This deliciously creamy, cheesy Crawfish Fettuccine with spicy jalapeno pepper is made with fresh ingredients. Nope, this is not your typical canned soup fettuccine recipe!
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Need another seafood pasta recipe? Luscious layers of rich cheesy filling in this Crawfish Lasagna flavored with Cajun seasoned crawfish and a creamy sauce.
This Shrimp and Crawfish Pasta With A Creamy Sauce Recipe is creamy and cheesy with chunks of seafood taste and Cajun spice.
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Fettuccine Flip
I tell 'ya, there ought to be a Hallelujah chorus sung every time a dish of hot and bubbly Crawfish Fettuccine comes out of the oven.
It wasn't until my late teens that I first tasted this rich, cheesy pasta blessed with crawfish. After that, I couldn't get enough of it, and I still can't today!
Crawfish fettuccine did not become popular until the late 1970s. My guess is that one day, some Cajun flipped a favorite classic Italian dish by adding crawfish, the Cajun trinity,
This recipe is taken from my mama's original recipe, which has a few changes. My goal these days is to cook with lower-processed ingredients. If you think about it, anytime we start messin' with food, we process it away from its most natural state. Instead of canned cream soup, I use half and half, butter, and flour. And instead of processed cheese, I use cheddar and cream cheese.
The heat comes from cayenne pepper, fresh jalapeno pepper, and some drops of liquid crab boil. That's right! Liquid crab boil can add an extra punch of flavor to almost any seafood dish.
Easy Cooking Steps To Crawfish Fettuccine
But before we get started, you need to know that you can use uncooked shrimp instead of crawfish. Either one will make a delicious cheesy seafood pasta dish.
Cooking the Cajun trinity of chopped onion, celery, and bell pepper in butter gives this cheesy cream sauce the start it needs. It provides the foundation for the fettuccine sauce with a rich taste before adding the seafood.
Pouring the cream into the main ingredient shows a beautiful contrast between the red and green colors. Take your time and savor this work of art! Adding chicken broth, cheddar, cream cheese, and jalapeno pepper to melt together makes it a luscious cheese sauce.
The last step is adding the pasta and then deciding how to serve it.
Note: Do not drain the fettuccine pasta after cooking. It's important to spoon the fettuccine right from the pasta pot with water. This gives more moisture and helps combine all of the flavors.
There are 2 options for serving the pasta. You can leave it in the pot after stirring in the pasta or place it in a casserole dish to bake. Either way, it's so delicious! A generous sprinkle of breadcrumbs over the top is optional if you prefer baking it. I like the extra crunch and texture it adds.
More Crawfish Recipes
- How To Boil Crawfish
- Crawfish Lasagna
- Crawfish Pot Pie, A cajun Delight
- Crawfish Nachos
- Crawfish ‘n Cornbread
- Shrimp And Crawfish Pasta
- Crawfish Etouffee, To Etouffée Is To Smother
- Chunky Cheesy Creamy Crawfish Dip
Crawfish Fettuccine
Fresh ingredients are in this delicious cheesy, creamy sauce surrounding tasty crawfish and fettuccine pasta with spicy jalapeno.
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup onions, chopped
- ¼ cup celery, chopped
- ¼ cup bell pepper, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed
- 1 pound raw, peeled crawfish tails
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup half & half
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup (4 ounces) mild cheddar cheese, grated
- 2 oz. cream cheese
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon liquid crab boil, optional
- 8 ounces fettuccine pasta, cooked according to package, do not drain
- some pasta water
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- ½ cup breadcrumbs, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a casserole dish by spraying with oil if serving as a casserole.
- Melt butter in a large skillet and add onions, celery, bell pepper to cook for 10 minutes adding garlic during the last few minutes of cooking.
- Add crawfish and cook for 10 minutes more, stirring often.
- Stir in flour, half & half, and chicken broth until well blended.
- Add the cheddar cheese, cream cheese, and jalapeno pepper, stirring until cheeses are melted into the sauce.
- Stir in salt, cayenne pepper, and crab boil if you opt for it, cooking on low heat, simmering for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Boil the pasta while the sauce is cooking; do not drain the water from the pasta.
- Add the pasta by spoonfuls straight from the water into the sauce, do not add the rest of the pasta water.
- Stir in parsley and combine well.
- Serve from the pot or pour into a greased casserole dish.
- Top with parmesan cheese (and breadcrumbs if you want an added crunch).
- Bake for 15 minutes or until bubbly and golden on the edges.
- Garnish with more chopped fresh parsley. Enjoy!
Notes
- It's important not to drain the pasta, so the dish does not dry out.
- Adding the jalapeno with the cheese keeps the pepper intact for a flavorful bite.
- The liquid crab boil gives more heat and flavor but is not necessary.
- Substitute 1 pound of peeled and deveined raw shrimp for the crawfish for a Shrimp Fettuccine.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Simmering/Broiling
- Cuisine: Cajun
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
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Have a nice day!
"You cannot change reality, but you can control the manner in which you look at things. Your attitude is under your own control. Weed out the negative and focus on the positive!"
Helen Steiner Rice
Jetty LeMaire
Kay
I love that you post all the old recipes that we grew up on. I still cook most of them..but I love the way you put a new twist to them ! I will have to try yours.. I have a feeling we will just love them ?
Jetty LeMaire
Louisiana Woman
Thank you so much, you're so sweet! I really am enjoying it and learning a lot along the way.
[email protected]
WOW, I can't wait, TO TRY THIS!
Roberta Richard
ok I tried this with shrimp, AND IT WAS A BIG HIT, THANKS FOR SHARING!
Louisiana Woman
Great! Thanks for letting me know!
Lisa
Yes!!!!! I will try this!
Louisiana Woman
You’ll enjoy it!