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This Creamy Sausage Pasta is a quick and easy one pot recipe. It makes a brilliant midweek dinner, where the pasta is cooked in a super tasty sauce, all in a single pan. 

This is simply an all-round hit with the whole family!

Easy sausage pasta recipe made in one pot with peppers, tomatoes and garlic.

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, one pan meals ARE LIFE.

The water that the pasta cooks in transforms into a delicious, sticky, silky sauce right there as it cooks the pasta. What could be easier?

This recipe for Sausage Pasta uses a few extra tricks: cream cheese for a creamy sauce without any heavy cream, chunks of sausage for mini meatballs without the faff and magical fennel seeds which transform it into something really special (more on that in a minute).

Check out some of my other winning one pan recipes here.


Why you’ll love this Sausage Pasta recipe

⭐️ Dinner in under 30 minutes

⭐️ All made in a single pan

⭐️ Super fresh, tasty and creamy


Penne and sausage one pot past recipe with a creamy sauce and peppers.

Variations on this recipe

⭐️ Sausage Pasta Bake – Pop some breadcrumbs on top and melt under a hot grill before serving. (If you plan to do this, you will need to add all of the stock, and possibly a little more, as all of it will be absorbed by the extra heat)

⭐️ Cheesy Sausage Pasta Bake – Add plenty of grated cheese on top and melt under a hot grill before serving. (If you plan to do this, you will need to add all of the stock, and possibly a little more, as all of it will be absorbed by the extra heat)

⭐️ Spicy Sausage Pasta – Increase the chilli flakes in the recipe to your taste

⭐️ Healthy Sausage Pasta – Remove the cream cheese from the recipe and use lower fat sausages, or even just pork mince


More recipes with sausages…


Sausage Pasta Ingredients

  • Onion and garlic – If you want a shortcut, frozen, pre prepared is perfect (it’s what I use mostly as one of my favourite shortcuts). Fresh is fine too
  • Olive oil – Regular type, not extra virgin!
  • Sausages – Try to use a good quality, high meat content sausages
  • Red peppers (or bell peppers/capsicum if you’re in the USA) – You can use other colours (or other veg in fact) but I think these work well with the other flavours
  • Pasta – Any dried pasta works well. I haven’t tried it with wholemeal pasta but it would probably just take a little longer to cook
  • Tinned tomatoes – Any type of chopped tinned tomatoes will work for this. I do find that better quality tomatoes are noticeable if you can
  • Fennel seeds – These little monkeys are controversial! I do not like aniseed flavour AT ALL, but in this dish they do somehow just elevate it to something special. Please invest in a jar and try it, and let me know what you think!
  • Italian herbs – Any dried Italian herb mix is fine, or oregano if you don’t have a mix
  • Chilli flakes – You can add more if you like Spicy Sausage Pasta. It is worth adding this, even for kids, as it really adds a warmth to the dish
  • Vegetable stock – Any good quality, fairly low salt, vegetable stock is fine. I think Marigold brand is the best around
  • Cream cheese – Any brand is fine, low fat or regular
  • Parmesan – Grana Padano is a good, slightly cheaper alternative to Parmesan if you prefer
  • Fresh basil – Fresh basil can get very squishy when chopped. I tend to snip into strips with scissors

How to make Sausage Pasta

Onions and garlic softening and frying in frying pan for the recipe Sausage Pasta.

1. Soften the onions in oil in a large pan with a lid. Meanwhile make up your sausage ‘meatballs’.

Peppers, sausage and onions frying in a frying pan for the recipe Sausage Pasta.

2. Add the sausages to the pan, then the peppers.

Ingredients for one pot pasta in a frying pan ready to cook for the recipe Sausage Pasta.

3. When the sausage is starting to blacken, add the rest of the ingredients and pop the lid on until the pasta is al dente.

Hands holding a bowl of easy one post creamy sausage pasta recipe.

4. Add in the cream cheese, parmesan and basil. Stir though to heat and serve immediately.

Hint: I always make up 750ml of stock but only add 500ml to start with. I then check on the pasta as it cooks and add more if it’s looking dry.


Substitutions

  • Veggie sausages – You can try this as a vegetarian alternative dish by using chunks of veggie sausages instead. It will work really well
  • Vegetables – Feel free to mix up the kind of veggies you add in here, according to your tastes or what you have in and needs using up

Leftovers

In the fridge You can keep this recipe in the fridge for 3 days.

NB If you don’t serve this as soon as it’s cooked, you’ll find that the sauce absorbs into the pasta and there’s not a lot left. It won’t affect the taste, you may just want to add a splash more stock or some cream cheese when you warm it through.

In the freezer I’m not a big fan of freezing pasta as it can go quite mushy when defrosted and reheated.

All that said, there’s nothing wrong with freezing for lunch if you have leftovers, it’s just not quite as good as fresh or reheated from the fridge.

Top tips

Making the sausage ‘meatballs’

Sausage ‘skin’ pieces can be a bit yucky, so I just take each sausage and cut along the length and remove the sausage meat from the skin. Break it into large (or small) chunks as you pop into the pan.

I like to squish some of the sausage chunks with the spoon as they cook so that they go nice and crispy.

How much liquid to use

I always make up 750ml of stock but only add 500ml to start with. I then check on the pasta as it cooks and add more if it’s looking dry. If you like very ‘wet’ saucy pasta, go ahead and add it all at the start.

The secret ingredient of fennel seeds

Please do try the fennel seeds in this – they really make the dish!

FAQs

When will the pasta be cooked?

It’s important to add the cream cheese etc JUST before the pasta is cooked, so when it is still ‘al dente‘ (has some ‘bite’ to it) as the pasta will continue to cook in the heat of the sauce and pan and you do not want it to be stodgy.

Can you recommend a good pan for this recipe?

Try and use a big lidded pan for this recipe. I have tried-and-tested some one-pan pans recently and there were some good ones in that list. Hope this pan review helps.

Let me know how you got on and what you thought of these recipes. Please rate the recipe using the ⭐️ below.

Also I’d LOVE to see your cooking creations. If you’d like to share yours with me, you can tag me on Instagram (@tamingtwins).

4.92 from 191 votes

Creamy Sausage Pasta

This Creamy Sausage Pasta is a quick and easy one pot recipe. It makes a brilliant midweek dinner, where the pasta is cooked in a super tasty the sauce, all in a single pan. 
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 4 People

Ingredients 

  • 1 tsp Olive oil
  • 1 Large onion, Peeled and chopped
  • 3 Cloves garlic, Peeled and crushed
  • 400 g Good quality pork sausages
  • 2 Large Red peppers, Deseeded and sliced
  • 250 g Dry pasta
  • 400 g Tin of chopped tomatoes
  • 1 tsp Fennel seeds
  • 2 tsp Italian herbs
  • 0.5 tsp Dried chilli flakes
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 750 ml Vegetable stock, See notes
  • 250 g Cream cheese
  • 100 g Parmesan cheese, Grated
  • 25 g Fresh basil, Chopped, optional

Instructions 

  • Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan or frying pan (one which has a lid) over a medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and fry gently until softened (about 4 – 5 minutes).
  • Remove the sausages from their skins and plop into the pan in small chunks, add the pepper slices, turn up the heat and let everything fry for 5 minutes until the sausage chunks are golden and the peppers are just starting to blacken at the edges.
  • Add the dry pasta, chopped tomatoes, fennel seeds, Italian herbs, chilli flakes, salt and pepper and about 500ml of the stock. Give everything a good stir, pop the lid on and cook for 13 – 15 minutes until the pasta is ALMOST cooked through and most of the liquid has been absorbed.
  • * Note! I always make up 750ml of stock and then check on the pasta as it cooks and add more if needed, if it's looking dry. If you like very 'wet' saucy pasta, go ahead and add it all at the start.
  • When the pasta is JUST ALMOST cooked, add the cream cheese, parmesan cheese and fresh basil (if using). Give everything a good stir and leave on the heat for a minute or two just to warm through.
  • Serve immediately.

Notes

Onions and Garlic: I use preprepared, frozen as I am always looking for a shortcut!
Adding the stock: I always make up 750ml of stock and then check on the pasta as it cooks and add more if needed, if it’s looking dry. If you like very ‘wet’ saucy pasta, go ahead and add it all at the start
Veggie sausages: You can try this as a vegetarian alternative dish by using chunks of veggie sausages instead. It will work really well
Vegetables: Feel free to mix up the kind of veggies you add in here, according to your tastes or what you have in and needs using up
Fennel seeds: Please do try the fennel seeds in this – they really make the dish!

Nutrition

Calories: 684kcalCarbohydrates: 72gProtein: 42gFat: 25gSaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 122mgSodium: 2079mgPotassium: 1121mgFiber: 7gSugar: 17gVitamin A: 4080IUVitamin C: 120.8mgCalcium: 416mgIron: 4.3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Family Food, Italian
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Sarah Rossi founder of TamingTwins.com and author of 'What's for Dinner?' books.

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64 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    “Restaurant quality” direct quote from the husband! Stuck for dinner, realised I had all the ingredients for this and bam, done in 30 mins 👏🏽

  2. 5 stars
    Just made this for the first time and it was delicious! For something so simple and easy to make, it had lots of flavour and a wonderful texture. Sorry, I didn’t add the fennel as I can’t stand the stuff, but it really was lovely without it! We will be making it again 🥰

  3. 5 stars
    Like someone said above, the sausages looked weirdly pale and all fell out of their chunk shapes into one squishy mess – I think because I used cheaper sausages! But I persevered, tipped it all into a proper frying pan (was using a Dutch oven and it was too hot) – anyway the whole thing came out delicious and looked good. I’ll make it again!

  4. 5 stars
    A firm family favourite, so easy and tasty.
    Really reminds me if the Mediterranean biome at the Eden project lol as the smell is so gorgeous

  5. 5 stars
    Fantastic meal. I added courgettes and chilli flakes and substituted half of the cream cheese amount with natural yogurt. Amazing 🤩 total hit with my family ❤️

  6. 5 stars
    Wow! The holy grail of recipes for a busy family. Super easy, quick to make and really delivers on flavour too! A big hit in our house, will definitely be making again.