20 minute weeknight Spicy Italian Sausage Pasta, with a rich tomato-based cream sauce and plenty of crumbled spicy Italian sausage!
JUMP TO RECIPEThis spicy Italian sausage pasta is clutch for a busy weeknight, and is both pantry and wallet friendly! It's easily one of my favorite weeknight dinners, and a great dish the whole family will love!
My method builds a deeply flavorful sauce quickly, starting with browning the sausage well and infusing the oil with it’s flavor, then adding aromatics and wine before finishing with diced tomatoes and cream for a rustic sauce.
The result is a creamy sauce with bits of crushed tomatoes and just the right balance of heat.
Table of Contents
- Ingredient Notes
- Step By Step Visual Guide
- Substitutions and Additions
- Storing and Reheating Leftovers
- Serving Suggestions
- More Great Pasta Recipes
Ingredient Notes
To make this easy pasta dish (perfect for busy weeknights), you will need:
- A half a pound of rigatoni pasta, or your favorite pasta shape. This pasta will work with any of your favorite pastas, but I love how to sauce sticks to the rigatoni pasta. For best texture, use a short, shaped pasta like penne or ziti, rather than a spaghetti or angel hair.
- Butter and olive oil, for sautéing, flavor, and browning. The milk solids in the butter help to get the sausage nice and well browned, too!
- Spicy or Hot Fresh Italian sausage, casings removed. This would be about 3 links. You can also use ground, uncased spicy Italian sausage. I personally prefer the flavor profile of a spicy Italian style sausage for this recipe, as it lends a great, bold flavor to the pasta. You can also use mild or sweet Italian sausage if you prefer things less hot, and you'll still get that great flavor that comes with a really well made Italian sausage.
- 5 cloves garlic, sliced or minced. If slicing, make sure they are very thin so they blend well into the sauce. You can also use a garlic press for a finer texture. The more you cut or press the garlic, the stronger it's flavor will be.
- Tomato paste. This adds a rich boost of tomato flavor to this quick and easy pasta. Don't skip the 2-3 minutes of cooking it until it turns deep red- which cooks out the raw flavor and enhances its flavor.
- Dried basil and crushed red pepper flakes, for some classic Italian flavor, and a touch of heat.
- Dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc. Stay away from anything overly sweet. If you like, you could also sub in a dry red wine or chicken broth.
- Heavy cream. This is key for the creamy sauce, and blends perfectly with the sausage, tomato, and aromatics.
- Canned fire roasted diced tomatoes. I love the fire roasted variety of diced tomatoes for this recipe, since they add a nice smoky depth to the overall dish.
- Grated parmesan cheese for nutty flavor. You'll add this right at the end. A little extra sprinkled on top before serving is also delicious!
Step By Step Visual Guide
Below is a step by step guide with visual and sensory cues for making the perfect Italian Sausage Pasta, every time!
Substitutions and Additions
This Spicy Sausage Pasta is easily adaptable to what you have on hand. Here are a few swaps and additions for working with what you have in your fridge and pantry to make this easy weeknight meal.
| Spice Level | Want things a bit less spicy? Try sweet Italian sausage or mild Italian sausage instead of the hot and spicy Italian sausage, or omit the crushed red pepper flakes. If you like your pasta EXTRA spicy, you can add in more red pepper flakes! |
| Liquid Swaps | Not into using wine, or don't have any on hand? Swap it for chicken stock! Don't have fire roasted diced tomatoes? Regular will work, too! You could also use fresh roasted tomatoes in place of canned tomatoes. You'll need about 1 ½ cups. |
| Veggie Add-Ins | Add sautéed bell pepper, jarred roasted red peppers, or fresh spinach at the very end for some extra nutrients! |
| Meat Swaps | Try ground pork instead of the pork sausage. Just be sure to add some red pepper flakes and crushed fennel seeds for extra heat and sausage-like flavor. You could also use Italian style chicken sausage or turkey sausage. |
Storing and Reheating Leftovers
Storing. Store cooled leftover pasta in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Freezing is not recommend for this recipe.
Reheating. Add a splash of milk or water to loosen everything up and get the sauce nice and glossy. Warm over low heat in a saucepan, or microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring in between.
Spicy Italian Sausage Pasta Recipe
Equipment
- large saute pan
- large soup pot or Dutch oven
- colander or spider skimmer
Ingredients
- 8 oz rigatoni pasta, or your favorite pasta shape
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½ lb spicy Italian sausage, casings removed
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 5 cloves garlic, sliced or minced
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 cup dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 14.5 oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes
- ¼ cup reserved pasta water
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
Instructions
- 1. Boil your pasta in salted water according to package directions for al dente. Reserve ¼ cup of the pasta water for the sauce before draining. 2. While pasta cooks, make the sauce. In a large deep sauce pan over medium heat, heat olive oil and butter, until butter is fully melted. 3. Add the sausage to the pan, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, breaking up as you go, until browned, 5-6 minutes. 4. Add the garlic and cook until just fragrant, 1 minute. 5. Add tomato paste, dried basil and crushed red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring occasionally for 2-3 minutes, until color deepens. 6. Deglaze pan with wine, and cook, stirring for 4-5 minutes until wine is mostly evaporated. 7. Add the diced tomatoes, and cream, and simmer for 5-6 minutes until sauce is slightly thickened. 8. Add the cooked pasta, reserved pasta water and parmesan cheese, and toss to combine. Cook 2-3 minutes more until thick and glossy. 9. Serve with fresh chopped basil, and additional grated parmesan.
Nutrition
Serving Suggestions
This Spicy Sausage Rigatoni tastes great topped with a generous portion of fresh grated parmesan cheese, and some fresh torn basil.
I like to serve it to guests with a light and peppery arugula salad with a simple lemon and olive oil dressing, and some crusty garlic bread, or a nice veggie side, like garlicky broccolini.
More Great Pasta Recipes
Try my creamy and Spicy Vodka Pasta!
Make a batch of my Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce.
Whip up some of my Easy Cashew Basil Pesto.
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Kerri says
This was perfect! Made exactly as the recipe and it wasn't too spicy. Hubby said that he could use more sausage, so next time I'm going to add the other 2 links.
Sharon Farnell says
So happy you and your hubby enjoyed the recipe! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Patty says
I made this dish for my parents, and they loved it. Full of flavor and everyone wanted seconds. I will definitely make it again.
Sharon Farnell says
Thank you Patty! So happy you and your family enjoyed the recipe! 🙂
Alicia says
Hubby said he'd eat this over any Italian restaurant pasta! It's become a new regular in our menu rotation. Thanks for the recipe!
Sharon Farnell says
So happy to hear this, Alicia!
Rachel Sutherland says
What a delicious recipe! I will be making this again very soon!
Sharon Farnell says
Thank you Rachel!
CC says
Excellent recipe! I made a double batch to make sure we’d have plenty of leftovers. It was delicious.
Sharon Farnell says
Thanks so much! So happy you enjoyed the recipe 🙂
Sandy says
Wow, so delicious and easy!! I doubled the recipe and used ground hot Italian sausage and subbed one can of fire-roasted tomatoes and one can of diced and crushed tomatoes and also subbed chicken broth for the wine as I did not have the wine and had only one can of fire-roasted tomatoes. My family loved it and my 11 year-old daughter gobbled it down! This will be made again very soon in our home.
Sharon Farnell says
So happy your family enjoyed the recipe, Sandy!
Avery C says
This recipe was perfect. Perfect for a week night dinner, and oh my - the leftovers were the perfect lunch for work! I swear, it got better each day!!! Definitely don’t hesitate to make this recipe. I could not recommend it enough.
Sharon Farnell says
Thanks so much, Avery! So happy you enjoyed the recipe!
Lisa says
Doubled the recipe and it was delicious. No leftovers! Thank you
Sharon Farnell says
So happy to hear this, Lisa!
Lena Rink says
So good!
Sharon Farnell says
Thanks, Lena!
Jacqueline Hahnlen says
Came out amazing! I did tweak it though. I did a full pound of hot Italian sausage, did 16oz of the rigatoni, 1 cup of grated Parmesan, and a tablespoon of flour to thicken it up a bit. I’m really happy with the outcome!!
Sharon Farnell says
So happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe!
Alicia says
Amazing!
Devin says
I recently made this and swear it's one of the best dishes I've ever cooked (thanks to you!). My husband said "let's keep this in the dinner rotation" which he doesn't say often haha and the kids happily enjoyed left overs the next day which says A LOT! Looking forward to making another one of your recipes this week. Thanks!
Sharon says
So happy to hear this! Thank you Devin!