and let’s just say this dish is a favorite for many reasons.. Who ever came up with this recipe please know you changed my view on culinary arts. Thank you.
This is an amazing delicious dish. Perfect amount of spice and creaminess. The only changes I made~~~1 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp ground garlic, 1 tsp of onion,4 cups of beef broth and added 12 oz gluten free penne. I also added 8 oz of cream cheese. The people rating is 3 stars obviously don’t know how to make dishes that tailor to them or their family. I always make adjustments I know my family would like
I made this with smoked sausage and half and half substitutions and it is amazing! I normally do not like smoked paprika but the creaminess really does something to that flavor! Will add this to my weekly dinner rotation for sure!
I normally don’t post reviews but this one is worth raving about. I’ve made this recipe twice now. I used pre packed Cajun season for ease but followed everything else as written. This recipe is so easy and so good. My hubby and I both love it, it’s the perfect amount of heat and creaminess!
How much premade Cajun seasoning do you use?
I followed it to the tee last night and it was almost inedible. Way too watery, almost like a really sad soup, and the flavors were pretty meh too. Disappointing miss for me.
I’ve made this at least ten times and followed the recipe exactly and it never came out soupy, in fact if anything I probably needed to add more broth, you must of made a mistake.
Mine was soupy also. It was very tasty just not thick enough.
Same here! Soupy and bland, followed recipe exactly. What a bummer after all that prep and grocery shopping 😞
This was great! I had broccoli that needed used, so I added that instead of the tomatoes. Added the broccoli about 10 minutes before the pasta was done. Worked really well. Will make again as the recipe is written.
TASTY!
I’d consider adding spinach or something for a veggie. Good flavor. I love using easy canned goods and one pot recipes with my busy schedule. Great recipe!
Made this and it was very bland. I don’t know what I did wrong.
Same here, which is shocking considering how strong the spices smelled when I made the mix in Step 1. And the sauce was kind of thin and not really sauce-y. I’m thinking maybe the
“couple minutes on each side” of the chicken step might have toasted all the flavor away, and I possibly needed to add more pasta?
The base of this recipe is very good, just add some peach chutney and lemon juice for that sweet/sour balance and some hot sauce.
Bc of availability/expensiveness at my current location I adapted the recipe slightly
Chicken:
Onion powder, fresh garlic (pressed), thyme, oregano, red chili powder (I like it a bit spicier), curry powder, and salt.
I replaced chicken broth with vegetable broth (only thing I still had and broth is not available here)
Tomato cans are imported and really expensive here, so I used 500 g fresh tomatoes and cut them up into small cubes (about $0,50).
Rest of the recipe I left untouched. A very quick, easy, cheap and delicious meal. Thank you!
I’m pescatarian so I made this with shrimp instead. I cooked the shrimp separately and added it back in at the end. The flavor was great and it had a nice spice, but my sauce was too thin and liquidy. I added an extra ounce of cream cheese but that didn’t seem to help. I think next time I’ll either add more pasta to absorb the sauce, or decease the amount of broth I use.
This recipe is easy and very tasty. Everyone in my family enjoyed!
yuckyy
Had just regular cajun seasoning so used that instead of making it from scratch. Used Gumbo filé in place of the thyme to thicken the sauce. Came out really good!
This was so good that I wanted to keep eating even after I was full! A really delicious, flavorful pasta. However, it was too spicy for my 7-year-old. I like a moderate amount of heat and thought it was perfect. The only change I made was using a can of diced tomatoes with mild green peppers rather than fire roasted, because the that was what I had on hand. This will be in regular rotation! (Maybe I will omit the cayenne next time and add extra spice to just the adult plates.)
Making this tonight. I have made it before and it’s great. Was that rotel you subbed in there ? Did it change things much ? I’m interested in that. Love the recipe.
This is a family favorite! I am wondering if it would be able to be cooked and frozen ahead of time? And if so could I reheat it right from frozen? Thank you!
This is in our regular dinner rotation, minus cayenne pepper for our picky kid and with hot sauce for grownups.
It’s fast, easy and one pot–you can’t go wrong! Plus, our picky kid loves it..
This recipe is in our typical dinner rotation, it’s so good! We decided to try grated Parmesan cheese on it and it was even better! Definitely try it out if you love this recipe
Soooo tasty. Added in some green bell peppers about five minutes before finishing and thickened with a 1 tsp flour slurry before adding in the cream cheese. It was perfection. Next time I’ll try it with Andouille sausage!
This was a hit! Even my 6 year old said, hey I actually like this! Lol I’ll take the win! I didn’t have the smoked paprika but used regular paprika instead. And I left out the cayenne pepper – well because we’re whimps! The taste was great and and the recipe much appreciated for this busy mom. Thank you!
I tried this recipe after seeing a video about Cajun Steak Pasta. I substituted the chicken with steak, the chicken broth with beef broth, and since neither my husband or I like tomatoes I used a little bit of lemon juice instead. It was so good! May try it as the recipe intended because it was so good.
This is a fan favorite in our house. I follow the directions but substitute half and half for cream cheese. It’s fast and easy and delicious. Thanks for sharing.
The cajun spice mix for the chicken is pretty good (needs more salt for that amount of chicken though — about 1tsp), but unfortunately the rest of the tomato sauce was fairly bland. I had add a lot of salt and pepper to compensate.
The timing of doing a one pot pasta is tricky considering the amount of time the canned tomato needs to cook versus not wanting to overcook the pasta. The tomatoes were a little acidic in the end.
Overall not bad but not great (except for the chicken.)
Followed all directions and it came out perfect!
This is the best one pot recipe I’ve tried. I love a bit of spice so the second time I made it I added a bit more cayenne. Otherwise I make it as is and finish up every single bit. The sauce is delectable. I’m in heaven whenever I make it. I love this recipe so much.
Has anyone tried this recipe omitting cream cheese/heavy cream/ any creamy element? I want to try this for a picky eater in my family who hates creamy textures!
I think you could definitely try it without the cream cheese!
This was so stupidly EASY and TASTY, I want to cry. First of all, I want to take a second for us all to appreciate how well written these recipes are. No long blog post. Straight to the very simple recipe. Easy to follow instructions with PICTURES EACH STEP! I’m so impressed with how delicious this was with how few ingredients there are. Someone mentioned using shrimp in place of chicken, I think that would be DELICIOUS!
Beth, thank you for what you do! You’re awesome!
I’ve made this many times, with chicken or with shrimp. I’ve never had the problem some are stating about it not thickening or feeling like it was too much broth to cook down… If you want a more Cajun kick, just add more of the spices. Taste and adjust the sauce, problem solved! I usually make it as written, but sometimes with extra cayenne or pepper flakes.
Hi Beth,
Curious to know, when cooking the chicken, why the butter and the olive oil? Why not just one? Thanks!
We like using the butter here for the flavor, but since we’re using a higher heat, we add in the oil to precent the milk solids in the butter from burning. You’re welcome to use all olive oil if you like!
I used sausage and shrimp instead of the chicken but it turned out amazing!! Would make again!
This was really good! This was a “What can I make with what I have” kind of meal as tomorrow is errand/shopping day and I didn’t want to drive to town just for a few ingredients. I did use Cajun seasoning instead of the listed spices since I already had it and I never use it. I had some shredded sharp cheddar cheese that needed to be used so I put some on top of each serving of chicken pasta when plated. I’ll make this again! Thank you for the recipe, you saved a country girl from having to brave the elements and waste time, money, and gas! :-)
So good! Had to use up some leftover turkey, so used that instead of chicken. Added them to the pan after cooking onions and peppers, and then mixed in the spices. This recipe is very flexible and forgiving! Thanks for this recipe!
Great recipe with lots of room to customize. Lowest grocery bill I’ve had in a long time, too.
I doubled the recipe to make lots of leftovers. If you double as well, I recommend adding an extra tablespoon or so of cream cheese.
I had some green pepper and Andouille sausage that I needed to use up so I added those as well–they were a great addition if you’re looking for ways to beef up (or pork up?) the recipe. I always keep Tony Chachere’s on hand so if you don’t have and don’t want to purchase all of the ingredients for the seasoning, Tony’s is great. I added some hot sauce for extra heat, as well. The recommendation in the recipe for adding parmesan kicked everything up a notch.
This recipe will definitely be entering my dinner rotation and I’m excited to play around with it more!
One of my all time favorite pasta recipes
You don’t put in the recipe when to add the chicken back to finish cooking that’s a major step missed in this recipe otherwise it was good!
Hi Katie, I had the same thought but after looking at the step by step pictures, I reached the conclusion that you dont take the chicken out.
I made this last night, and it was a big hit in my picky eater household. I subbed heavy cream for cream cheese and used some left over rotisserie chicken. This was so good! My husband loved it. I’ll make a double recipe next time so we can have leftovers.
Good call. I used some leftover deli chicken and threw in a couple of breasts and the chicken shreds were way better than the breast pieces. Yum recipe though overall. Might try different pasta shape next time like big spirals.
Can the left overs be frozen?
You can definitely freeze, however it’s possible that the sauce will separate when thawing and reheating. To help this, you can gently reheat the pasta and sauce on the stovetop over low heat while stirring continuously until the sauce comes back together.
This recipe was very easy. I added mushrooms, onion, garlic and a green pepper. Used about 6 ounces of cream cheese. I would definitely use Rotel tomatoes next time for added spice. It wasn’t spicy enough for me. I think the amount of smoked paprika may have been a bit too much so I recommend not using as much. I will definitely make this again and possibly use shrimp instead of chicken. Yum!!
I would like to try this! Two questions: 1) Can you substitute tomato sauce for roasted diced tomatoes?; 2) Can you simply use a Cajun seasoning, rather than making your own?
You can absolutely use a store-bought Cajun seasoning! The tomato sauce is a bit more tricky. You really want those pieces of tomato throughout the pasta that the diced tomatoes provide. Also, since tomato sauce is more liquidy, you might need to reduce the amount of chicken broth a bit so that the sauce isn’t too loose by the time the pasta is done. We haven’t tried it that way, but you could definitely try it and see how it goes!
This was full of flavor, hearty and satisfying. And best of all, easy to make. I added a tad extra to the spices and chicken stock and cream cheese but that was personal preference. The recipe is perfect as is. Another great one to add to my rotation. Thanks, Beth!
This was so easy and tasted incredible.
This was delicious and easy however it is not spicy if you are a spice lover. My son and my husband both said it was delicious. I cut back on the liquid but ended up having to add some in the end. I would definitely make this again.
Super easy and tastes amazing!
needs way more salt. ate it on the first night and had absolutely no flavor. but i cooked it for my lunch for the week and had to bring it to work—dumped a packet of salt on it and it brought out the tomato flavor. still, its a crime to call it cajun
Amazing! Even my six year old loved it. I followed the recipe to a T and at the end I added a very small amount of heavy cream. I never post reviews but this one was worth it. I’ll make it many times over. I didn’t have thyme but was amazing regardless.
I think my husband & son would eat this every day if they could. Big winner – thank you!
Excellent. And I’m picky! I threw in a green bell pepper that needed to be used and I used an entire block of cream cheese because I love cream cheese. But I have always used a Cajun seasoning before like Tony’s or Slap Ya Mama but this was waaaaay better and I felt like I could have added a little more spice without making it too salty. I’m going to mix up a whole bunch of that Cajun stuff and put it in a shaker. The premixed ones are getting soooo expensive, and they’re tooooo salty!
Too much broth. Was really excited but fell flat. even after 2x cream cheese we still feel like it could have been more. Maybe 1.5 cup of broth would have been better.
We will probably have the leftovers over rice.
Agree. With the juice from the tomatoes it’s too much liquid. Other than that it’s pretty good!
I think I’ve commented here before: I LOVE this recipe, and I make it often. It’s been bookmarked on my list for literal years, and I make it probably once a month (which is often for us). It’s so quick, easy, and flavorful: we love.
I always follow the recipe as written, though I usually add some extra salt, maybe 1 tsp total extra #saltfiend because I always salt my onions on adding, and I use lower sodium chicken broth, and I feel like the pasta needs more salt as a result (probably making life too difficult on myself, oh well). Also, usually my range requires an extra 2-3 minutes to get the pasta to where I like it. Easy tweaks.
TODAY, I was so excited to make this, and I realized I was out of 15-oz cans of fire roasted diced tomatoes (dun dun DUNNN). However, I had a can of crushed tomatoes on hand that were supposed to go into chili later in the week, and hungry me, I figured I’d sub those in and go to the store tomorrow to replenish the chili ingredients. I used the same amount, 15oz (just slightly less than 2 cups liquid measure).
HOLY MOLY this sub, for some reason, made this my best batch of this recipe yet BY FAR (confirmed by other household member as well). I assume because the tomato flavor is more concentrated in the crushed, saucy tomatoes? I was worried it would be too soupy, but it is PERFECT for us. INcredible.
Just wanted to give a 2023 shout out to a) the genius of this original recipe, thank you BudgetBytes, and b) this small sub that really elevated this from a great standard recipe to an OMG make-this-every-week. Yay!
It’s fine. I made it exactly as instructed, lacks any real “cajun” flavor or any distinctive flavor overall and the chicken was tough but maybe that’s my fault.
It was fine, but it didn’t really taste like much and I feel like there was too much broth to simmer down for it to get creamy. It lacked flavor overall, but it was edible I guess.
Pretty good recipe. I added some extra of the seasoning towards the end for a little more flavor. Overall, super easy and quick to cook and tasted great for a budget recipe.
Incredible. I ended up straining some of the juice after the pasta cooked then added more Cajun sauce on top after draining. Turned out amazing.
Tastes like creamy tomato soup mixed with chicken noodle soup. The flavor is lacking something, I think next time I will try with fresh herbs instead of dried and use fire roasted chiles instead of just tomatoes. I think black garlic oil or a flavoring oil could also help elevate the flavor.
This was great!!! Couldn’t get any fire roasted tomatoes (being a European on American cooking websites sucks sometimes – so many ingredients that just don’t exist here. Looking at you, cream of chicken/mushroom soups!), but it worked just fine with regular high quality tomatoes. The smoked paprika adds plenty of smokey/grilley flavour.
Highly recommend.
Is it possible to cook this in a slow cooker?
No, unfortunately this one is not a good candidate for a slow cooker.
Where I live, cream cheese is creamy so can’t be cut. A spoon has to be used.
If I can’t get fire roasted tomatoes where I live, how can I make them?
All the spices to be used?
🫠
I half some roma tomatoes and put under my broiler until they are nice and roasted with some black parts, basically the same as fire roasted
Really good recipe. I made a vegan version by leaving out the cream cheese and subbing veggie broth. Instead of chicken I used a Japanese eggplant, half a green pepper and a few mushrooms. Very tasty and flexible recipe.
you could get some tofu cover it in some cornstarch and pan fry it then add it to your sauce to absorb the flavour
Hi! How would I best go about making this dish vegetarian? What would be a good substitute for the chicken? Thank you!
Honestly, I’d probably just make it a creamy pasta by itself without adding anything in place of the chicken (you’ll also have to sub veg broth for the chicken broth). In that case you would be adding the spices to the skillet after the onions have softened and then you’d continue to cook the spices and onions for about two minutes more to toast the spices. You could potentially add some chickpeas, but I think the texture and contrast to the pasta would be strange.
Really good! I food processed a cup of cottage cheese and added that at the end as well for some extra protein and creaminess.
Amazing recipe, it tasted so good, this will become a part of our meal rotation.
Hi
One of the best things I’ve ever made! I decided to go with pre-made cajun seasoning to save some money, and couldn’t find the fire foasted tomatoes so used regular diced tomatoes. Also left out the onion but it came out absolutely delicious!
I was away from home for a few days after making it and kept fantasizing about the leftovers lol. It was also very easy! Thank you!!!!!
I doubled the recipe and it came out a little soupy. To fix it, after the pasta was fully cooked I strained the remaining liquid and reduced it in a separate pot until it was thicker, then added it back with the cream cheese. It turned out well!
I love this recipe. It’s so simple, easy to follow, and delicious. I think it tastes better without the cream cheese though
This recipe is everything I hoped it would be, absolutely delicious and easy to make <3 Love it!
Can you use boneless skinless chicken thighs instead of breast?
Yes, you could do that. :)
I have made this dish at least 20 times. Simply amazing.
Cream, cheese, and half-and-half are both dairy. Any recommendations for substitute for dairy?
Unfortunately, since this recipe is so dairy heavy, substituting both would create a lot of changes in both the flavor and texture. We’d need to do a lot of testing and reformulating before being able to offer a good substitution.
Can you provide the serving size in grams? I weigh my food, so I need to determine how much I need to weigh to get the macros that are in this recipe.
Hi Carl, Unfortunately, we cannot provide the weight in grams.
Could you provide the mass in grams?
Hi Berty, I wish we could but unfortunately, we cannot.
My, my, this looks totally delicious!! I have plans for this weekend’s meals, but wait until next week gets here!! :)
It’s a great tasting dish. I added sliced turkey smoked sausage along with the chicken and it was great. Used half and half instead of cream cheese. I wondering if I could use a different pasta. Linguine or bow tie ?
Yes, you can definitely use a different shape pasta if you prefer. :) Shorter shapes, like bowtie, are usually a little easier with one pot cooking methods like this.
So I couldn’t wait to try this recipe and gathered the ingredients together except I used premixed cajun seasoning, because I forgot to buy thyme and I didn’t have a lot of “time”. I generally try to stick to a recipe for the first try. I realized I had 1.5 lbs of chicken and I didn’t want to save the .5 lb. I added a little additional seasoning, butter, oil to make up for the difference as I did with the pasta and the chicken stock. A little too much extra pasta, so I decided to add an additional can of fire roasted tomatoes and cream cheese. When I went to taste it, I realized, I had bought fire roasted Rotel, lol. It is very spicy, but still so delicious!!! Thank you for the recipe!!!!
Hi, I really hate cream cheese and I’m wondering if substituting it for regular marble cheese would work just as well? Thank you
Marble cheese probably won’t melt into the sauce quite the same way as cream cheese, unfortunately.
I can’t wait to make this tonight! My previous question was answered, thank you, I wanted to know if this can be made ahead of time and reheated?
Hi Christine! Yes, this can be made ahead and reheated, but the pasta will absorb some of the sauce. Portion and reheat in a microwave until steaming, or keep in the pan and warm on the stove.
Thank you!
Hi! My daughter doesn’t like canned tomatoes, can I substitute tomato sauce and how much? Thank you
Hi Christine, you can sub tomato sauce in a 1:1 ratio. xoxo -Monti
I just tried this for the first time and loved it! I doubled the recipe and made it in a big pot, and it came out quite a bit soupier than the pictures. If you’re doubling the recipe, I recommend not covering the pot during the simmer step, and use higher stove temperatures in general.
Made it just now and it tastes great! Easy to make as well. Do you have any recommendations if we wanted to add any more veggies? Thank you!
I think almost any veggie would work- especially cauliflower, kale, mushrooms, or sweet potatoes. However, I would cook the veggies separately and add them in at the end. Depending on the veggie, they will either absorb or release moisture and fuss with results. xoxo -Monti
Thanks! Will try next time for sure!
Delicious! Our whole family loved this recipe!
Hi!
Im planning on making this tonight, Just wondering if it’s better to cook the noodles before I add it to the sauce?
What if I wanted to do Cajun steak instead of chicken, how does that change the way the recipe is made?
You’ll probably want to sear the steak first, then remove it from the skillet. Prepare the rest of the dish without the steak in the skillet, then just slice it and add it in at the end, otherwise, it will likely overcook and become tough.
Another winning recipe! :) I made as directed except more onion powder instead of diced onions. The pasta cooked fully, the sauce became thick after I removed the lid and simmered another 2 minutes, I was worried about the tomatoes because I’m not a huge fan of chunky tomatoes but they cooked down and worked perfectly.
Fabulous! I had no inspiration for dinner then fell upon this recipe…thank you! I added a couple handfuls of frozen small sweet peas near the end, I mean, a little extra veg can’t hurt 😏
Hello,
Love how easy this meal is. One thing. I like my sauce a bit thicker. I added cornstarch but it had an aftertaste. Is there anything I can do to make the sauce thicker?
Hi Gabrielle- Try doubling the cream cheese and adjusting the seasoning to taste. This isn’t a tested method, so we can’t guarantee results, but it’s worth a shot.
I don’t know what to say other than this is FIRE. No notes.
If you want to take it to the next level, we got a rotisserie chicken and pulled the meat off and put the bones in a pot with some vegetables to make our own chicken broth. The meat from the chicken went into the final dish.
Hello, this sounds delicious! Do you have any suggestions for a version that substitutes the chicken breast with chicken sausage?
Hi Vanessa, you can substitute the chicken breast with chicken sausage, pound for pound. As chicken sausage is already seasoned, I’d definitely decrease or even skip the seasoning. I can’t tell you how much seasoning to keep since I haven’t made it with chicken sausage. XOXO -Monti
Is this similar to premade Cajun seasoning. I’d like to use that instead of buying what I don’t have? And if it is how much would I use? Thanks
Hi Nancy, yes you could substitute a store-bought Cajun seasoning, just be careful about the salt content. You would want to use about 2 Tbsp Cajun seasoning, but if your blend has a high salt content that might end up being too much salt-wise.
Made this today too (and the Ricotta lemon cookies). This pasta dish is so delicious! Super easy to make, step by step, awesome. Thank you.
Question: I need to use gluten-free pasta and would cook it separately. How much chicken broth would you recommend for the chicken part with pasta being added afterwards?
Ooh, that’s really tough to say without testing it, unfortunately. The moisture from the canned tomatoes might be plenty, but then you’ll be missing a LOT of flavor from that broth. It will definitely turn out differently.
I will put some broth concentrate in it for flavor. :)
Thanks for that! I probably would’ve left it out.
So excited to try this! If I do it with shrimp instead, should I adjust the cooking time so as not to overcook the shrimp?
Yep, you can totally do this with shrimp with one simple modification. After cooking the shrimp in the skillet (just like the chicken) take the shrimp out and set it aside while you add all the other ingredients and simmer as usual. Then, after you’ve finished the pasta and creamy sauce, add the cooked shrimp back in at the end so it doesn’t overcook. :)
Hi. Great recipe. I have a comment, and it is not a criticism. More of a reflection on how times have changed. Not sure when the recipe was calculated, but I have just made it in March of 2023. Total cost for the recipe was not $9.41 as listed, but $26.00! Examples: a 15 oz tin of fire roasted diced tomatoes as not $1.00, I had to pay $4.99. 1 pound of chicken breast was $10.60 and even the 3 green onions, listed at $0.25 turned out to be half of a bunch of 6 that cost $2.89. I’m a crafty shopper and I surf a number of stores for good deals. Groceries are just through the roof here in Canada. I don’t regret making the dish, it was delicious, but what times we live in!!!
Yes, it is totally a sign of the times! We manually calculate the recipe costs based on what we spend at our local stores (in Nashville, Tenn.) at the time of publishing. Since this recipe was published back in 2018, the costs are likely much lower than what you would find in stores today. Since we have 1200+ recipes on the site, it’s impossible for our small team to keep them all updated to reflect current prices or account for fluctuations in prices for certain ingredients from region to region. Because of that, we created a super handy step-by-step tutorial to help people recalculate recipe costs on their own. We also have an article, “THE KEY BUDGET BYTING PRINCIPLES,” which gives some great tips on how to boost your buying potential at the grocery store. I hope you’ll check them out! ~ Marion :)
https://www.budgetbytes.com/how-to-calculate-recipe-costs/
https://www.budgetbytes.com/budget-byting-principles/
GIRRRRLLLLL!!!!!! My family absolutely L-O-V-E-D this!!!! I added a little more garlic and some cumin just because we love those spices !! And girl , my kids said I HAVE to make this at least 1 a week!! It’s delicious , creamy a little spicy which we love. Good job boo!! 😉 thank you for such an easy meal 💕
I LOVE making this recipe. I follow the directions exactly and I’ve never had a problem (and I make it a lot) My only wish is that it was easier to double. I would prefer to use the whole box of penne to have some leftovers—but my pan isn’t big enough. Beth, would I get the same results if I used a soup pot and just doubled it? I worry that the single pot recipes need to be followed exactly or else it won’t cook right.
You’re right to be cautious, but you should be able to double it just fine. I’d use a soup pot or a dutch oven instead. The only major difference is that it will take a bit longer for the mixture to come up to a boil. Otherwise, everything should take roughly the same amount of time. ~ Marion :)
We loved this! The only thing I did differently was I cooked the onions and chicken together with minced garlic and added some cumin to the spice mix. I didn’t remove the chicken mixture, I just added the rest of the ingredients and then brought to a boil. Delicious and very flavorful.
We loved the flavor but the pasta sauce didn’t thicken up…did I do something wrong?
It’s hard to say…but I’d guess the heat was a little too low once you turned it down, which means the sauce wasn’t able to reduce properly. ~ Marion :)
Amazing! I love a one pot meal on a weeknight. It tasted like a restaurant pasta, so good!
I made this recipe and I ended up on the toilet for 4 days with explosive diarrhea. I don’t recommend this recipe to anyone. It is so– wait, no, please NOOO, I think I have to poop again!!
That’s your own doing, not the recipe
Idiot…..you just okay the victim for life in general
Just had a go tonight! Ça c’est bon. Will make again. So easy to throw together and only had one dish to clean!
By the book the sauce doesn’t thicken or cook down very well. Also doesn’t have that big smack of flavor you get with some cajun pastas.
There are better spice mixes out there, the proportions were off here and some ingredients were not present (*cough* cumin *cough* coriander). Either way I suggest doubling whatever spice you use, and adding it not only to the chicken as directed, but also to the chicken broth, and a little again with the cream cheese. It also doesn’t hurt to throw some minced garlic & hot chili pepper in with the onion.
I like a creamy sauce and next time I’ll try a roux or heavy cream instead of cream cheese, but it’s good as it is. I might also mess with other flavors – maybe a bouillon cube, a bay leaf, and some liquid smoke.
This one’s going in my rotation! Thanks for sharing!
i’ve make this mayhaps once every month, IT IS BUSSIN!
Okay this dish is DELICIOUS! Due to the presence of a teenage boy with an insane appetite I doubled the pasta and chicken but kept everything else as written. The result? A creamy, spicy, and hearty meal the entire family loved. 10/10 will make again, thank you for the wonderful recipe!
Loved it! I doubled the spices, used a clove of fresh garlic with the onion. Switched the diced for crushed fire roasted tomatoes. The crushed spreads better over the pasta and chicken.
It was Meh. I used to make a great creamy cajun pasta years ago, but I lost the recipe.
There are ways to make this a Creamer dish that involves making a rue and using heavy Creamer. Kinda like an alfredo but Cajun. It will do in a pinch, but I’m still searching for my recipe in the mean time.
Sounds kind of like the recipe for Cajun pasta on Natasha’s Kitchen website?
it’s kind of like cajun pasta isn’t that unique and the recipes wouldn’t be that different
It’s roux
I’m at best an inexperienced cook, at worst a bad cook. This meal was really easy to make and was even more delicious than it looked, and it looks really good. I did substitute the diced tomatoes for a can of Rotel with green chillies which I believe probably adds more of a spice kick, and it was wonderful.
Made this but added grated parmesan. It was amazing and the sauce came together well with the extra cheese. But I might just like cheese a lot
This was outstanding!! I first tasted this at a local restaurant earlier this week and resolved to make it myself. Chose your recipe as the one most likely to be the best. It was better than the restaurant’s version by far. Thank goodness I have leftovers!
The seasonings don’t cook well with all the liquids put into it. Very bland and white
You’re supposed to cook them on the chicken in butter and oil first. The spices get dark that way and the sauce is very much *not* white when you let the spices blacken in the oil.
Delicious! Thank you so much for the recipe. We mixed in more cooked penne
And the sauce mixed nicely. I used half the cayenne and half and it was mild but a tiny kick. Wonderful!
We love this recipe! Have made it at least a half dozen times as written. If you’re looking for a meat free option, sautéed baby Bella mushrooms work GREAT.
Amazing!!! Just made it…..home run!! Easy, simple, yummy!! I did add spinach at the end which was a great addition. Thanks!!
Needed something quick to make for dinner. This will be a new go to!
Followed the recipe and no one cared for it. Flop!
came out great! I added a bit of garam masala and turmeric to the Cajun seasoning and added cayenne at the end bc it wasn’t very spicy. Overall really good. Btw it definitely tastes Cajun and not Italian!!
Tweaked a few things because of personal preferences. I don’t like tomatoes so left them out and I added an additional 14.5 ounces of chicken broth. I also added a whole box of penne pasta because it’s pasta and pasta = life. It turned out great and will make again. We loved the underhanded heat of spice level and filled our bellies and satisfied our taste buds. Love that it comes together in one pot.
This was delicious and I had fun making it! I had a ton of the substitutes in my fridge and was actually experimenting! Excellent recipe for people who are nervous cooks! I added some extra spices and different tomatoes that I had on hand! :) Also love the set up of this site!
If I wanted to substitute Cajun seasoning for the individual ingredients, about how much would I need to start with? There are roughly 6 teaspoons of ingredients, which equals 2 tablespoons (if my math is correct!). Would that be too much?
thanks
That’s correct! But one thing to look out for: many store-bought Cajun seasoning blends contain a lot of salt, so you’ll be heavily salting the dish if you add 2 Tbsp. Make sure to use an unsalted Cajun seasoning blend. :)
Such an easy and fast recipe. This is perfect for a weeknight. We added 2 celery and a green bell pepper diced. It lacks heat, so I recommend more cayenne. A great way to use up leftover Turkey or chicken.
I used cavatappi pasta. I was in a pinch of ingredients so I used onions, peppers and tomatoes sautéed in butter and olive oil with Cajun season. I used a roaster chicken I grabbed at the store. Mixed broccoli and parmesan cheese.
Definitely will make again. But for us, we would use less pasta coz we like our pasta a little sauce. It was dry coz the pasta absorbed a lot of the sauce.
I double the cream cheese and a little less salt, added a shredded cheese mix… this was SO good! I’m going to try subbing pasta for cauliflower next time.
The sauce as followed was missing a little something for me but I added some cream in addition to the two ounces of cream cheese and a cap full of shaker Parmesan and it was delicious! (Also did some sliced green bell peppers instead of the green onions, highly recommend for some crunch)
I thought this was good. Used what I had on hand I used onion powder in place of onion and crushed tomato’s in place of fire roasted tomatoes and rigatoni and added mushrooms.
Way too much smoked paprika, very soupy too
This recipe was outstanding! Loved being able to cook the pasta in this one-pan meal!
I’ve made this several times, no changes to the recipe and we absolutely love it. It is definitely a staple in our house.
I just had a question — if I had some leftover rotisserie chicken I wanted to use up, could I use that in this recipe and I would I have change anything? Would I have to add it later on or still follow recipe as is?
Hello Beth,
Love the site and all your recipes. Lately I’ve noticed that the text is over lapping on my android phone making it impossible for me to read your content.
Is there any way you can fix this?
Thx!
Hi! I just sent you an email. SO sorry this is happening and would love to figure out a solution ASAP. We need screenshots to send to our tech folks. XOXO -Monti
Try adjusting your zoom
Not our favorite recipe. Perhaps too much paprika for us and it was definitely missing something. The recipe was easy to make and it makes a lot (unfortunate for us because nearly all of it went in the trash).
I totally understand where you’re coming from. I had the same thing happen. Spent money and time on this recipe and it didn’t even smell good once it was done. I don’t know if it was just the cream cheese or if I put too much noodles in it but it smelt kind of weird and my kid didn’t like it and I tried a bite and I didn’t think it was too bad but I didn’t take up a bowl myself. The whole pot of it went into the trash. :(
Super delicious! I like spicier food so I added more cayenne pepper and red pepper flakes. I also added more salt. I think next time I’ll try this with hot spicy sausage as well as the chicken. Definitely keeping this in my rotation! Thanks!
I’ve made this a few times, and it’s always a hit. Sometimes I use chicken, sometimes I use sausage or shrimp. Sometimes I use all 3. I often add fresh spinach or kale (if I have it on hand), and it really compliments this recipe. This is a favorite in my house, and it always stays on the rotation. It’s budget friendly, fast and delicious.
Hi Giovanna, I imagine spinach can be added at the very end to just wilt. When you add the kale-when do you do it and is it already cooked somehow or raw when you add? Thank you!
You also want to add kale right at the end to wilt. It will take a few extra minutes to soften than spinach and will continue to keep a lot of its texture. ~ Marion :)
I used 8lbs of penne instead of the half lb you recommended. Ate it all raw then combined the Cajun seasoning with the chicken broth and drank it. I’m just built different. 10/10 would make this recipe again.
Fritz- let me know how your anus was after you did all that.
Thanks for the tip! Definitely gonna try this! 😂
LMAOOO YO-
Can you freeze this?
Yes. Freeze in individual portions, with plastic wrap covering the top surface of the portion so air cannot affect it. XOXO -Monti
This recipe is perfect as-is. Really, I don’t change a single thing when I make this. The first time I made it, my husband and I ate the whole thing, just between the two of us. Creamy, not too spicy, and a great flavor profile to add to our rotation.
I had some chicken thighs already cooked and seasoned but needed something quick and easy.. I also used fettuccine as my little like “slurpy” noodles best. As others mentioned, I needed a little extra cream cheese to achieve maximum creaminess, but was delicious. Definitely making again! Budget Bytes never lets me down!!
This was so freaking delicous!!! I added a bit more cream cheese because I wanted extra creaminess. It came out perfect and it smells so good.
Hi! I’m making this tonight as a casserole for a couple who just had a baby. Do you think your spice mix (which looks yummy and totally good as is) could be easily replaced with a Cajun seasoning mix such as Tony Chacheres or Old Bay?
Go for it! XOXO -Monti
It’s so hot just now in Michigan, but m’people still want fed dinner (ha ha) So I turned to my fav, Budget Bytes, and thought a one-pot meal may get the job done. As is often the case with your recipes, I had everything on hand and didn’t heat up the house making this creamy cajun chicken pasta (whoot!)
We read some of the reviews, but other than pasta…we can’t figure out how some folk found the flavor profile “italian.” We all gobbled it all up and proclaimed it yummo! Do you think a cup and a half of basmati rice could be tossed in to this, rather than pasta at the point of simmer?
This dish was good; but I added my own twist to it by adding smoke sausage and shrimp, and I cut some of the sodium.
This is a great recipe and loved it was quick and easy to make. It did seem to taste a little bit Italian but I quick sear andouille sausage slices and throw it in also. We love it with the chicken and sausage and helps give a little extra cajun flavor. I usually have to add more cream cheese to thicken the sauce also.
I found the measuring units difficult to interpret as we use grams in England.
This recipe is quite spicy.
Hi Marina! Thanks for being here. Feel free to use an online measurement converter to help with all of the math. This one works well: https://www.inchcalculator.com/convert/cup-to-gram/ XOXO -Monti
What a great dish. My wife said this is something she would order in a restaurant. So rich of flavor, fun and easy to make. Well Done!!
Made this without the cream cheese due to an allergy, and it was still so delicious and flavorful!! Highly recommend, and loved that it was one pot.
Absolutely smashing. Cook it on a regular basis with some toasted Ciabbata bread and garlic butter. The other half wants it to be cooked all week if she could.
Really nice recipe, son and husband both had seconds they enjoyed it so much. Definitely one to keep, maybe try it for a lunch box recipe for my son and daughter.
Will the pasta come out al dente enough to freeze and reheat well without getting too soft?
Just make sure to pull it BEFORE it’s al dente.
It’s really good! It’s in the rotation of meals. The creaminess of the cream cheese makes this wonderful along with the spices and fire roasted tomatoes.
Great recipe but my only wonder was where was the Cajun flavor? It tasted more Italian than anything. My husband came home from work and asked where the pizza was. All I could taste was the tomatoes.
Looking forward to giving this recipe a try. It looks awesome and I love cajun spices. I had my daughter take a look at this recipe also and she agrees….we can’t wait to try it! Thanks so much.
Not really a lot of Cajun flavour but it was yummy and the husband liked it a lot. 😅 Served it with parmigiana and a simple butter lettuce salad. Thank you. I’ll make it again. Also I used dark meat instead of white chicken.
Cheers 🥂
This is spicy and delicious even with some adjustments. I used andouille sausage instead of chicken and then realized I didn’t have any broth. So, I used a cup of coconut milk and 1 cup of water for the broth. I added sliced green and red peppers and some shredded carrots to get more veggies. Our house likes spicy so this was a hot!
My husband and I both loved this recipe! We had all of the ingredients in our pantry, and it was a great use of fire roasted tomatoes and cream cheese that I didn’t know how to use up. I added some mushrooms and red bell peppers, and next time think I will add some spinach as well. Thanks for all of your work in creating these recipes!
So, what…..? A potentially negative comment about your recipe doesn’t deserve to be read by your “groupies” ?
Shame on you
Now you are saying I’ve made this comment previously…..NO, I don’t think so…I haven’t submitted the above comment before. I did submit a comment on the healthy aspects of the recipe, or rather the UNhealthy aspects. But, you did not see fit to post that comment.
AGAIN, SHAME on you.
All first-time comments are held in moderation until we can review them to make sure they’re not spam or bots. Once you have one comment approved, you can post additional comments without them being held for moderation. It has nothing to do with the content of your comment.
You know, comments like this on a great website can be kept to yourself. It’s so easy to be mean behind a keyboard. Be kind. We’re talking about RECIPES here.
All of the recipes I’ve read from your site sound great. I’m a more senior woman than you. And I am a old Southern woman, having grown up in the south with all that encompasses regarding food, cooking, and traditions. AND I have had the unique experiences of being Greek AND living in New Orleans for a large hunk of time. My experiences bring a special set of skills and “taste buds” to the kitchen. I would like to know if you have thought about making your recipes a little more health conscious ? You can save money, have great tasting meals, AND have a reduction of fats and carbs.
I can reduce things on my own, but, younger cooks may not have those skills. There is absolutely nothing wrong in making your recipes every now and then….BUT, a steady stream of your suggestions will not be heart friendly after a while .Just a thought.
Hi CB, I try not to offer advice on health since the definition of healthy is very subjective and we all have different health goals. What one person considers a healthy ingredient swap may not be healthy for a different person. Instead, I try to offer very basic recipes that users can modify to meet their own nutritional needs. :)
Hello – Will be trying this recipe tonight, all I have is chicken stock, would that be an ok substitute ?
Thank you
Yes, that will work. :)
So easy and very flavorful!! Amazing recipe!! I LOVE one pot meals and this one does not disappoint!!
Husband this a huge thumbs up. I say it’s absolutely delicious. We used gluten free pasta so I could binge on this meal. The pasta took longer and with more water (likely because it was gluten free?) but everything else was spot on. We added small amount of andouille sausage with the chicken. This recipe will go into the rotation for sure. Thank you!
A+!!! Added some bell pepper and mushrooms to up the veg. Tasty and easy clean-up. Coworkers asked for the recipe after heating up my lunch leftovers. Yum!
First time making this dish. This recipe is soooo good!!!! The only things I changed were the noodles and tomatoes. Instead of penne pasta I used tri-color rotini and instead of the fire roasted diced tomatoes I used a can of Rotel because that was all I had in the pantry. But it turned out great!! I will definitely be making this again!
This is my FAVORITE pasta dish! So good and so easy to make.
Can u freeze it?
I haven’t tried freezing this particular one, but I bet it would freeze fairly well.
This was amazing! I made it vegan, using plant-based chicken and cream cheese, and it turned out to be exactly what we were looking for in a weekend meal: easy, satisfying, and seemingly decadent. This will definitely be in our regular rotation.
Delicious recipe! While it’s super convenient it cooks in one pan, if you’re hoping to have it for leftovers you’ll find that the pasta has soaked up majority of the sauce the next day. I’m not a fan of that, so I reduced the amount of chicken broth to a 1/2 cup so I could cook the sauce and pasta separately. It was still a tad bit soupy, so I’ll probably try a 1/3 of a cup the next time I make it. I can always add more if it winds up too thick.
I just found your site recently, and this is the first recipe I made. Wow this is delicious! Super flavorful. Will definitely be making more!
If I’m already using cooked chicken that I already have, how do use the Cajun seasoning?
I would sauté the onions first, then add the seasoning and sauté for a minute or so more before moving on to the next step. :)
Hi,
If you’re using Cajun seasoning sold from the store instead of making it from scratch like the original recipe, how much Cajun seasoning would you recommended adding?
Probably about 2 Tbsp, but make sure to check if your seasoning contains salt. A lot of them are more like a seasoning salt and if you add 2 Tbsp it will be way too salty.
If you use the green can of Tony’s it will probably be too salty but I used the orange can of Louisiana Cajun seasoning (my favorite) and it turned out delish!!
very good , would make again!
I made my own little adjustments. I used heavy cream and grated parmesan instead of cream cheese, Italian sausage instead of chicken and I bought Cajun seasoning as opposed to making my own. I also live in the Bahamas so things costed slightly more but overall I still paid less than $25 for everything. This turned out amazing. It tasted great and because I live alone, the meal can last me a few days once stored properly.
Those are more than little adjustments…
This one is really good. I cooked the chicken separate so that my vegeterian wife could eat the pasta without the chicken. And I used vegetable bouillon base. For those in the family that eat meat, we mixed that in at the end. I split the spice mix between the chicken and the pasta mix. All came out great. Thank you!
This was so good! I modified it a bit since I had some Cajun seasoning on hand and I used andouille sausage and rotisserie chicken to cut down some time , but overall it was delicious and quick. If you have a little extra money it’s definitely work using some cherry tomatoes instead of the canned tomatoes or if you want a little extra spice, rotel chili works really well in this recipe. I make this dish regularly and I rarely have leftovers.
Love love love this recipe…made it a ciple times last year and again today. I double everything for my big boys and hubby, but its a fav for any busy mom. Quick, easy, tasty. Love it. Sometimes I add sausage or shrimp…but I love this recipe so much!
Delicious. Only adjustments were half a can of fire-roasted tomatoes instead of the full. Perfect texture, and I actually could have used a little more liquid from that other half-can (then just reduced a bit more). Great recipe… will absolutely make again!
This was fantastic. It will be going into the rotation, thank you! I didn’t have fire roasted tomatoes so used tomato sauce. Added chopped roasted red pepper. After ten minutes of covered simmer, remove cover and increase heat for about five minutes, stirring often. Zero soupiness. I added in a few splashes of cream with the cream cheese. Topped with Parmesan. It was fantastic. I think people have to be mindful of ratios in these types of dishes – I’m an experienced cook but I weighed everything for this and it’s the correct ratio.
Absolutely fantastic! Only made it once so far, but seriously can’t wait to make it again. And the fact that it’s just one pot, and quick to put together, makes it an super easy and super delicious weeknight meal. I was kind of worried the first time around that the pasta wouldn’t cook, but I used just enough chicken broth to barely cover the pasta, covered the pot, and stirred frequently, until the pasta was just about there. Then removed the lid and continued to simmer until the liquid reduced by about half (so no need for cornstarch as others mentioned to thicken the sauce)… added in the cream cheese (a bit of heavy whipping cream because it was in the fridge, and a bit of Parmesan because why not). This is now on my permanent wintertime rotation!!!
The best dish I’ve cooked in a long time sooo tasty thank you so much
Any thoughts how to make this with leftover pre-cooked chicken? I thought I would start by sauteing the onion, mixing the chicken with the cajun blend, and adding to the chicken to the onion after a couple of minutes.
I’d probably sauté the onion and about halfway through cooking that, add all the spices. Then continue with adding everything else (chicken, pasta, tomatoes, broth, etc.).
I would just sauté your peppers and onions, then add the garlic and sauté for about a minute then add the chicken in with your remaining ingredients to keep it from getting too dry. This is how I do it if I use meat from a cold rotisserie chicken.