Cajun Shrimp Pasta with Sausage

Step 1

Toss shrimp with salt, pepper, Cajun seasoning and Oregano, and coat well. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and drizzle bottom of pan with olive oil.

Step 2

Add shrimp and cook for 2 minutes. Flip shrimp over and cook another minute or two. Then remove to a plate and set aside. Drizzle pan with a little more olive oil, add sausage and brown until nicely caramelized, about 4 - 5 minutes. Remove to plate, set aside. The same skillet will be used for making sauce.

Step 3

Add pasta to salted boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain, but don't rinse. Set aside.

Step 4

Use the same skillet, now empty. Lower heat to medium and add a bit more olive oil to the pan, add the onion, red bell pepper, Cajun seasoning, brown sugar, and a generous pinch of salt. Sauté until onion and pepper have softened a bit, scraping up any browned bits that you can. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Step 5

Add crushed tomatoes, chicken broth and heavy cream. Bring to a simmer, stirring and scraping up any brown bits from bottom of pan, simmer a couple minutes.

Step 6

Once simmering, add Parmesan and stir into sauce. When Parmesan is blended in, add cooked pasta, and sausage and stir to combine and heat through, 2 - 3 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste and then lastly, add shrimp (to avoid over steaming it in sauce).

Step 7

Serve with chopped parsley.