Healthy One Pot Pasta: The easiest pasta recipe ready in 40 minutes or less, and all you need is one pot! This pasta recipe is healthy, hearty, and perfect for the whole family. If you’re cooking for one (or two!) this is a great recipe for meal prep as it reheats very well.
ingredients needed:
Pasta: This recipe calls for spaghetti or linguini, but you could truly use any shape of pasta you have or prefer. I used brown rice pasta, but you could use wholegrain pasta or regular as well. I wouldn’t recommend using chickpea or lentil pasta in this recipe as the boiling process is slightly different for those variations.
Sausage: I used chicken sausage in this recipe (personal preference) but try using any variation of kielbasa sausage you prefer, as long as it’s precooked.
Veggies: This recipe is packed with different vegetables and flavors. You’ll need onions, garlic, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, canned crushed tomatoes, fresh basil, and sun-dried tomatoes (optional).
Seasonings: Italian seasoning blend, salt, and pepper. Optional adding in some red pepper flakes or cajun seasoning for spice.
how to make one pot pasta:
While you can always make this pasta recipe the regular way by boiling the pasta separately, this way cuts back cook time, cooks all the flavors together, and saves you a pot to clean!
There are many different ways to make one pot pasta recipes. Some people add everything in all at once, but I prefer to start by sautéing the onions, garlic, and sausage, and THEN boiling the rest of the ingredients.
The key to making your one pot pasta work is by adding just enough water to cover the pasta and not too much. This way the pasta doesn’t overcook and you’re left with little to no water remaining. This method allows for the starches to remain and adds a creaminess to the dish.
If by chance your pasta is fully cooked with some water remaining, either way for it evaporate or simply drain the excess! Not a big deal and it will still taste great!
One Pot Pasta Recipe
Equipment
- Large Boiling Pot
Ingredients
- 1/2 white onion sliced
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pound chicken sausage sliced
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 1 cup mushrooms finely chopped
- 4 small sun-dried tomatoes chopped (optional)
- 4 cups water
- 10 ounces brown rice spaghetti pasta or pasta of your choice
- 1 14 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp salt more to taste
- cracked black pepper to taste
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves finely chopped
Instructions
- In a large pot, on medium/high heat, add a drizzle of olive oil and sauté the onion and garlic until soft. Add in the chicken sausage and sauté until golden, about 5-7 minutes.
- Next, add in cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, and sun-dried tomatoes and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
- After this, add the pasta along with 4 cups of water. Ensure that there is just enough water to cover all of the pasta. See notes below**
- Boil the pasta for about 8-10 minutes until pasta is al dente. At this point, remove the lid and allow any remaining water to evaporate out. If there's not much water, you can carefully drain any excess.
- Once the pasta is boiled and water is gone, add in the can of crushed tomatoes and seasonings and mix well. Next add in the chopped basil and ensure everything is well incorporated.
- Top with parmesan and enjoy!