Creamy Cajun Chicken Meatball Pasta (Gluten Free and Dairy Free)

Delicious Creamy Cajun Chicken Meatball Pasta - tender tasty chicken meatballs with pasta in an amazing dairy free creamy cajun tomato sauce. The whole family will go crazy for this dish.

There is nothing quite like digging into a bowl of meatballs and pasta and I don't just mean any ole bowl of meatballs and pasta. This right here is the most amazing tender juicy chicken meatballs in a decadent creamy cajun tomato sauce. 

It's packed with flavour and really satisfying and filling. The disappointing part is when your bowl is empty - seriously!!

The Best Gluten Free Chicken Meatballs

Good chicken meatballs can be hard to make, especially if you are not adding some breadcrumbs and other ingredients that might add a few or make these not gluten free.

When coming up with recipes, I really do try to accommodate everyone, especially those who might have intolerances and allergies. So if I can make some delicious without using two of the main allergens - dairy and gluten, then I definitely will.

I know there are gluten-free breadcrumbs out there, but those are going to add points, so instead, I wanted to use healthy free ingredients while keeping these as tasty as possible.

The key to juicy tender meatballs is adding an ingredient that is going to keep them from drying out, especially as extra lean chicken mince (ground chicken) is very low in fat. So the perfect ingredient to add is some grated courgette (zucchini) and I just so happened to have plenty on hand. 

A little bit of grated zucchini in meatballs, burgers or even meatloaf really works. Just make sure you squeeze out excess moisture first, as otherwise, it will make your mixture far too wet. A great way to add some sneaky vegetables into kids meals too. Although if they have an eye for anything green, they might not be persuaded to try these. 

Oven-Baked Chicken Meatballs

Why do you part cook the meatballs in the oven? That's a pretty valid question. You might think it will be far easier just to brown in the pan and save on washing up.

However, there is a really good reason I part cook these in the oven. Firstly we are not using anything other than spray oil and we want an even brownness, we also want them to remain meatballs and not break up in the pan. 

Cooking them in the oven for that 10 minutes, seals the outside, so that when we drop them into that amazing sauce, they retain their shape and are perfect tender Chicken Meatballs. 

Dairy Free Creamy Cajun Tomato Sauce

A dairy-free creamy cajun tomato sauce? How is that even possible. Surely anything creamy involves dairy and well yes most things do, but it's perfectly easy to create a creamy kind of sauce without using anything dairy.

How? My favourite ingredient is coconut milk. When I say coconut milk, I don't mean the drinking stuff that comes in a carton, this is the thick full fat creamy stuff that comes in a tin.

Hey? that's a hell of a load of points? Well yes the full tin is a lot, but we are only using a small amount and split between 4 people, which this recipe serves, it's really not anything to worry about and if you have anyone in your household with a dairy allergy, this recipe is perfect for everyone. 

Do I have to use Coconut Milk?

If you don't have a dairy allergy and are fine with dairy, then no you don't need to use the coconut milk, but it does taste darn good, it's not overly coconutty in flavour as we only use a small amount.

Great swap for the coconut milk, if you are not dairy free, is some low-fat cream cheese. Prob about 1 to 1.5 tablespoons per person will be enough in this, so adjust if you make the swap.

Gluten Free Pasta

Which is best? That really depends, there are various different sorts out there from pasta made with beans, lentils, rice, quinoa etc and most of the dried varieties I have checked are good, so a great option if you are gluten-free and still fancy digging into a bowl of pasta.

I like to use brown rice or quinoa pasta and it was brown rice pasta I used in this recipe. The key is to not overcook or it becomes mushy. Bring my water to a boil, add in the pasta and cook for about 6 mins before adding into the sauce, remember it will still cook a little bit more when adding into the sauce, but check the packaging of whatever you use, various pasta have different cooking times. 

Again if you are not gluten free, feel free to use any pasta of your choice and cook following the package instructions. 

How to serve this Creamy Cajun Chicken Meatball Pasta

I enjoyed this with some fresh arugula (rocket) and sliced baby cucumber, a great way to add some vegetables to your plate. Any salad items of your choice will go well on the side.

If you don't fancy salad go for some steamed greens like broccoli or asparagus. You could even add some additional vegetables into the sauce, like peppers for example. Don't forget we also have some hidden veg in the meatballs.

More Delicious Meatballs Recipes

Love meatballs recipes? Check out these:

• LAMB AND MINT MEATBALLS IN A SWEET AND SPICY SAUCE
• CRANBERRY ALMOND CHICKEN MEATBALLS
• CHICKEN QUINOA MEATBALLS IN A VEGGIE SAUCE
• SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS
• LAMB MEATBALLS WITH A SPICY TOMATO SAUCE
• APRICOT CHICKEN MEATBALLS
• PORK AND SWEET POTATO MEATBALLS
• MEATBALLS IN TOMATO-MAPLE SAUCE

or head on over to my Full Recipe Index with over 850 delicious Slimming Eats and Weight Watchers recipes all fully searchable by meal type, ingredients, value and smart points etc.

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