Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

Tired of marinara? You'll love this easy roasted red pepper pasta sauce! Creamy and tangy, it's delicious on chewy rigatoni or any pasta you like.

Roasted red pepper pasta

When life gives you roasted red peppers, make roasted red pepper pasta! This yummy recipe is a fun way to change up your weeknight pasta rotation, because even though it looks like pasta with marinara, it tastes like something else entirely. The red pepper pasta sauce is lightly creamy, tangy, and filled with sweet and smoky flavor. Sun-dried tomatoes make it deeply savory, and basil adds a refreshing kick.

If you’ve been stuck in a pasta rut lately, I hope you’ll try this recipe. This roasted red pepper pasta is simple, unexpected, and nothing if not flavorful. It’s the perfect way to spice things up!

Roasted red pepper pasta recipe ingredients

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Recipe Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this roasted red pepper pasta recipe:

  • Roasted red peppers, of course! Use a store-bought jar of roasted red peppers, or make your own roasted red bell peppers. Jarred peppers will give the sauce a tangier flavor. Homemade ones will make it taste fresher.
  • Unsweetened almond milk – It helps the peppers blend into a lightly creamy sauce.
  • Fresh basil – You’ll blend some into the sauce and garnish the pasta with more before serving. Fresh and aromatic, it takes this recipe over the top. Don’t skip it!
  • Sun-dried tomatoes – They add rich, savory depth of flavor.
  • Extra-virgin olive oil – For body and richness.
  • Fresh lemon juice – It gives the sauce a bright, tangy kick.
  • Garlic – For savory bite.
  • Smoked paprika – It brings out the peppers’ smoky flavor.
  • Rigatoni pasta – Or any pasta shape you like.
  • Parmesan cheese – It thickens the sauce and adds nutty flavor.
  • Pine nuts – For crunch.
  • Red pepper flakes – For heat.
  • And salt and pepper – To make all the flavors pop!

Find the complete recipe with measurements below.

Sauce ingredients in a blender

How to Make Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

Perfect for weeknights, this roasted red pepper pasta recipe is easy to make. You’ll start by blending up the creamy roasted red pepper pasta sauce:

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce

This sauce is creamy…but it’s not made with heavy cream. Instead, the blended peppers and sun-dried tomatoes create its silky texture.

To make it, place the roasted red peppers, almond milk, basil, sun-dried tomatoes, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, smoked paprika, and salt in a blender. Puree until smooth.

The sauce might seem runny at this point. That’s ok! It’ll thicken up on the stove.

Red pepper sauce in skillet with wooden spoon

Meanwhile, cook the pasta. Not until al dente! Instead, I want you to undercook the pasta here. Drain it after boiling it for 3 to 5 minutes less than the time listed in the package instructions. It will finish cooking in the sauce.

Adding pasta to roasted red pepper sauce

Transfer the sauce to a large skillet. Heat it over medium heat, and add the boiled pasta.

Stirring to coat pasta in sauce

Cook the pasta in the sauce until the sauce thickens and the pasta is al dente. Add the grated Parmesan cheese, and stir until it melts. Season to taste with lemon juice and salt.

Finally, dig in! Serve the pasta topped with pine nuts, shaved Parmesan, red pepper flakes, and more basil. Enjoy!

Make this recipe vegan

Skip the cheese! Instead, serve the pasta with big sprinkles of my vegan Parmesan. It’s a blend of cashews, lemon zest, and nutritional yeast, and it adds great savory, nutty flavor to this recipe.

Roasted red pepper pasta topped with Parmesan, pine nuts, and basil

What to Serve with Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

I often enjoy this pasta as a meal on its own (with crusty bread for mopping up the red pepper sauce, of course!). But if you’re looking for something to serve on the side, you have plenty of options.

Pair the pasta with a vegetable side dish, such as roasted broccoli, roasted fennel, or grilled zucchini. It would also be delicious with any of these salad recipes:

Craving a heartier meal? Serve the pasta with any simply cooked protein you like.

Storage & Reheating

This recipe is best on the day it’s made, but if you have leftovers, you can store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Pop them in the microwave to reheat, or warm them on the stove with a splash of water or vegetable broth to loosen the sauce.

Roasted red pepper pasta recipe

More Veggie Pasta Recipes

If you love this roasted red pepper pasta, try one of these veggie pasta recipes next:

Get This Recipe In Your Inbox
Share your email, and we'll send it straight to your inbox. Plus, enjoy daily doses of recipe inspiration as a bonus!

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

rate this recipe:
5 from 7 votes
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Serves 4
This roasted red pepper pasta is creamy, tangy, and super easy to make! Garnish it with fresh basil and shaved Parmesan for a delicious weeknight meal.

Ingredients

Instructions

  • In a blender, place the red peppers, almond milk, basil, sun-dried tomatoes, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, paprika, and salt. Blend until creamy.
  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta for 10 minutes, approximately 3 to 5 minutes shy of al dente. It will finish cooking in the sauce.
  • Heat a large, deep skillet over medium heat and add the sauce. Stir in the pasta. Cook, stirring, over low heat for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the sauce thickens and the pasta is al dente. Add the grated Parmesan and stir until it melts into the sauce. Remove from the heat.
  • Season to taste with more salt and lemon juice as desired. Top with basil, Parmesan shavings, pine nuts, and red pepper flakes and serve.

Notes

*You can also use homemade Roasted Red Peppers in this recipe. If using homemade peppers, you may want to add a few additional pinches of salt to your final sauce since jarred red peppers contain salt.

4 comments

Leave a comment:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Rate this recipe (after making it)




  1. Val
    08.06.2023

    5 stars
    So easy and delcious!

  2. Tasty Stories
    07.15.2023

    5 stars
    This is really good recipe, I love making pasta but this is different and looks very tasty.

  3. Jan G.
    07.13.2023

    Could you sub the almond milk for oat milk without affecting the flavor? I can’t eat almonds or almond milk. Could I also sub the Parmesan cheese for vegan parmesan cheese?

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      07.17.2023

      Hi Jan, I think oat milk would be fine, but we haven’t tried it. You can use our vegan parmesan recipe, but I would just sprinkle it on at the end since it won’t melt like real parmesan.

A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.