Recipe

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This creamy Cajun Sausage Alfredo recipe is the perfect midweek dinner that comes together quickly!

Cajun Alfredo with smoked sausage is ultra-satisfying and delicious with a creamy sauce you'll want to make on repeat. Get ready, it's going to be good!

Sausage & Pepper Creole Alfredo in a bowl

Cajun Alfredo Sauce Recipe with Smoked Sausage

While traditional Alfredo sauce is always a winner, sometimes you want something-something more, am I right? I mean, it's good… but add a little Cajun seasoning and smoked sausage and Alfredo gets a massive upgrade!

It's got the flavor of my Cajun chicken and rice, but with a creamy sauce and pasta! It’s a heavenly mix of textures and flavors. YUM!

Sausage & Pepper cajun Alfredo in a bowl

Ingredients

I like rotini or penne pasta for this dish; you can use your favorite. The spectacular flavor in this recipe comes from the sausage and the Cajun or Creole seasoning. For the creamy Alfredo sauce, you’ll need onion, bell pepper, butter, heavy cream or half and half, and Parmesan.

What kind of sausage for Cajun Alfredo?

You can use beef, pork, turkey, or chicken sausage, or a sausage that is a blend of meats (usually beef and pork). While the chicken sausage is often leaner, it is also dryer and not always as flavorful.

Cajun and Andouille sausages have seasoning mixed with the meat and will add extra spice. Cajun tends to be spicier. Smoked sausage is milder in spice, unless the packaging says hot smoked sausage. You can also swap the sausage for chicken, like in this epic Blackened Chicken Alfredo.

How to Make Cajun Alfredo with Sausage

Learn all the steps and tips to make this smoked sausage Cajun Alfredo the easy way:

Cook the pasta and make sure that once it's done cooking, you reserve the pasta water. You'll need it for the sauce.
Cook the sausage if it's uncooked or warm it up if it's pre-cooked. Make it in the same pasta pot or a skillet.
Cook the aromatic veggies in butter until softened to make a delicious starter for the sauce.
Make the sauce by adding the seasoning and heavy cream or half and half to the aromatic veggies. Let it simmer to thicken up for about 5 minutes. Finally, add the Parmesan.
Combine the sauce with the cooked sausage and the cooked pasta. The sauce will be very thick, so here is where you slowly add the reserved pasta water to thin it out to the consistency you like. If you need more liquid, add milk or additional cream.
Serve this pasta topped with additional Parmesan cheese and one of these tasty Alfredo side dishes.

large bowl of cajun alfredo pasta with sausage and peppers

How to Store & Reheat Leftovers

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days and up to 2 months in the freezer. To reheat them, add a tablespoon or two of liquid (such as water) and microwave for one minute. Stir and then heat for some extra minutes until it’s warm enough for you.

Easy Cajun Alfredo with Smoked Sausage

Servings: 6

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 20

Total Time: 25

This creamy Cajun Sausage Alfredo recipe is the perfect midweek dinner that comes together quickly!

5 from 19 votes

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Ingredients

12 ounces pasta, rotini, penne, or your favorite
¼-1/2 cup reserved pasta water
16 ounces sausage, smoked, Andouille or Cajun
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
1 small onion, diced (about ½ cup)
2 teaspoons Cajun or Creole seasoning
1 ¼ cups half & half
½ cup Parmesan cheese, more for topping

Instructions

Cook the pasta:

Cook pasta according to package directions. Once the pasta is ready, reserve ½ cup of pasta water before draining. Set pasta aside.

Cook the sausage:

Slice the sausage horizontally into ½-inch slices or remove it from the casing (your choice) and add it back into the pasta pot or a large skillet.
Cook the sausage if it’s uncooked or warm it up if it’s pre-cooked, over medium-high heat, stirring, for about 3 minutes or until the sausage is no longer pink. Remove from the skillet or pot with a slotted spoon onto a plate but leave the drippings.

Make the sauce:

Add the butter and melt it over medium-high heat. Add the bell peppers and onion, and stir, cooking them down until they’ve softened for about 3 to 5 minutes.
Add the seasoning and heavy cream or half and half, and stir to combine with the veggies. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let it simmer to thicken up for about 5 minutes.

Combine:

Add the Parmesan cheese to the sauce and stir to combine. Then the cooked sausage and the cooked pasta. Stir to combine everything. The sauce will be very thick. Now, slowly add the reserved pasta water until you achieve the sauce consistency you like. I usually start with ¼ cup and then slowly add the rest. Turn off the heat.
Serve the Cajun Alfredo pasta topped with additional Parmesan cheese.

Notes

If you want to make the sauce thicker, add about ¼ cup of Parmesan cheese to the pasta mixture. Combine and wait a couple of minutes for it to absorb. Alternatively, you can make a bit of slurry by mixing 1 teaspoon of cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of water. Once mixed, add it to the skillet and simmer for a few minutes to allow it to thicken into the sauce. You should not need to thicken this sauce if you follow the recipe.
I’ve made this numerous times with gluten-free pasta. Delicious! For a grain-free option, omit pasta, and use 6 peeled, diced, and cooked zucchinis.