A creamy flavorful roasted red pepper pasta made with a homemade red pepper vegan pasta sauce and your choice of pasta. This makes for a healthy, wholesome, mid-week meal that can be made in just ten minutes (once the sauce is prepared), or under 40 minutes entirely from scratch. Make a large batch of the sauce and freeze for a quick meal, whenever needed!
I very recently posted my roasted red pepper sauce, which is a super versatile sauce for all kinds of dishes. However, my favourite – and the original use – for it will always be as a creamy, more-ish, wholesome roasted red pepper pasta. Choose your choice of pasta and garnish, with the option of adding in extra veg or protein and you have a quick but utterly satisfying meal!
Plus, there are tons of ways to customize the sauce to your flavor palette, and pretty much customize every single element of this dish. So next time you’re craving pasta but don’t want to go for the bog-standard tomato sauce, why not give this one a try instead – for a delicious weeknight meal.
The Ingredients
If you’re making this dish entirely from scratch, then there are technically 7 ingredients you need, with two optional. However, this pasta dish is basically made up of two elements:
- The Roasted red pepper pasta sauce – Made up of six ingredients, including red pepper, tomato, garlic clove, dairy-free milk, paprika, olive oil (and salt and pepper), this simple sauce can be made in around 30 minutes from scratch, using raw peppers. You can also use jarred roasted red peppers for a sauce ready in just minutes.
I love to keep a few portions of this sauce in my freezer ready for when I’m craving this pasta dish, so I can simply allow it to thaw and then reheat in minutes, as the pasta cooks. - The Pasta – For this particular recipe, I’ve used dried spaghetti. However, the pasta that you use is entirely up to you. If you’re gluten-free then use a GF option and you can use dried pasta or fresh. Including this Vegan Pasta, Rainbow Spaghetti (all-natural), Spinach pasta, or even Homemade Pappardelle (floral).
Optional Ingredients
- Fresh basil or parsley – to garnish
- Parmesan – or some nutritional yeast if you’re vegan/dairy-free
There are various other ways to customize this sauce to your liking – including adding spice, extra creaminess, etc. For the full list of suggestions, check out my recipe notes below.
The Step By Step Instructions
Before you cook the pasta, prepare the roasted red pepper sauce. If you’re preparing it from scratch, then follow the instructions as written on this post. If you have some in the fridge/freezer, then you can simply re-heat it as the pasta cooks.
Bring salted water to boil over medium-high heat and cook the pasta as per the package instructions. I usually cook mine for 9-10 minutes for a slightly al dente texture.
Remove the pasta from the water and drain.
You can actually save a small amount of the pasta water to add to the roasted red pepper sauce. Due to the starchy, saltiness of the water, it help to add flavor, thicken the sauce, and helps to bind the pasta and sauce together for silky results.
Top Tip: Other ways to preserve and use the pasta water include:
- to water plants
- within bread and pizza doughs
- to soak legumes overnight
- for steaming vegetables
- within soups
Either add the pasta to the saucepan that you heated the sauce in and toss well before serving. Or serve separately for people to choose the amount of sauce they want with their pasta.
Optionally, sprinkle some fresh parsley or basil, crushed red pepper flakes, and/or Parmesan/nutritional yeast. Enjoy!
How To Store
This pasta is best eaten immediately, while warm. However, leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days.
To reheat you can simply place it in the microwave or reheat on the stovetop.
This dish should also be freezer-friendly for up to three months, though it isn’t something I’ve tried.
Recipe Notes & Variations
- Feel free to add extra veggies to this pasta dish. Depending on how long they take to boil, I’ll often add them directly into the same water that I use to cook the pasta. Or you can add some Mediterranean Roasted Vegetables.
- Feel free to add extra protein with tofu or Lightly Spiced Easy Crispy Chickpeas.
- You can, optionally, garnish with crushed nuts, toasted pine nuts, or seeds.
- You can easily turn this dish into a pasta bake by placing the pasta, sauce, and veggies in an oven-dish and topping with breadcrumbs and vegan cheese. If all the elements are newly cooked and hot then simply broil the top until the cheese has melted and browned. Otherwise, place the dish in the oven to heat through for 15-20 minutes at around 180ºC/356ºF.
- To Add Spice: Add a red chili or jalapeño to the sauce. Remove the seeds for less heat and increase/decrease the amount used depending on how spicy you’d like the sauce. Depending on what dish you’re using this for – you could also drizzle over some Chili Oil or red pepper flakes.
- For a creamier sauce: You can add a dash of plant-based cream such as coconut cream or  Oat Milk Creamer (or dairy, if you consume it). A spoonful of unsalted cashew butter or almond butter can also add a delicious, rich, and creamy element to the sauce.Â
- If your sauce is too thin then you can add a little cornstarch to thicken it. The pasta water will also help thicken the sauce due to the starchiness. If the sauce becomes too thick then add a little extra plant-based milk/cream.
Related Recipes
I have a few vegetarian and vegan pasta recipes on my blog – including creamy sauces, pesto pasta, and more.
- How To Make Vegan Pasta At Home
- Super Creamy Vegan Mushroom Sauce Pasta
- Easy Vegan Bechamel Pasta Bake
- Vegetarian One-Pot Pasta bake
- Fresh Home-made Spinach Green Pasta Salad
- ‘Zoodles’ With Home-made pistachio Pesto
- Easy Roasted Cherry Tomato Pasta
You may also like…
- Gluten-free Muhammara Dip (Roasted Red Pepper Dip)
- Delicious Vegan Basil Pesto (with pistachios)
- Carrot Leaf Pesto: Waste reduction pesto recipe
- Simple Salad With Roasted Peppers
If you try this roasted red pepper pasta recipe, then let me know your thoughts and any questions in the comments below. Also, feel free to tag me in your recreations on Instagram @AlphaFoodie.
Roasted Red Pepper Pasta (Vegan and Vegetarian Options)
Ingredients
- 200 gr pasta Spaghetti or other
- 2 cups roasted red pepper sauce see recipe on the blog
- parsley or basil optional
- parmesan / nutritional yeast (for vegan) optional
Instructions
- Before you cook the pasta, prepare the roasted red pepper sauce. If you’re preparing it from scratch, then follow the instructions as written on this post. If you have some in the fridge/freezer, then you can simply re-heat it as the pasta cooks.
- Bring salted water to boil over medium-high heat and cook the pasta as per the package instructions. I usually cook mine for 9-10 minutes for a slightly al dente texture.
- Remove the pasta from the water and drain.You can actually save a small amount of the pasta water to add to the roasted red pepper sauce. Due to the starchy, saltiness of the water, it help to add flavor, thicken the sauce, and helps to bind the pasta and sauce together for silky results.*
- Either add the pasta to the saucepan that you heated the sauce in and toss well before serving. Or serve separately for people to choose the amount of sauce they want with their pasta.
- Optionally, sprinkle some fresh parsley or basil, crushed red pepper flakes, and/or Parmesan/nutritional yeast. Enjoy!
How To Store
- This pasta is best eaten immediately, while warm. However, leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days.To reheat you can simply place it in the microwave or reheat on the stovetop.This dish should also be freezer-friendly for up to three months, though it isn't something I've tried.
Notes
- To water plants with
- In bread and pizza doughs
- To soak legumes overnight
- For steaming vegetables
- Within soups
- Feel free to add extra veggies to this pasta dish. Depending on how long they take to boil, I’ll often add them directly into the same water that I use to cook the pasta.
- Feel free to add extra protein with tofu or Lightly Spiced Easy Crispy Chickpeas.
- You can, optionally, garnish with crushed nuts, toasted pine nuts, or seeds.
- You can easily turn this dish into a pasta bake by placing the pasta, sauce, and veggies in an oven-dish and topping with breadcrumbs and vegan cheese. If all the elements are newly cooked and hot then simply broil the top until the cheese has melted and browned. Otherwise, place the dish in the oven to heat through for 15-20 minutes at around 180C/356F.
- To Add Spice:Â Add a red chili or jalapeno to the sauce. Remove the seeds for less heat and increase/decrease the amount used depending on how spicy you’d like the sauce. Depending on what dish you’re using this for – you could also drizzle over some Chili Oil or red pepper flakes.
- For a creamier sauce: You can add a dash of plant-based cream such as coconut cream or  Oat Milk Creamer (or dairy, if you consume it). A spoonful of unsalted cashew butter or almond butter can also add a delicious, rich, and creamy element to the sauce.Â
- If your sauce is too thin then you can add a little cornstarch to thicken it. The pasta water will also help thicken the sauce due to the starchiness. If the sauce becomes too thick then add a little extra plant-based milk/cream.
Nancy
Yumm This is my go-to recipe for quick delicious healthy pasta sauce and your website NEVER fails to deliver excellent recipes and ideas. Thank you!!
Support @ Alphafoodie
Thank you so much for your comment, Nancy.