This spicy Italian sausage pasta recipe is fast, easy, and uses minimal ingredients. It's the perfect weeknight dinner that tastes like it came from a restaurant!
This recipe was originally published on June 6, 2016. I've revised the recipe to make it even more delicious and easy to make. I've also added new photos.
Italian sausage and pasta is a magical combo. This pasta recipe is ideal for those sausage and carb lovers out there (like me), naturally. Spicy Italian sausage, tomatoes, garlic, cream, lots of parmesan cheese, and a touch of fresh basil make this recipe a winner.
I decided to redo this one when I was brainstorming recipes and realized I already had something similar on the blog to what I was envisioning. From over 3 years ago. That's the thing about food blogs... recipes get buried, especially ones where the photos are less than stellar. I am happy to have resurrected this recipe. New and improved!
I re-photographed my Italian sausage tortellini soup recipe this year as well, and if you like this recipe, I think you will like that one as well.
The sauce is creamy, but not too creamy if you know what I mean. It's tomato-y first and foremost. The cream helps mellow some of that acidity from the tomatoes and spice from the sausage. I am not a huge spice person, and I thoroughly enjoyed this dish. It has just enough zing in my opinion.
Penne goes really well with this spicy Italian sausage pasta recipe. The little tubes are perfect for that sauce. You can use any shape you want, though.
Pro tip: Want to make this pasta more spicy? Add a pinch of cayenne pepper or some red pepper flakes. On the flip side, if you don't want it to be spicy, just use mild Italian sausages. 🙂
Other pastas with sausage you may like:
- Tuscan Sausage Pasta
- Cajun Sausage Pasta
- Simple Sausage and Broccoli Pasta
- Easy Sausage Rigatoni
- Healthy Chicken Sausage Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes
Hope you'll love this hot Italian sausage pasta recipe!
Questions? Let me know in the comments below.
Spicy Italian Sausage Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 ounces uncooked penne
- 10.6 ounces hot Italian sausages crumbled (see note)
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 cup chicken broth or white wine
- 1/2 tablespoon flour
- 1 (14 fluid ounce) can diced tomatoes with juices
- 1/2 cup heavy/whipping cream
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 6 large leaves basil sliced/torn into small pieces
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese to taste
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta al dente according to package directions.
- Take the sausage meat out of the casings and crumble it into a deep skillet. Cook it for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, over medium-high heat until browned.
- Once the sausage is browned, take it out of the pan and set it aside. Drain the fat.
- Add the garlic, followed by the chicken broth to the skillet. Sprinkle the flour in. Whisk it until the flour has dissolved, and scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook this mixture until it's significantly reduced (should only take a minute or two in total).
- Add in the tomatoes, cream, and the sausage meat. Cook the sauce for a few more minutes until it's thickened to your liking. Season with salt & pepper as needed.
- Just prior to serving, add in the torn basil leaves and then toss with the drained pasta. Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese.
Notes
- I used 3 sausages from a 5-pack of Johnsonville hot Italian sausages. Anything in the 10.6 oz ballpark will work, or you can even use more sausage meat if you wish. You can use mild Italian sausages if you prefer.
- I don't recommend substituting the heavy cream because the acidity in the tomatoes will likely curdle half-and-half or milk.
- If you don't have any basil, feel free to leave it out, but I really like the fresh flavor it adds.
- I used my handy Microplane zester/grater to grate the parmesan.
- Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Kari says
Delicious and quick.
Just made tonight and the family loved it. Used a can of ro-tel and some ground hot Italian sausage.
This will be made again!!
Miranda @ Salt & Lavender says
Excellent!! Glad it was a hit with the family, Kari.
Deb says
Wow, I feel like I just had dinner at a restaurant! So good! I used local hot Italian sausage and white zinfandel instead of chicken stock. Yummy!
Miranda @ Salt & Lavender says
That's so kind of you to say! Thanks for your review, Deb! 🙂
Sarah says
Great recipe! Made it a few times and love it. Planning to make it tomorrow and wondering if I can substitute a jarred 4 cheese pasta sauce instead of diced tomatoes?
Natasha says
Hi! I'm so glad. You could for sure try, but ensure that you don't cook it at too high a heat as a cheese sauce could separate. I can't really speak to exactly how it'll taste, but I imagine if you like the jarred sauce, it should be yummy. 🙂
Evilpig says
Skipped the chicken broth and flour step and added an onion with the garlic and cooked it with the Sausage. Came out amazing. Added some habenero shredded cheese at the end and it was deliciously spicy!
Natasha says
Excellent!!
Jan ham says
I made this dish tonight and thought I was in an authentic Italian restaurant. Followed recipe to the last detail, just delicious.
Would I be able to freeze it, I did use cream.
Thank you
Natasha says
Fantastic!! Glad you enjoyed it. You could try freezing it. I think it should be ok since it's not something like Alfredo sauce, but there's always a chance the texture could change a bit. Thanks for your review, Jan!