Sausage And Peppers With Rigatoni Pasta (Easy And Delicious)

Why You'll Love This Easy Pasta!

This simple and delicious pasta is perfect for a quick meal (30 minutes is all you need) that is big on flavor. With Italian sausage, red bell peppers, rigatoni and a simple tomato sauce, it is so good.

This is the pasta version of the traditional Italian recipe of Italian sausage and peppers and one that my family loves. If your evening is very busy, you can even skip making the homemade tomato sauce and use store-bought sauce to speed things up.

This hearty Italian pasta is always a crowd pleaser, kid approved and the perfect weeknight dinner.

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Italian sausage: Sausage links or bulk sausage. If buying links, you just need to score the casing to remove the sausage meat.I like to use a mild Italian sausage but you can use sweet or hot Italian sausage as well.
• Rigatoni pasta. You want to use a pasta shape like rigatoni or penne since it will catch the sauce better.
• Fresh garlic. Make sure to only use fresh.
• Red bell pepper: I like to use red bell peppers because they are sweet. You can also use yellow or orange, just try not to use green unless you like the slightly bitter flavor they impart.
• Canned Red Datterino tomatoes. Datterino tomatoes are an heirloom Italian plum tomato that is nice and sweet. If you can't find these the you can use San Marzano plum tomatoes, try to use those. If not, any canned plum tomatoes will work.
• Canned cherry tomatoes: I love the texture these add to the sauce. If you cannot find them, diced tomatoes will work.
• Yellow onion:
• Kosher salt
• Black pepper: This is for adding to the sauce at the very end after cooking. This really adds so much flavor to the final pasta.

How To Make Sausage And Pepper Pasta

1. Brown the sausage: On medium high heat, cook the sausage in a large saute pan with some olive oil. You want that sausage to get a bit crispy and leave some browning behind in the pan because that is going to add to the flavor of the sauce.
2. Add the fresh garlic to the Italian sausage and cook down for a few minutes.
3. Cook red peppers and onion: In the same pan, move the sausage over then add the peppers and onion and cook for a couple minutes.

3. Now add the canned tomatoes: Gently break them up and mix well with the sausage and peppers.
4. Season with kosher salt and let simmer for about 15 minutes.
5. Toss: Toss the sauce with cooked rigatoni. Make sure to only cook the rigatoni until al dente.

Cooking Tips

• Caramelize the sausage: Crisping up the sausage make this dish so good. Take the extra time to cook the sausage until browned and caramelized for extra flavor.
• Don't skip the black pepper! Adding a hefty amount of black pepper to the pasta sauce after cooking it really wakes up those delicious flavors in the sausage. If you have kids you are serving this to, skip this but make sure to add the pepper to your own bowl.
• If you prefer bigger bites of sausage: You can bake Italian sausage in the oven then slice it up and add it to the sauce.

Storing And Reheating

• Storing: Allow the pasta to come to room temperature then place it in any container with a lid that is tight fitting. Place in the fridge for up to 2 days.
• Re-heating: To re-heat this \pasta, put it in a microwave-safe bowl and cover it with a slightly moistened paper towel or kitchen towel. Microwave on high for 1-2 minutes or until heated all the way through. Make sure to give it a good stir before eating.