Cajun Spiced Pasta

Recipe and images courtesy of Romy London (@romylondonuk on Instagram)

Check out this amazing Vegan Cajun Pasta recipe! It's got a creamy and super flavourful sauce made with vegan cream and nutritional yeast, with a bold cajun twist that'll knock your flavour socks off! It's the perfect dish to wow a crowd and leave them happy and satisfied. Plus, you can make it your own by adding your favourite vegan protein, like tofu or vegan chicken pieces. Trust us, this dish is perfect any time of day!

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients (serves 2-3):

• 200g fettuccine pasta
• 100-250ml reserved pasta water, plus extra if you’re planning to reheat leftovers the next day
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 200g vegan chicken pieces
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1-2 tbsp cajun spice mix
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced or finely sliced
• 250ml vegan heavy cream
• 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
• Salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
• 10g fresh parsley, finely chopped

Method:

1. Cook that pasta according to the package instructions, but take it off a little early. We want it to be slightly under aldente. Don't forget to reserve some of that pasta water!
2. Get your vegan chicken-style pieces all drizzled up with lemon juice and coated with 1 tbsp of the cajun seasoning.
3. Heat up some olive oil in a big skillet over medium-high heat and add the pieces. Give it a stir every now and then until it's all cooked through. Then take the pieces out and set them aside for a bit.
4. Now let's melt some butter in that same skillet over medium heat. Toss in some minced garlic and cook it up until it smells real good.
5. Add in some vegan heavy cream, nutritional yeast, and add more of that cajun seasoning. Give it a taste and add more seasoning if you need to. Let it simmer and cook until it gets a little thicker.
6. Add your cooked pasta to the skillet and toss it all around to get it coated in that yummy sauce. If the sauce is too thick, add in some of that reserved pasta water to thin it out. Season it up with some salt and pepper.
7. Time to put those vegan chicken pieces back into the skillet with the pasta. Heat it all up together.
8. Serve it up hot and pretty with some fresh parsley on top. Enjoy!

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Whenever possible, try to store the sauce separately from the pasta to prevent it from becoming mushy. To reheat, you can either warm it up on the stove with a splash of the reserved pasta water to make it creamy again, or reheat the sauce in the microwave after stirring in some pasta water.