Creamy Cajun Sauce is full of flavor and easy to make. It's the perfect topping for fish, shrimp or chicken that has been pan fried, blackened, baked or broiled. Starting with the pan drippings left behind gives it a zesty foundation.
Cajun Cream Sauce adds a little decadence and a lot of flavor. Put it over blackened or Cajun seasoned and pan fried fish, shrimp or chicken and you double the punch of flavor. Add it to a more subtly seasoned protein and it soars to new heights of excellence.
This easy to make sauce recipe was originally developed for serving over fish, but has since been discovered to be equally perfect for shrimp or chicken too.
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What kind of protein is best to serve with this sauce?
Any type of firm, white-fleshed fish will be awesome topped with this tasty sauce. Our personal favorites are snapper, grouper and flounder - not just for flavor, but because they're easy to handle when cooking.
Catfish would be so good too, and it's an often misunderstood fish, thought of in many areas only when it's fried. We wrote a whole post that includes a recipe for Catfish with Lemon Thyme Sauce - a mild, sort of sophisticated twist on sauce for fish. Saffron Cream Sauce is a good option here too.
To keep your meal Cajun themed make Fried Turkey Breast and serve this sauce alongside it.
If you love seafood with savory sauces you'll also want to try Grilled Fish Tacos with Baja Sauce. If you're looking for some new sauces to try, check out our 10 Best Sauces for Fish. They're family favorites around here!
The foundation for creamy Cajun sauce
This sauce is very similar to the one we made for our Pork Chops. In that case we called it a Cajun Pan Sauce. It really just means that you've made your sauce in the same pan the protein was cooked in.
The little bits of flavor left behind are what flavors the sauce. If baking or broiling the fish, shrimp or chicken you'll want to keep it warm and use the drippings from your baking pan.
Another, more down-home name is gravy. Here in the south gravy is the name you'll hear most often for sauces with their roots in pan drippings. If you ever wanted to know how to make a Basic Gravy we've got you covered on that too.
If you don't have time to make protein, or you just want a good cajun sauce to go with pasta, our Creole Cream Sauce is the way to go.
The basic steps for making Cajun cream sauce:
- Start with firm, white fish, shrimp or chicken breast seasoned however you like. Our preferred method for cooking is with a light sprinkle of Cajun seasoning and then pan fried in skillet that is not non-stick. We use a little oil with a high smoke point like pecan or canola oil. (more on that here)
- When the protein is done remove it and keep warm.
- If you've baked or broiled you'll scrape the baking pan and add it to a skillet with some white wine. If you pan fried, deglaze the pan with the white wine scraping up the bits from the bottom.
- Slowly stir in the cream which has had seasoned flour whisked into it. Whisk or stir constantly until the sauce is thickened.
- Finish the Cajun sauce up with a squeeze of fresh lemon.
Our favorite tool for getting that fresh lemon juice?
Love all things Cajun like we do? This Best Jambalaya Recipe is so good because the guesswork for getting the rice done just right is gone! Perfect Jambalaya every time.
And Cajun Baked Chicken uses bone-in chicken and will be on your table with minimal effort!
📖 Recipe
Cajun Cream Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 1-2 teaspoons pan drippings from cooking fish, shrimp or chicken
- ⅓ cup dry white wine
- ⅔ cup half and half
- 1 Tablespoon all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon Cajun or Creole Seasoning
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2-3 teaspoons lemon juice ½ lemon, juiced
Instructions
- Deglaze pan the protein has been cooked in with wine. If baked or broiled, scrape up pan drippings from baking pan and add to skillet with wine. Heat thoroughly.
- Whisk together ½ and ½, flour and seasonings until smooth.
- Whisk flour mixture into skillet and stir constantly over medium-low to medium heat until thickened.
- Add lemon juice and heat throughly before pouring over fish, shrimp or chicken.
Notes
- Deglaze means to pour liquid into a pan where something has been cooked and stir, usually over medium low heat scraping the bottom of the pan to incorporate the bits of flavor into the mixture.
- Salt can be added if needed, but most Cajun and Creole seasonings will have enough salt.
- Blackened fish, shrimp or chicken is excellent with the Creamy Cajun Sauce, but it will produce strong, salty pan drippings, so seasoning and salt may need adjusting.
- If pan frying use a skillet that is not non-stick so you'll get the bits of flavor left behind for making sauce.
- If fish, shrimp or chicken is pan fried, use that skillet to make the sauce. If baked or broiled scrape pan drippings from the baking pan and add to the skillet where the sauce will be made.
Nutrition
Love Creole/Cajun recipes? So do we.
Claudia Lamascolo says
I absolutely love this sauce for fish, we are huge cajun fans and usually put it on even our crab legs when boiling this sauce is fabulous for our freshly caught Mahi thanks
Pam says
Thanks, Claudia! We love all things Cajun too!
Toni says
This was so good!! Everyone at my house loved this!
Pam says
Thanks, Toni!
Tawnie says
Made this for halibut and it was so delicious !! Keeper recipe, thank you!
Pam says
Thank you, Tawnie!
Chenée Lewis says
I'm absolutely making this soon for salmon! Looks so good!
Pam says
Ahh... we hadn't thought of using it on salmon. Good idea!
Nathan says
This sauce looks incredible!! I love that it's so versatile, I can see this improving so many different dishes in my future!
Pam says
Thanks, Nathan!
Jacque H says
I can't wait to whip this together! I love all things cajun and seafood! I bet this will pair perfectly with our salmon tomorrow night.
Kathryn Donangelo says
This cajun cream sauce would be so perfect with any fish! I'm going to make this tonight for dinner with salmon!
Pam says
Yes! You're going to love it!
Angela says
This sauce was amazing and so easy. Can't wait to try it on something else.
Pam says
Yay! Thanks for letting us know.
Courtney says
My family of cajun fans absolutely loved this sauce. We served it over salmon - just perfect!
Pam says
Thank you, Courtney!
Maria says
I always find cream-based sauces perfect for fish. Can't wait to give this recipe a try!
Pam says
You'll love it!
Maxine Skwara says
Ohhh wooowwiieeee
Roxanne says
This fish sauce is AMAZING. I used Hood dairy free half & half due to lactose intolerance. DELICiOUS!!!!!
Thanks!
Pam says
Yay! Thanks for taking the time to let us know, Roxanne.
Shashi says
Such a creamy and delicious sauce! Im thinking it would be delicious with a wide variety of seafood and even veggies!
Pam says
It certainly would. Thanks, Shashi!
Denay DeGuzman says
Oh my gosh. My taste buds are still tingling with delight! This cajun sauce is savory and delicious!
Pam says
Awww... thanks so much, Denay!
Tavo says
What a delicious treat! The cream on top was truly different!