I love this rigatoni recipe because it’s easy, made in one pot, and comes together in less than 30 minutes. It’s also vegetarian and vegan friendly! A couple hot peppers and lots of flavorful sauce makes it the perfect warming recipe for these cold rainy days we’ve been having.
Back home, with convenient access to Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and Wegmans, meat substitutes are super easy to come by. We do have some options at the commissary here, but not nearly as many. One of the ones we do have is Tofurky sausages! You wouldn’t mistake these for real sausage, but they’re still damn good (did I mention guilt-free?). Even if you’re not vegetarian, this is such a healthy and tasty option for your Meat-Free Monday.
Growing up in a strict vegetarian household, cooking vegetarian meals is second nature to me. Although I’ve waffled back and forth most of my adult life between eating meat and being vegetarian, I’m currently back in vegetarian mode (or “pescatarian” if you want to be specific). I’m not ready to give up sushi when we’re living in Japan, the sushi capital of the world. Lucky for me, my husband is super supportive and doesn’t care one way or another if there’s meat in the house.
Although I started out with the intention for it to be a soup, my husband repeatedly insisted that it’s not a soup. I swore up and down it was going to be soup, but when I put in bowls I realized he was right. It’s just super saucy. So without further ado, here’s my super saucy, easy peasy one-pot rigatoni pasta recipe.
Let’s Get Started!
We start out by sautéing our onions and green peppers on medium heat until tender. Add the garlic and sauté until aromatic (about 30 seconds).
We don’t have organic tomato sauce at the grocery store here, but we do have organic diced tomatoes. Pureé those diced tomatoes and add to the pot (or if using tomato sauce, just pour it in). Add your water and vegetable stock and bring to a boil. If you’re interested in making your own stock, check out my vegetable broth recipe here. Add the basil, oregano and salt. Once boiling, add your rigatoni pasta and cook for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally. In the last minute before you take it off the heat, toss in your crumbled Tofurky sausage.
I undercook my pasta by a minute or two so that it’s still al dente when I serve it. Serve immediately. Feel free to top with parmesan cheese, basil leaves, and red pepper flakes. I like to serve this with some warm crusty bread to dip into that extra sauce at the bottom of your bowl.
Easy One Pot Rigatoni Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 medium yellow onion chopped
- 1/2 large green pepper chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes or tomato sauce
- 3 c. vegetable stock
- 3 c. rigatoni
- 2 thai chili peppers optional, or sub in 3/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tbsp dried basil
- 1 tsp oregano
- 3 links Tofurky Italian Sausage crumbled
- salt to taste
Instructions
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Heat the olive oil in a large pot on medium heat in a large pot. Add the green pepper and onion and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds.
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Puree the diced tomatoes and then add to the pot. Add water and vegetable stock and bring to a boil.
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Add the salt, basil, oregano and hot peppers (if using).
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Once tomato sauce is boiling, add the rigatoni and the crumbled Tofurky sausage.
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Boil for 10 minutes, then remove from heat and garnish with your favorite pasta toppings! Basil, parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes are my personal favorites.
Recipe Notes
-Since this is a very saucy recipe, I undercook the pasta by a couple minutes to make sure that it is al dente when it is served! If you like your pasta more tender, cook it for 11 minutes and then serve.
-Omit hot peppers if you're sensitive to spice.
