Easy 30 Minute Sausage and Pepper Pasta

Name: Easy 30 Minute Sausage and Pepper Pasta
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 400g rigatoni; Italian style chicken sausages, casings removed; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 brown onion, diced; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tin chopped tomatoes; 2 tablespoons tomato puree; 1/4 cup beef or chicken stock made with a stock cube *see notes; 1/4 cup red wine (optional) *see notes; 3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves picked; 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano; 1/2 tablespoon Italian herb mix; 1 bell pepper (yellow or red), thinly sliced; Parmesan cheese and parsley for serving

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This easy sausage and pepper pasta is the perfect weeknight dinner. It's got spicy Italian sausage, sweet bell peppers and crushed tomatoes that simmer to a rich and hearty sauce. The best part is that it only takes 30 minutes.

Sausage and pepper pasta in a white bowl

We're no strangers to comforting bold pasta dishes around here. I make pasta at least once a week sometimes more, so if you need some more ideas let me introduce you to some favourites like this creamy chicken pasta (one of my most popular) or this super simple pasta amatriciana or this one-pan chorizo pasta.

But let's talk about this sausage pepper pasta really quick. It's like the quicker and easier version of my chicken in tomato sauce. It's kept lighter by using Italian sausage but made with chicken rather than pork. And I can tell you it's a game-changer! Diced tomatoes, garlic, Italian herbs and red bell pepper are all you need to create an incredible dinner.

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Why This Recipe Works
Ingredients needed
Step By Step Instructions
Recipe FAQ's
Substitutions & Variations
Equipment
Storage
Top tips
Recipe

Why This Recipe Works

It's a 30-minute dinner that everyone in your house will love.
The garlic, Italian herbs, spicy sausage and sweet bell pepper are a flavour match made in heaven.
It's great for meal prep because it stores and reheats just as good (if not better) than when it's made fresh.
You only need a handful of ingredients- most of them are pantry items.

Ingredients needed

Aldi ingredients for sausage pepper pasta

rigatoni- or another type of pasta with ridges so that the sauce hugs those noodles
olive oil
spicy Italian sausages- I've used chicken but you can use regular pork ones
chopped/ diced or crushed tomatoes
red pepper flakes
red or yellow bell pepper
onion and garlic
chicken stock
tomato and grilled pepper stir through sauce

See the recipe card for quantities.

Step By Step Instructions

Step 1 & 2

Remove the chicken sausage (or whatever sausage you're using) from the casing. Heat the olive oil in a skillet, cast iron pan or high sided frying pan.
Brown the sausage meat and remove to a bowl. Add the diced onion and garlic to the pan and brown well , scraping up all the brown bits on the bottom of the pan from the sausages.

chicken and onions sauteing for pasta recipe

Step 3 & 4

Add in the tomato paste/ puree, the herbs and the beef stock. You can use chicken stock if you prefer it. Or even vegetable stock works here if that's all you have. If you're adding in some red wine, you would pour it in here.
Pour in the tin of chopped tomatoes, the roasted pepper stir through sauce (this is optional) I just think it adds a hint of chargrilled smokiness that really pushes all the other flavours forward. Then stir in the bell pepper and continue to simmer gently until the peppers are tender and the sauce is hot.

Step 5 & 6

Add the sausage back into the sauce and top with lots of fresh chopped parsley.
If the sauce is too thick for your liking, stir in some of the reserved pasta water to get it to the perfect consistency.

Recipe FAQ's

Can I add in extra veggies?

Absolutely! This 30-minute sausage pepper pasta can take almost any veggies you've got hanging around that you need to use. Carrots, celery, mushrooms, courgette (zucchini), pretty much anything goes here!

Can I skip the wine?

You bet! The wine adds a great depth of flavour, but feel free to skip it. There's lots of flavour going on from the browned onions, sausage and stock.

Substitutions & Variations

This pasta with sausage and peppers is so adaptable! I've listed some of the most common adaptations you may want to make.

Making a tomato cream sauce - add in some single or double cream to create a very luxurious rose sauce
Spicy (or not!) - if you love spice then feel free to go heavy on the crushed chilli flakes. If not you can use a regular pork sausage and skip the chillies.
Vegetarian - Yes! you can even make this vegetarian by using lentils or chopped mushrooms in this sauce. Just be sure to brown the mushrooms well before adding them in.

This 30-minute sausage pasta is similar but with less spice.

Equipment

Equipment can have a big impact on how a recipe turns out. For this recipe, it really couldn't get more straightforward.

cast iron casserole pan
zester for the garlic
pasta pot
colander for draining the pasta

Storage

Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the hob until hot. You may need to add in some water to loosen the sauce a little.

The sauce is amazing for freezing! I would freeze it before adding any pasta. Pasta can get really mushy once it's defrosted unless it's a thicker noodle-like lasagna sheets.

Top tips

If you use the chicken sausages add a few extra drops of olive oil to compensate for the lack of oil in the chicken. Regular Italian pork sausages are high in fat that render out as it cooks.

Need more simple meal ideas? Check these out-

Need help with meal planning? You can find our (Aldi ingredients only) weekly meal plans here! Sign up to receive them free every week or take our quick meal planning course and grab the blank meal planner and use all these recipes to create your own meal plans. Follow along on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook.

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