Italian Sausage and Peppers Pasta

A creamy, comforting Italian sausage and peppers pasta recipe that comes together in under 30 minutes for an easy weeknight dinner. It’s so warm and savory, it’s the perfect dish for colder weather!

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As we head into the colder months of the year, we find ourselves craving warm, cozy dishes like pasta and soup more often. Not only are these fall and winter dinners super comforting, but they’re typically quick and easy to make after a long, busy day. Which is why we especially love hearty, creamy dishes like our Italian sausage and peppers pasta – served with a side of rustic Italian bread, of course! This savory pasta is the perfect easy weeknight dinner you can prepare in under 30 minutes.

Italian style sausage and peppers pasta on a plate

Growing up, my mom used to make a recipe called sausage and pepper rustica: penne pasta with Italian gravy, sliced sausage, and sautéed bell peppers. The savory sausage and warm bell peppers paired so deliciously with my mom’s spicy pasta sauce that it was one of my favorite cold weather dinners. So I drew inspiration from these comforting flavors to craft my own recipe for pasta with Italian sausage and peppers.

This Italian style sausage and peppers pasta is so creamy, comforting, and cozy, it’s hard to resist eating the whole batch in one sitting. It’s everything you could want in a homemade pasta dinner! The flavors all meld together and the pasta soaks up the creamy sauce for hearty, savory goodness in every bite.

Sausage Pasta Recipe Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy sausage and peppers pasta:

  • Fettuccine
  • Hot Italian ground sausage
  • Olive oil
  • Garlic
  • Red bell pepper
  • Onion
  • Crushed tomatoes
  • Water
  • Seasonings – crushed red pepper flakes, dried basil, dried oregano, and salt

A thicker pasta noodle like fettuccine supports the creamy sauce and sausage in this pasta dish, but you can also use spaghetti or linguine. Diced red bell pepper and yellow onion offer some sweetness and freshness to contrast the savory, fatty sausage for a well-balanced flavor. And canned crushed tomatoes, along with some water, make up an easy base for your creamy pasta sauce. Finally, seasoning this dish with garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, basil, oregano, and salt brings out those delicious Italian flavors!

While we wouldn’t necessarily describe this sausage and peppers pasta dish as super spicy, the hot Italian sausage does give it some heat. Spicy sausage adds an extra punch of flavor for a pasta dinner that’s not overly spicy, but has just enough heat to warm your insides – like a good comfort food dinner should! You can substitute with regular Italian sausage, but note that it’ll result in a milder flavor profile.

Spicy Italian sausage and pepper pasta made with fettuccine

How To Make Italian Sausage Pasta

To make this creamy sausage and peppers pasta, you’ll only need two pieces of cookware: a large pot for boiling the pasta, and a large frying pan for making the sauce. The peppers, onions, and sausage all cook together, and then the sauce is built around these ingredients to fully incorporate all the delicious, fatty flavor of the sausage. This is what makes this dish so creamy!

Here’s how to make Italian style sausage and peppers pasta at home:

  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions.
  2. While the pasta cooks, sauté peppers, onions, and garlic in olive oil in a large frying pan until fragrant. Add ground sausage, breaking it up into small pieces with your spatula as you incorporate it with the peppers and onions. Cook until sausage is browned and fully cooked through.
  3. Next, stir in the crushed tomatoes, water, and seasonings. Don’t drain the sausage before this step – you want to incorporate all those flavors into the sauce. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly.
  4. Drain the cooked pasta and then add it to the sauce. Stir to coat well, then remove from heat. Serve immediately with an optional side of Italian bread!

Building the sauce right around the juicy sausage, peppers, and onions helps the flavors meld together into a deliciously creamy, savory, barely spicy coating for the pasta noodles. Make sure to add the cooked pasta to the sauce at the end – this ensures the pasta gets fully coated in sauce and soaks up all the flavors.

A plate of creamy sausage and peppers pasta with rustic bread on the side

Try the recipe below and indulge in the most comforting bowl of Italian sausage pasta you can cook at home! Don’t forget to subscribe to our email list to get more tasty recipes like this one delivered straight to your inbox.


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5 from 1 vote

Italian Sausage and Peppers Pasta

A creamy, comforting Italian sausage and peppers pasta recipe that comes together in under 30 minutes for an easy weeknight dinner. It's so warm and savory, it's the perfect dish for colder weather!
Servings 3 servings
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

  • ½ lb fettuccine
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • ½ tsp minced garlic
  • ½ medium red bell pepper diced
  • ¼ large yellow onion diced
  • 1 pinch salt
  • lb ground hot Italian sausage
  • 14 oz canned crushed tomatoes
  • ¼ cup water
  • ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • ¼ tsp dried basil
  • ¼ tsp dried oregano

Instructions

  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, then cook pasta according to package directions.
  • While the pasta cooks, heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add minced garlic, diced peppers, and diced onion and season with a pinch of salt. Sauté until fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes.
  • Add ground sausage to the pan, breaking it up into small pieces with your spatula as you incorporate it with the peppers and onions. Cook until browned, about 7 to 9 minutes.
  • Next, add the crushed tomatoes and water. Stir in crushed red pepper flakes, basil, and oregano. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, about 8 to 10 minutes.
  • Drain the cooked pasta, then add the pasta to the sauce. Stir to combine until the pasta is fully coated. Serve immediately.

Notes

Fettuccine: We recommend sticking with a thicker pasta noodle to support the creamy sauce and ground sausage, but you can substitute with spaghetti or linguine.
Hot Italian sausage: Hot Italian sausage has great flavor without being overly spicy, which adds to the comforting feeling of this dish. You can substitute with regular Italian sausage, but note that it’ll result in a milder flavor profile. For a vegetarian version of this pasta dish, try a plant-based alternative!
Making the sauce: Don’t drain the grease from the pan after cooking the sausage and before adding the tomatoes – you want to incorporate all this delicious flavor right into the sauce. That’s what makes this dish so creamy!
Serving suggestions: We love to serve a side of fresh Italian bread and dipping oils with our pasta dinners. Try a basil-infused olive oil, or stir grated parmesan and crushed red pepper flakes into olive oil for a tasty Italian style side.
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Author: Nicole
Calories: 706kcal
Course: Dinner, Main, Main Course
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: basil, bell pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, crushed tomatoes, fall, fettuccine, garlic, hot Italian sausage, olive oil, oregano, pasta, winter, yellow onion

Nutrition

Calories: 706kcal | Carbohydrates: 67g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16g | Trans Fat: 0.05g | Cholesterol: 140mg | Sodium: 948mg | Potassium: 900mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 1055IU | Vitamin C: 41mg | Calcium: 101mg | Iron: 5mg

If you have any questions regarding the information presented in this post, please refer to our Nutrition Disclaimer here.

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