Everyone will love Cajun Shrimp Pasta! It’s a great dinner idea that’s irresistibly flavorful and easy to make.
Here’s an impressive dinner that also doubles as an easy weeknight dinner: give it a try Cajun Shrimp Noodles! This scores with the children and adults at our table. It features irresistibly seasoned Cajun shrimp, colorful veggies, and a rich, garlicky parmesan flavor that lightly spices up the entire batch. Wow! was repeated several times around the table while we were there. Of all the easy dinner ideas we’ve come up with lately, this recipe stands out because we couldn’t stop eating!
Ingredients of this Cajun Shrimp Pasta
This Cajun Shrimp Pasta is a recipe inspired by the flavors of Cajun cuisine, a cooking style pioneered by the Acadians, French settlers who lived in Canada and were deported to Louisiana in the 18th century. The cooking style combines influences and West African, French and Spanish techniques. This recipe should not be viewed as traditional Cajun, instead taking inspiration from the spices and ingredients used in this style of cooking. Here’s what you need:
- shrimp: fresh or frozen, deveined and tailless
- Onion, Pepper and Celery: is called the “holy trinity” of Cajun cuisine
- Garlic
- Cajun Spice: homemade or store bought plus garlic powder and onion powder
- pasta
- butter
- parmesan cheese
- cream (or milk
Cajun Seasoning: Homemade vs Store-bought
You can make this Cajun Shrimp Pasta recipe with homemade or store-bought Cajun seasoning. Here are some notes on both variants:
- house spice: The beauty of this homemade Cajun seasoning is that you can adjust the seasoning level to your liking. We like to make it less spicy, which means you can use more of it and get more of the other flavors (not just the spiciness). It only takes 5 minutes to mix and you can use it for months.
- Purchased Cajun Seasoning: Store-bought Cajun seasoning is great when you’re in a hurry! We do realize that store-bought varieties can vary in spiciness, so taste them before adding them. As you will see in the recipe below, we reduced the amount and added garlic powder and onion powder. If you use our house mix, you can omit this.
Using the amounts in the recipe below, both worked for our whole family: even a 4-year-old! If you want to increase the spiciness, add more cayenne pepper to your spice mix.
A softer variant!
Don’t like spicy food but still want to make that Cajun Shrimp Pasta? Homemade Cajun seasoning is a great place to start — whip it up with a small amount of cayenne pepper and you’ve got a flavorful pasta that any eater will love.
Other option? Try this blackened spice! It has similar flavors but is on the lower end of the heat spectrum.
Increase the servings of Cajun Shrimp Pasta
Want to make a double recipe of this Cajun Shrimp Pasta? The basic recipe only has 8 ounces of pasta, which should make 4 servings when served with sides. But if you’re looking to expand this recipe for more eaters, we recommend the following:
- Double the pasta to 1 pound
- Double the vegetable and pasta seasonings
- Increase shrimp to 2 pounds. (Step 3): 2 pounds of shrimp should be enough for 8 servings. Depending on the size of your pan, you may need to cook it in batches.
Of course, you can cook 3 pounds of shrimp if you like: but 2 pounds should be enough for a double-noodle-sized crowd.
What to serve with Cajun Shrimp Pasta
Make sure to serve this Cajun Shrimp Pasta with savory sides to top off the meal! Here are some supplemental side dishes that we recommend:
This Cajun Shrimp Pasta recipe is…
pescetarian. For gluten-free pasta, use gluten-free or legume-based pasta.
The description
Everyone will love Cajun Shrimp Pasta! It’s a great dinner idea that’s irresistibly flavorful and easy to make.
- 8 ounces* short pasta, such as penne, rigatoni or casarecce (gluten-free on request)
- 1/2 medium yellow or white onion
- 1 large red peppers
- 2 celery sticks
- 4 Garlic cloves
- 1 1/2 Pounds medium shrimp, deveined and thawed if frozen (tail or peeled)
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, shared
- 2 teaspoons store-bought Cajun seasoning (or 1½ tablespoons Homemade Cajun Seasoning or Blackened Seasoning**)
- ½ teaspoon every garlic powder and onion powder
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, divided
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons whole milk or cream
- Lemon wedges, optional
- Fresh parsley for garnish (optional)
- Start the noodles: Cook pasta in salted water al dente.
- Prepare the vegetables: Finely chop the onion, thinly slice the peppers, finely chop the celery and place in a bowl. Chop the garlic and place in a separate bowl.
- Fry shrimp: Meanwhile, dry the shrimp. In a medium bowl, toss the shrimp with ½ tsp kosher salt, Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, and onion powder. In your largest skillet (preferably cast iron or stainless steel) heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and cook, turning with tongs, until opaque and cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes on each side. Once cooked, transfer to a bowl, cover and set aside. Leave the browned pieces in the pan.
- Fry the vegetables: In the same pan you used to cook the shrimp, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat and add the peppers, onion, and celery. Simmer for about 3 minutes until the vegetables are soft. Reduce heat to medium-low and add the garlic and cook for another 2-3 minutes, until fragrant and the garlic is just beginning to brown. Remove from the heat before the garlic turns brown. Add the butter and let it melt until you get the noodles.
- Mix with pasta and sauce: When the noodles are done, drain. To the skillet with the vegetables, add the pasta, ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt, grated Parmesan, and cream or milk. Mix until well combined, then add the shrimp. Sprinkle with a lemon wedge, if desired. Taste and add additional seasonings if needed. Serve hot, garnish with chopped parsley if desired.
Remarks
*To scale this recipe up for more servings, we recommend making 1 pound of pasta, but up to 2 pounds for the shrimp (not 3). You can double the vegetable and sauce ingredients accordingly.
**If using the homemade Cajun seasoning, you can omit the garlic powder and onion powder in this recipe. For a less spicy twist, use less cayenne in your homemade Cajun seasoning or make a homemade blackened seasoning.
- Category: main course
- Method: Cook
- Kitchen: Cajun inspired
Keywords: Cajun Shrimp Noodles
