Creamy Cajun Salmon Pasta
This creamy cajun salmon pasta recipe is made with flaky salmon, fettuccine noodles and a homemade alfredo sauce, made with fat-free half and half, butter and parmesan cheese. It’s high in protein and ready in about 30 minutes.
The homemade cajun seasoning is flavorful, bold and insanely easy to make. Salmon is simple to cook and filled with fatty acids, making it an ideal fish to add into your recipes. Once cooked you can cut it up and mix into the pasta or serve it whole over the pasta.
You’d never know this was such an easy dinner recipe because it turns out fancy and elegant, making it one of my top recipes to make for a special occasion.
Fore more cajun inspired dishes, try cajun chicken alfredo, crispy cajun ranch wings or cajun meatball stew.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- 33 grams of protein per serving.
- Homemade creamy alfredo sauce can be used for other pasta dishes.
Ingredients and Substitutes:
These are the main ingredients and substitutions. See recipe card below for full ingredients list and instructions for cajun salmon pasta.
- Salmon: you can substitute with a white fish, shrimp or blackened chicken. Keep the seasonings the same.
- Fettuccine Noodles: any preferred noodle works. I prefer this dish with a longer noodle like fettuccine, angel hair or spaghetti but lots of people like this with penne pasta.
- Cajun Seasoning: you can use your favorite grocery store cajun seasoning or make my homemade cajun seasoning recipe.
- Half and Half: this gives the pasta sauce its richness. You can use whole milk, heavy whipping cream or a milk and cornstarch mixture. I don’t recommend trying this with almond or coconut milk.
- All Purpose Flour: or arrowroot flour.
- Butter: used to make the roux but you can substitute with olive oil.
- Parmesan Cheese and Romano Cheese Blend: if you can’t find a bag of both together, use only parmesan cheese.
Variations
- Add baby spinach or bell peppers.
- Add fresh parsley or red pepper flakes for some heat.
- Try this with air fryer blackened salmon.
Dietary Modifications
- For gluten-free, use a gluten-free flour.
How to make this cajun salmon pasta recipe:
Step 1: make the seasoning & prep salmon
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. In a small bowl mix together all Cajun spices and set aside. Prep your salmon by rinsing and patting dry with a paper towel. Cut into 4 oz. filets. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and drizzle with 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil. Set salmon fillets skin side down. Top filets with 1 Tbsp. olive oil and evenly coat with 2 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning. Using your hand be sure to coat all areas of the salmon with the seasoning.
Step 2: cook the salmon
Place in the oven at 450 degrees Fahrenheit for 12-14 minutes until they are fully cooked and flake easily with a fork. You can also use a meat thermometer and check for doneness. Salmon should read 145 degrees Fahrenheit when fully cooked. Remove the skin (optional) prior to serving once it has been cooked. It should stick to the foil and peel right off.
Step 3: cook pasta
While the salmon cooks, cook 10 oz. fettuccine is a pot according to package instructions. Drain.
Step 4: make the sauce
Heat a large skillet over medium and add in 2 Tbsp. of butter. Melt butter and add garlic. Simmer until you begin to smell the garlic. Add 2 Tbsp. flour and stir until you have a thick paste. Slowly add the half and half a little as a time and whisk until the flour is no longer chunky and the sauce begins to thicken. This takes approximately 5 minutes.
Remove from heat. Add 1 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning to the sauce and stir together well. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of cheese in the sauce and mix. Add the cooked pasta to the creamy sauce and mix together.. Top with chopped parsley and salmon filets and enjoy!
Expert Tip!
If you have leftovers and the pasta becomes too thick and stuck together from the fridge, add a little chicken broth to loosen it up.
Recipe FAQs
You can serve your salmon pasta topped with a salmon filet or break all the salmon up and mix together throughout the pasta. Top with fresh chopped parsley and additional parmesan cheese.
Choose salmon that looks moist with a rich color. Avoid anything dull, grey or with any obvious blemishes. Here is a great article with more information: How to Buy Salmon at the Grocery Store Like a Pro.
This is really personal choice. Farmed salmon may be higher in omega 3’s while wild caught salmon tends to have fewer calories and saturated fat. It’s much easier to find farmed salmon than it is wild. Both wild and farmed salmon are low in mercury and are both considered safe to eat.
Check out some of our other easy meals!
Cajun Salmon Pasta
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Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs. fresh salmon filets 24 oz.
- 10 oz. fettuccine pasta (uncooked)
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- 2 Tbsp. butter
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 1 1/3 cup fat free half and half 300 ml
- 1/4 cup Parmesan & Romano shredded cheese 28g
- 2 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning (for salmon)
- 1 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning (for sauce)
- chopped parsley, for garnish
Cajun Seasoning
- 3 Tbsp. smoked paprika
- 1.5 Tbsp. salt
- 2 Tbsp. garlic powder
- 1 Tbsp. onion powder
- 1 Tbsp. dried oregano
- 1 Tbsp. cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Pre heat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a small bowl mix together all Cajun seasonings and set aside.
- Prep your salmon by rinsing and patting dry. Cut into 4, 4 oz. filets if not already. You should have 6, 5 oz. filets.
- Line a baking sheet with foil and drizzle with 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil. Set the salmon filets skin side down.
- Top salmon filets with 1 Tbsp. olive oil and evenly coat with 2 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning. Using your hand be sure to coat all areas of the salmon with the seasoning.
- Place in the oven at 450 degrees Fahrenheit for 12-14 minutes until they are fully cooked and flake easily with a fork. You can also use a meat thermometer and check for doneness. Salmon should read 145 degrees Fahrenheit when fully cooked. Remove the skin (optional) prior to serving once it has been cooked. It should stick to the foil and peel right off.
- While the salmon bakes cook 10 oz. (uncooked) fettuccine is a pot according to the directions.
- While the salmon and noodles cook, prep your creamy cajun sauce. Heat a large pan over medium and add in 2 Tbsp. of butter. Once the butter has melted add garlic and simmer until you begin to smell the garlic. Add 2 Tbsp. flour and stir until you have a thick paste, or roux.
- Slowly add the half and half a little as a time to the roux and whisk until the flour is no longer chunky and the sauce begins to thicken. This takes approximately 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Add 1 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning to the sauce and stir together well. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of cheese in the sauce and mix together well.
- Add the cooked and drained noodles to the sauce and mix together to evenly coat.
- Top with chopped parsley and salmon filets.
Notes
- Nutritional information is an estimate and will vary with substitutions.
- Always use fresh wild-caught salmon, when possible. Salmon should be bright pink. Never buy salmon that is dull or grey.
- Use any type of pasta.
This was delicious! I added in a couple of spiralized zucchini to round it out and it was the perfect addition to bulk up the serving.
Tastes great, but what is the serving size for the pasta?
Listed in detail in the blog post!
This was so tasty! The Cajun seasoning mix was just right. All of my kids loved it, which says a lot.