The protein cooking time listed in this recipe has been updated.
As of December 2025, we’ve revised cooking times for all our proteins to reflect improved food safety guidance.
Check out the latest recommended times in our Cooking Guidelines.
Cajun beef & butternut pasta
It’s mince, but not like Mum makes it… Onion, garlic and chilli-flecked beef mince is tumbled with roasted Cajun-spiced butternut squash and pasta, then sprinkled with spring onions. Perfect if you like your comfort food to come with a kick.
SWK: Source of fibre
SWK: High protein
Plants 5
Serving size
Ingredients
- 250g beef mince (5% fat or less)
- 1 small butternut squash
- 1 tbsp Cajun spice mix (Cumin, Black Pepper, Sea Salt, Fennel, Green Cardamom, Coriander, Rubbed Oregano, Rubbed Thyme, Paprika Flakes, Cayenne Pepper.)
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic clove
- 1 chilli
- 3 spring onion
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 200g passata (tomatoes, salt, citric acid)
- 1 beef stock cube (use half) (Celery) (sea salt, potato starch* , palm oil* , vegetables* 4.8% (onions* 4%, carrots* 0.5%, mushrooms* 0.3%), sugar*, natural flavour caramelised* , yeast extract, beef powder* 1.5%, beef* 1.2%, spices and herbs* (parsley* , black pepper* , rosemary*, garlic*, turmeric*, bay leaves*) * Organic ingredients)
- 200g pasta (Wheat) (Durum Wheat Semolina (Wheat Gluten))
Nutritional Information
Calories: 708
Protein: 45g
Carbs: 116g
Fat: 8.9g
Ingredients
- 1 large butternut squash
- 2 tbsp Cajun spice mix (Cumin, Black Pepper, Sea Salt, Fennel, Green Cardamom, Coriander, Rubbed Oregano, Rubbed Thyme, Paprika Flakes, Cayenne Pepper.)
- 2 onion
- 4 garlic clove
- 1 chilli
- 5 spring onion
- 500g beef mince (5% fat or less)
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 200g passata (tomatoes, salt, citric acid)
- 1 beef stock cube (Celery) (sea salt, potato starch* , palm oil* , vegetables* 4.8% (onions* 4%, carrots* 0.5%, mushrooms* 0.3%), sugar*, natural flavour caramelised* , yeast extract, beef powder* 1.5%, beef* 1.2%, spices and herbs* (parsley* , black pepper* , rosemary*, garlic*, turmeric*, bay leaves*) * Organic ingredients)
- 400g pasta (Wheat) (Durum Wheat Semolina (Wheat Gluten))
Nutritional Information
Calories: 664
Protein: 43g
Carbs: 107g
Fat: 8.8g
Cajun beef & butternut pasta
It’s mince, but not like Mum makes it… Onion, garlic and chilli-flecked beef mince is tumbled with roasted Cajun-spiced butternut squash and pasta, then sprinkled with spring onions. Perfect if you like your comfort food to come with a kick.
Cook time:
35 mins
Cuisine:
American
Food group:
Beef
Allergens: Wheat
Cooking Instructions
Before you start
- 1 roasting tray
- 1 saucepan
- 1 large non stick frying pan
Get the squash in the oven
- Heat your oven to 220ºC/fan 200ºC/gas 7. Peel and halve the squash lengthways, discard the seeds and cut into 2cm cubes.
- Put the squash on a baking tray lined with baking paper and spritz with low-calorie cooking spray. Sprinkle over a generous pinch of spice mix and roast for 20-25 mins until soft and golden.
Prep the veg
- Meanwhile, peel and finely dice the onions. Peel and crush the garlic. Finely dice the chillies (deseed for less heat), and thinly slice the spring onions.
Sizzle & simmer
- Spritz a large non-stick frying pan with cooking spray and put it over a medium-high heat. Fry the onions, garlic and chillies (to taste) for 5 mins.
- Add the mince and remaining spice mix and cook for 3 mins.
- Squeeze in the tomato purée and passata, then crumble in half the stock cube, pour in 250ml water (use all the stock and 350ml water for 4 portions) and stir well. Simmer the sauce for 6-8 mins, then add the roasted squash.
Cook the pasta
- At the same time, cook the pasta in boiling water for 8-9 mins, then drain.
Combine & serve
- Stir the pasta into the sauce and sprinkle over the spring onions.