Cajun-Style Shrimp Alfredo
Published February 6, 2024
David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Hadas Smirnoff.
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Prep Time
- 20 minutes
- Cook Time
- 25 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
¾ teaspoon garlic powder
¾ teaspoon onion powder
¾ teaspoon ground sweet paprika
¼ teaspoon cayenne powder
1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp (any size)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 celery stalks, diced into ¼-inch pieces
1 medium yellow onion, diced into ¼-inch pieces
1 large red bell pepper, cored, seeded and diced into ¼-inch pieces
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeño, stemmed, seeded and minced
1 ½ cups heavy cream
¾ cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
2 tablespoons Creole mustard (or 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard plus 1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard)
1 pound fettuccine
2 scallions, thinly sliced
Hot sauce, for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
98 grams carbs; 348 milligrams cholesterol; 1221 calories; 23 grams monosaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 37 grams saturated fat; 70 grams fat; 1 gram trans fat; 7 grams fiber; 1159 milligrams sodium; 52 grams protein; 9 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil.
- Step 2
Mix 1 teaspoon salt with the garlic powder, onion powder, paprika and cayenne, then sprinkle all over the shrimp.
- Step 3
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Cook the shrimp, flipping once, until golden, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a plate.
- Step 4
Add the butter to the skillet to melt, then stir in the celery, onion and bell pepper; season with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and jalapeño and cook another 2 minutes.
- Step 5
Stir in the cream, bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened and reduced by a third, 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in the cheese and the mustard and whisk until the cheese has melted.
- Step 6
While the sauce simmers, add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente, about 13 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.
- Step 7
To the empty pot, add the cooked pasta, the sauce, the shrimp, ½ cup of the reserved cooking liquid and half of the scallions. Toss to combine, adjusting with the remaining pasta water to achieve a creamy consistency. Season with salt and pepper.
- Step 8
Divide among plates or bowls and sprinkle with the remaining scallions. Serve with more Parmesan and hot sauce, if desired.
Private Notes
Comments
I would add the shrimp to the sauce at the end of Step 5 and let it absorb the flavors of the sauce as it cooks. Then, off the heat, add cooked pasta and pasta water to combine. Cooking shrimp beforehand and then adding at the end tends to leave you with rubbery shrimp. For added flavor I would remove the shrimp tails and make a quick shrimp stock to add at the end along with or instead of the pasta water.
I really loved this but thought it was unnecessarily hard. Shrimp shouldn’t be cooked at the beginning. I added mine after step 4 until they got to the right color. Then removed them and added the cream and cheese. It was really great and I ended up using all the reserved pasta water when I combined everything. Needed more hot sauce like crystal
This was very good! Love the Cajun twist on the otherwise heavy Alfredo. I disagree w the comment saying shrimp doesn’t need to be cooked first. It gives the base flavor for the veggies. My only issue was the whole milk (which I subbed for cream) curdled in high heat while I was busy trying to separate strands of stuck fettuccine - be careful simmering the sauce here. Otherwise an excellent dish, if not a quick one
I made this tonight and was skeptical about adding mustard but just do it. I held off on the salt because I followed others suggestions to add andouille sausage. I ended up adding 2 ears worth of fresh corn because, hey, it's starting to sound like a low boil. So, sausage, shrimp, veggies, sauce. FYI- I added the corn cobs back to the cooking water, along with shrimp tails/juices to add flavor to the pasta.
Added 1/2 lb of grilled sliced andouille sausage at the end - amazing extra spice and flavor!
This was wonderful, and a dish I would have been happy to receive at a restaurant- made it as written with Argentine red shrimp and have no edits. I’m sure as other reviewers have noted that the shrimp could be done later in the process but I didn’t find them to be rubbery doing it at the beginning.