I LOVE Cajun flavors and I’ve shared lots of recipes for classic Cajun dishes over the years, like my gumbo, jambalaya, and étouffée. But I also like to incorporate those Cajun flavors into not-so-classic, less authentic recipes, like this vegan Cajun pasta.
What You’ll Need
Dried pasta Olive oil Vegan sausage Vegan butter Bell peppers (red and green!) Onion Garlic Paprika Thyme Oregano Black pepper Cayenne pepper Flour Coconut milk Fire roasted tomatoes Red wine vinegar Parsley, scallions and/or chives
How to Make Cajun Pasta
Start by cooking your pasta according to the package directions. Drain it when it’s done, then toss it with some olive oil to prevent sticking. While the pasta cooks, brown your vegan sausage in a skillet. Chop it into small pieces and cook it over medium heat, flipping it from time to time, until it begins to brown. Remove it from the skillet when it’s done. Now melt some vegan butter in the skillet and add your peppers and onion. Cook everything for about 10 minutes, to start softening it up, then add your garlic and spices. Continue cooking everything for a minute or so, until it becomes very fragrant. Next, sprinkle in some flour. Stir the mixture to coat your veggies with flour. Continue cooking everything for about a minute.
Slowly start adding your coconut milk, stirring all the while to prevent the flour from forming any lumps. Once all of the coconut milk has been added, stir in your tomatoes, raise the heat, and bring your sauce to a simmer. Lower the heat and let it cook until it thickens up a bit and the peppers are soft. Stir in the vinegar and season the sauce with salt to taste. Now stir in your pasta and sausage, then take the skillet off of the burner.
If you’d like a little extra heat you can season your pasta with some extra Cayenne pepper or some hot sauce. Sprinkle it with parsley, scallions, and/or chives before serving. Dig in!
Can this recipe be made gluten-free? I’m pretty sure it can, but I haven’t tried. My best suggestions would be to substitute an all-purpose gluten-free blend for wheat flour, and use your favorite gluten-free pasta and vegan sausage. Does the sauce taste like coconut milk? Not to me, but if you absolutely hate the taste of coconut milk, try subbing cashew milk. What brand of vegan sausage works best with this recipe? I used Field Roast Mexican Chipotle Sausage, which I recognize is not a Cajun flavor, but it’s smoky and spicy and it works! Not into vegan sausage? Try subbing vegan meatballs (the ones from my gumbo recipe would work well), seitan, or even chickpeas. You could also just leave it out. Is this recipe spicy? If you use ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper and no hot sauce it will have a little kick. Also, if you use the Field Roast chipotle sausages like I did, they’ll add quite a bit of heat. For a milder version, leave out the cayenne pepper. For an extra spicy version, use extra cayenne and/or hot sauce. Leftovers and storage: Leftovers will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for about 3 days. Need more pasta inspiration? Check out my collection of vegan pasta recipes.
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