Cajun Shrimp Pasta Marsala

Campanelle pasta with succulent shrimp, mushrooms, and zucchini tossed in a creamy Cajun seasoned Marsala wine sauce. A delicious quick and easy recipe that’s perfect for lunch or dinner.

Have I mentioned that I love pasta? It feels like it’s been forever since I posted a pasta recipe so I hope you’ll enjoy this one =)

For this pasta dish, I decided to combine Marsala wine sauce with Cajun seasoning. It sounded amazing in my head when I planned it, but I wasn’t sure how it would taste.

The result? I loved it. Then again, I wouldn’t post the recipe if I didn’t like it, right?

Pasta tossed in creamy Marsala wine sauce with a little spicy kick from the Cajun seasoning?  Delicious. I think what I really liked was that there were so many different flavors and textures. The juicy shrimp was a great addition to the pasta. And if you’re a mushroom lover, there’s not just one but two types in this dish.

If you prefer the classic version, try my Pasta Marsala with Fresh Shiitake Mushrooms. It was one of my very first posts. =)

First, cook about a half pound of pasta. I used campanelle just because they looked pretty on the shelf at Safeway, and I decided to buy them. However, you can pick whichever pasta that you like. The campanelle took me about 10 minutes to cook until they became al dente, but check the packaging to see how long you need to cook your pasta for. Once the pasta is cooked to your liking, drain and run them through cold water. This process stops the pasta from continuing to cook and to prevent them from sticking to each other. Set the pasta aside for now.

Prep the shrimp by deshelling and deveining, if they aren’t already. Then wash and chop up the garlic, onions, mushrooms, and zucchini.

In a large skill, add a tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. After about a minute, add the garlic and stir with a spatula to prevent the garlic from burning. Cook until the garlic becomes aromatic, then add the onions. After about a minute, add in 1/8 cup chicken broth. This helps the onions cook faster and prevents it from burning.

After the onions have softened, add in the white mushrooms and the shiitake mushrooms. Stir using the spatula. If all the liquid has evaporated, add another 1/8 cup chicken broth.

Once the mushrooms have softened, add in the zucchinis. Cook the zucchinis until they have just started softening.

Add in the rest of the chicken broth and the Marsala cooking wine. Stir to evenly distribute.

In a small bowl, mix together the cornstarch and room temperature or cold water. Make sure that all the cornstarch has dissolved in the water before adding it to the sauce. If the cornstarch doesn’t dissolve, it will start to clump together and form a jelly like substance, which isn’t what you want. The cornstarch will help thicken the sauce. As you add the cornstarch water mixture, make sure that you stir with the spatula to evenly distribute it.

Add in the heavy whipping cream to get the sauce creamy.

Add in the Creole/Cajun seasoning and stir with the spatula to evenly distribute.

Lastly, add the shrimp and cook the shrimp until it becomes an orange color and no longer appears translucent.

When you’re ready to serve, toss the pasta into the sauce until it’s evenly coated. I wouldn’t recommend putting the pasta into the sauce until then because the pasta absorbs all the sauce.

Serve warm immediately. Enjoy!

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