Saturday, January 1, 2011

Cajun Chicken Pasta

This version is better than my cajun chicken pasta.  It's really yummy! I modified it a bit, but here is where I got the recipe: http://anediblesymphony.blogspot.com/2010/05/boston-and-rees-cajun-chicken-pasta.html

Ingredients:
1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 lb spaghetti pasta
3+ tsp Cajun Spice seasoning (I just kept adding and tasting as I went along)
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
1 green capsicum, sliced
1 red capsicum, sliced
1 brown onion, sliced
3 tsp minced garlic
4 small tomatoes, diced
3/4 cup chicken broth

1/2 cup white wine
1 cup heavy cream

1 T cornstarch mixed with a bit of warm water
1 tsp cayenne pepper / chili powder
Freshly ground black pepper
Salt
Chopped parsley for garnish

What you do:

1. Sprinkle 2 tsp of the cajun spice mix over the chicken pieces, then toss to coat. Heat 1 tbsp of butter and 1 tbsp of the oil in a pan and brown the chicken over high heat. Remove from the pan and set aside.  You can also start cooking your pasta now too. 

2. Add the remaining oil and butter into the same pan, then sauté the capsicums, onion, and garlic with more cajun seasoning, along with some salt. Do this over high heat because you want the veggies to really caramelize and start to get dark (flavor!).


3. Add tomatoes and cook for an additional 30 secs. Pour in the chicken stock and wine now, scraping the bottom of the pan to get all the sticky bits incorporated into the sauce. Cook for 5-10 mins.


4. Reduce heat to medium-low and pour in the cream. Keep whisking the saucing, and sprinkling in the spices per your taste. A dash more salt, lots of black pepper, and some chili powder too. 


5. Add the chicken back, and continue to stir the sauce until the whole thing reaches a consistency you like - I just wait for the sauce to be able to coat the back of my wooden spoon. 
I added in the corn starch mixture to thicken everything up.  

6. Cook your pasta per the instructions on the box. Drain it and add it directly into the pan with the sauce. Turn off the heat, then toss the pasta, coating it completely with that awesome sauce. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.

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