Cajun Chicken Pasta

* This is a sponsored post for The Queen of Quark *
Spice up your usual creamy pasta dishes with a simple Cajun twist. This Cajun Chicken Pasta is ready in under 30 minutes and low in fat too thanks to using Quark to make a delicious creamy sauce. The perfect quick and easy weeknight meal, and a great way to celebrate World Quark Day too.

We are all about a creamy pasta dish when we want something comforting and this Cajun Chicken Pasta ticks all the boxes, with the added bonus of having a bit of spice to it too. We have made this with salmon instead of chicken, which makes it a bit quicker to cook, and even done a veggie version. Something for everyone!

The inspiration for this recipe comes from a trip to New Orleans a few years ago, where they are ALL about the Cajun food. I can't even begin to tell you how good the food there was, but this was one of the stand out dishes.

Crunchy, creamy, hearty and comforting. Everything you could want in a meal.

Ingredients needed

Step by Step

One: Add the pasta to a pan of boiling water and simmer for 12 minutes.

Two: Put the chicken on a plate and add the Cajun seasoning and mix well.

Three: Heat the oil in a large pan and add the seasoned chicken breast. Gently cook for 5-7 minutes.

Four: Add the onion and green pepper to the pan and stir. Cook for a further 3-4 minutes.

Five: Add the stock and chopped tomatoes.

Six: Drain the pasta and add it to the pan and stir well. Simmer for a further 5 minutes, adding some extra stock if the sauce gets too thick.

Seven: Stir in the quark and then serve in bowls with spring onions and parsley on top.

Cajun pasta sauce

We made a really quick, simple and creamy Cajun pasta sauce with no cream in sight. The cajun spice comes from the seasoning we added to the chicken and then the rest of the sauce is simply vegetable stock (you could use chicken to intensify the chicken flavour) and some Quark.

A Cajun pasta sauce would usually use cream or a full-fat cream cheese to make it creamy, but we opted for fat-free Quark to lighten up what can sometimes be a heavy dish. Still all of the flavour, with less calories and fat.

What is quark?

Quark is a fat-free soft cheese (that you will find with all the cream cheese in the supermarket) and the texture is similar to Greek yoghurt, cream cheese or even sour cream. And you can use it in pretty much the same way too.

If you have followed a Slimming World plan before, then you are probably very familiar with it and all the amazing uses there are.

Quark has a really mild and creamy taste, but with a hint our sourness too (like Greek yoghurt or sour cream). It's a great source of protein and can be used in a variety of sweet and savoury recipes that call for a cream cheese or yoghurt.

World Quark Day

On Saturday 19th January it is World Quark Day and we were challenged by the "Queen of Quark" herself to come up with a delicious recipe that uses Quark to celebrate the occasion. World Quark Day is all about inspiring people to find new ways to incorporate quark in to their recipes and show how versatile it is. 

Who is the Queen or Quark? Born and raised in beautiful Germany she is a lover of Quark from a very early age. She has been accustomed to the many ways of eating healthy and couldn't understand why Quark wasn't used all over the world, so she spreading her love of it to inspire you all too.

Want to join in on the fun? You can #QuarkUpYourLife this Saturday by going to High Mood Food at either Spitalfields Market or Marylebone stores. They are creating a special menu for the Queen of Quark herself featuring some sweet and savoury Quark based recipes.

If you’re near Notting Hill you could also pop into Books for Cooks to check out their own foodie Quark creations.

Want a hardback copy of the Queen of Quarks book? At all of these #WorldQuarkDay events you’ll be able to pick up a free copy of the Quark recipe book, so it's definitely worth going along if you are in the area.

How to make Cajun seasoning

What gives this dish so much flavour is the Cajun seasoning. You could buy a ready made spice blend, but it's really easy to make up your own and then keep in a jar for as and when you need it.

We mix together a tablespoon each of chilli powder, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, thyme and black pepper and a pinch of sea salt. You can change the quantities depending on taste.

Extra tips

• You can buy Cajun spice blends, but why not make your own and store it in an air tight container to use in other Cajun recipes.
• If you don't want to use chicken, you can use grilled salmon, king prawns or just veggies instead.
• You can batch cook this and freeze it, as it freezes really well.
• Add some extra greens to this dish by stirring in some spinach when you add the Quark.

More pasta recipes

If you’ve tried this or any other recipe on the blog then let us know how you got on in the comments below, we love hearing from you!
Tag us in your creations on Instagram @hungryhealthyhappy - we love sharing photos when people make our recipes. You can use the hashtag #hungryhealthyhappy too.

DON’T FORGET TO RATE THE RECIPE ↓

Recipe

Cajun Chicken Pasta

Spice up your usual creamy pasta dishes with a simple Cajun twist. This Cajun Chicken Pasta is ready in under 30 minutes and low in fat too.

Low Fat

4.91 from 43 votes

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Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Cajun, Italian

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Allergen:

Dairy

Gluten

Meat

Servings: 4 people

Calories: 353kcal

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Ingredients

UK Metric Measures - US Customary Measures

• ▢ 160 g penne pasta
• ▢ 1 tbsp oil
• ▢ 400 g chicken breasts cut in to 1 inch chunks
• ▢ 2 tbsp Cajun seasoning
• ▢ 1 white onion peeled and diced
• ▢ 1 green bell pepper diced
• ▢ 250 ml vegetable stock
• ▢ 400 g chopped tomatoes
• ▢ 4 tbsp Quark
• ▢ 3 spring onions (scallions) sliced for serving
• ▢ Parsley for serving

Instructions

• Add the pasta to a pan of boiling water and simmer for 12 minutes.
• Put the chicken on a plate and add the Cajun seasoning and mix well.
• Heat the oil in a large pan and add the seasoned chicken breast. Gently cook for 5-7 minutes.
• Add the onion and green pepper to the pan and stir. Cook for a further 3-4 minutes.
• Add the stock and chopped tomatoes.
• Drain the pasta and add it to the pan and stir well. Simmer for a further 5 minutes, adding some extra stock if the sauce gets too thick.
• Stir in the quark and then serve in bowls with spring onions and parsley on top.

Notes

• You can buy Cajun spice blends, but why not make your own and store it in an air tight container to use in other Cajun recipes.
• If you don't wan to use chicken, you can use grilled salmon, king prawns or just veggies instead.
• You can batch cook this and freeze it, as it freezes really well.
• Add some extra greens to this dish by stirring in some spinach when you add the Quark.

Nutritional Information

Serving: 1portion | Calories: 353kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 64mg | Sodium: 523mg | Potassium: 841mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 2155IU | Vitamin C: 38.1mg | Calcium: 68mg | Iron: 2.9mg

Have you tried this recipe?Mention @hungryhealthyhappy on Instagram and tag #hungryhealthyhappy!

DisclaimerThe nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.

For more inspiration on how you can use Quark, see the recipe for delicious Fluffy Quark Pancakes below.