This post may contain affiliate links. See our disclosure policy.
This Creamy Cajun Shrimp Pasta was inspired by a favorite New Orleans dish. The creamy sauce with the slightly spicy, buttery shrimp is to die for!
Featured with this recipe
This flavorful Cajun Shrimp Pasta recipe combines the bold and exciting taste of Cajun spices with a rich and velvety cream sauce. The creamy sauce perfectly coats succulent shrimp, creating a dish that is both comforting and delicious. The colorful red pepper and fragrant basil adds a pop of freshness. Don’t miss out on experiencing the perfect blend of creamy indulgence and fiery flavors in this Creamy Cajun Shrimp Pasta recipe!
This Cajun Shrimp Pasta reminds me of the delicious food we ate in New Orleans last fall. There are so many yummy Cajun/Creole recipes that are unique to that area that I am dying to learn how to cook. I keep kicking myself that I didn’t buy a cookbook while I was there. I am just going to have to go back!
Ingredients
- Raw shrimp – remove shells, tails, and veins
- Cajun seasoning – Tony Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning is the best!
- Butter
- Red pepper – chopped
- Minced garlic
- Heavy cream
- Grated Parmesan cheese
- Basil
- Pepper
- Linguine – cooked al dente
Check Shrimp for Freshness
- Fresh shrimp should smell clean. Refrain from shrimp that smells of ammonia.
- At the fish market, fresh shrimp should be stored in or on ice.
- If you purchase frozen shrimp, avoid shrimp that was peeled and deveined prior to freezing. The practice of cleaning the shrimp before freezing may cause a loss of flavor and texture.
- Be aware of leakage or frozen surface ice on frozen shrimp. These are signs that the shrimp has been defrosted and refrozen and should be avoided.
Cooked Shrimp vs. Raw Shrimp
There is a reason why we don’t use pre-cooked shrimp in this recipe. You’ll regret it if you do. Why? The shrimp will be overcooked and rubbery. Also, buying fresh or frozen is usually less expensive than buying pre-cooked shrimp. I found a great article on preparing and deveining frozen or fresh shrimp after I made the mistake of trying this recipe with pre-cooked shrimp. I’ve included some highlights here, but you can find more information and photos here at recipetips.com.
How to Prepare Shrimp
- “Refresh” frozen shrimp by soaking in salted water, 1 to 2 tablespoons of salt to 1 quart of water. The best way to keep shrimp fresh while preparing them is to keep them in ice water. Return the cleaned shrimp to the ice water until you are ready to cook them. Pat the shrimp dry with a paper towel before cooking.
- The black vein that runs along the back of shrimp is the digestive tract. Typically, whether veins are in or out, seldom is there a flavor difference unless the vein is large and contains a high volume of grit and digested material. It is removed more for the appearance than taste. The decision to remove the digestive tract is based on personal preference.
- Prepping shrimp can be as simple as rinsing them in fresh water. If the recipe calls for removing the head, gently pull of the head and discard. Most often, shrimp is purchased with the head already removed.
- To remove the shell, begin by holding the shrimp firmly and pulling off the legs.
- An alternative technique is to remove the legs at the same time the shell is removed. Using your thumbs, peel back the sides of the shrimps shell. Pluck away any legs that remain after the shell has been removed.
- Peel the shell away from the body. The tail of the shrimp can be removed at the same time by simply holding the body of the shrimp and pulling away the tail. The shell will come off with the tail. Removing the tail is optional.
- To devein the shrimp with a small utility knife, make a shallow cut down the back of the shrimp to expose the vein.
- Once the vein is exposed, pull the intestine out with the knife, a toothpick, or your fingers.
Tasty Additions
We’ve had some great suggestions from some of our readers on additions they have made to this Creamy Cajun Shrimp Pasta. Here are their tips:
- Add capers.
- If you like it spicier, use a red Fresno pepper instead of a red bell pepper.
- Use fresh cherry tomatoes as a garnish.
- Use chicken instead of shrimp.
- Garnish with parsley and oregano or a sprinkle of paprika.
- Add chopped onion sautéed in olive oil, or just a dash of onion powder (and garlic powder too, why not?!)
- Incorporate diced tomatoes while you are cooking, with the red pepper and garlic.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you are making Cajun shrimp pasta, something delicious to pair with it are sausages, specifically the andouille sausage – a Cajun andouille sausage is delicious, filled with Cajun spices and flavors that would pair well on the side or even sliced and put into your Cajun pasta. This adds protein to the pasta dish as well as gives it a kick.
Leftovers of this creamy Cajun shrimp pasta recipe will last in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
Read More: 35+ Quick and Easy To Follow Dinner Ideas Your Family Will Surely Love
More Favorite Recipes from New Orleans
We are big fans of the delicious flavors in New Orleans. We’ve made a bunch of delicious copycat recipes from our visits there. If you love the flavors of New Orleans as much as we do, you’ve got to try some of these recipes!
- Mini Beignets
- Mint Juleps
- Cajun Chicken Po’ Boys
- Pecan Pralines
- Creole Butter Shrimp
- Jambalaya
- Cajun Style Grill Foil Packets
- One Pot Jambalaya Pasta
- Red Beans and Rice
- Shrimp Po Boys with Creamy Cajun Sauce
Just for fun, I added some pics from our trip below the recipe to help you get in a “Nawlins” mood while cooking. There are a few fun pictures from our trip to New Orleans, such a beautiful and unique city full of great culture and music.
How to Make Creamy Cajun Shrimp Pasta
Creamy Cajun Shrimp Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound raw shrimp remove shells and veins
- 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning is the best!
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/4 cup red pepper chopped
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon basil
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 8 ounces linguine cooked al dente
Instructions
- Place thawed shrimp in a bowl. Coat the shrimp in Cajun seasoning.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and add the seasoned shrimp and sauté until shrimp begins to turn pink.
- Add the red pepper and minced garlic to the pan. Sauté another minute or two.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and add the cream, parmesan cheese, basil, and pepper and simmer for about 10 minutes.
- While sauce is simmering, prepare the linguine according to package instruction.
- Toss in the cooked pasta and stir to coat.
Notes
Nutrition Information
so yummy
The recipe is perfect as written, however I like to add a bit more garlic – maybe top with green onions. I’ve made this more than a dozen times ; my husband’s favorite! Thank you!
Can I substitute cream cheese or maybe even ricotta for the Parmesan? Not a fan of cheese but those two choices are tolerable in my household.
You could leave the cheese out, and it will still be fine. I think the cream cheese would be your best bet for a substitute if you decide to try it. Thanks for asking!
This was delicious! Next time I will quit at one helping because I’m stuffed! The only thing I did differently was cook the shrimp set aside then cooked red pepper and garlic and made sauce added shrimp back in with noddles and served! It was a hit at my house!
Just had Thanksgiving this week but dreaming of this yummy recipe. It’s my favorite!!
My favorite dinner ever! I made it for myself on Mother’s Day because I wanted this instead of something from my husband’s repertoire. Lol!
Thank you so much!!
I am a very picky eater and not the best cook. I made a New Year’s resolution to try to learn more dishes to make from scratch and not be dependent on prepard frozen foods. This was simply to make and turned out great. It was delicious and cant wait to make it again with chicken.
I love your New Year’s Resolution. Way to go! I’m so happy you liked the recipe!
I made this a few months back and i fell in love with it! I was trying to remake it this week and couldn’t remember the exact steps omg ive been searching all week for the recipe im glad i remember the ingredients i put them all in google search and binggg i finally found it again! This time I’ll remeber to write it down lol ????
What kind of cream did you use
Heavy whipping cream.. 😉
I add a few capers. To this recipe that give more flavor . an mix carrots. To the pasta. Use fresh cherry tomatoes for garnish
Yum, I’ll have to try that!
I love this recipe! So delicious and easy to make! xo
My boyfriend and I made this tonight and it was delicious. I also was unsure what the recipe meant by red pepper, so I went the spicier route. We decided to use red Fresno peppers which made this dish much spicier, but it turned out very good! This is definitely a recipe I will keep!!
We use a red bell pepper in this recipe, but I love the idea of using something with a little more heat in this dish. Thank you for sharing! So glad you like the recipe!
This was awesome, great taste and so easy to make. I did add a 1/2 cup of 7 blend Italian cheese with the parmesan and it was also great. Do you think this would work for chicken?
Yes, I have actually done it with chicken (my husband won’t eat shrimp) and it tastes great! 😀
If you’re going to cook the “Nawlins” way, then you need the “Bible” of Nawlins cookin’. You can get it here:
http://www.amazon.com/River-Road-Recipes-Textbook-Louisiana/dp/0961302682
Sounds like a cookbook I need to have – thank you for the recommendation!
I made this on Valentine’s Day for my boyfriend and he absolutely loved it, so did I !! It was so delicious! I will definitely be making this again. Thank you for this amazing recipe 🙂
So glad you liked it! It’s one of my favorites too!
This was SO YUMMY. Loved it!! I used half and half and thickened it alittle with corn starch. It was delicious!!!!
This sounds so yummy I can’t wait to make it I’ve been wanting to try to make Cajun pasta for the longest and this recipe seems nice and simple I may do chicken and shrimp in mine since everyone in my house loves shrimp except of my sister but I would like her to enjoy it too.
I made mine w both chicken and shrimp and it was delicious.I double the recipe,and at end of cooking,added a little pasta water because it looked a little drier than anticipated.Thanks so much Emily for a fast and easy Cajun recipe.
This sounds delicious! Maybe a dumb question, but what do you mean by red pepper? Red bell pepper? I thought red pepper flakes but it says chopped.
Thank you!
yes, an actual red bell pepper.
That was not a dumb question at all! Thank you so much for asking, I was wondering the same thing, so it saved me a lot of time and hassle just being able to get the answer in the comments. Making this recipe now, can’t wait to try it!
Excellent meal for the whole family! Everyone had seconds, including my picky children. Added some cornstarch mixed with cold water at the end in order to make the sauce more creamy and less liquid-y. Also, didn’t have any parmesan on hand so I substituted with Havarti — turned out awesome!
Hi haven’t tried it yet plan to cook it this weekend sounds yummy going to use polish sausages with shrimp thanks for the recipe
This was Mother’s Day dinner tonight and was delicious!
This was delicious! I added some chopped red onion to the vegetables, used olive oil instead of butter and chopped green onion on top for garnish. My friend wants me to make it again for her husband to try as she knows he will love it. Thanks for a great recipe.
This looks delicious! Do you think I could use whole milk as a substitute for the cream if I don’t have any available?
Thanks!
That would probably be fine, it won’t be as creamy but a little more healthy. 🙂
I often sub fat-free half and half for cream very successfully — gonna give it a shot here….can’t wait…….have some Cajun-flavor lovin’ folks in this house!
I just reduced this recipe and made it as a small one-person lunch for myself & it was the easiest most delicious and satisfying lunch! So easy to make, and more delicious than a plain ham & cheese sandwich! My husband took a bite of mine and asked me if I’d make twice as much for him for lunch! I’d say a success
My husband loves to order cajun pastas when we go out to eat so I don’t know why I’ve tried to make one before. He LOVED this recipe. We ended up using chicken because I didn’t have shrimp, but we definitely need to make it again with the shrimp. Great recipe!
My husband was crazy about it too! So glad you guys like it!
THe hubs looooves shrimp, maybe this should be for father’s DAY!!