There are dinners that you make once and realise your entire family would quite happily eat every single week forever.
This sausage and roasted pepper pasta firmly falls into that category.
It’s quick, ridiculously easy, made mostly from things you can keep in the cupboard/freezer, and somehow tastes FAR more impressive than the ingredient list suggests. The roasted peppers blend down into this silky, sweet, almost tomato-like sauce that children absolutely inhale. If you’ve got a child who usually approaches vegetables with deep suspicion, this recipe may become your new best friend.
And because the sauce comes together while the pasta cooks, this is exactly the kind of dinner I rely on when the day has descended into chaos and everyone suddenly wants feeding immediately. (So…most weekdays then.)
It also fits perfectly into my collection of easy pasta recipes – the sort of dinners that are comforting, genuinely doable on a busy evening and don’t leave you washing up one hundred pans afterwards. I’m always chasing pasta recipes that feel comforting without requiring loads of effort, which is probably why this has ended up in heavy rotation alongside things like my broccoli and sausage pasta and ultra-creamy one pot mac and cheese.
Why this pasta works so well
There’s something very clever about roasted peppers in pasta sauce.
They bring sweetness, richness, loads of flavour and a gorgeous colour without needing hours of cooking.
Blending them into the sauce also means it feels creamy and luxurious without actually having any cream at all.
Add sausages into the mix and, well, you can’t really go wrong.
I especially love this recipe because it uses cooked sausages, which means it’s brilliant for leftovers. If you’ve cooked too many sausages the night before (which I do CONSTANTLY), this is a very good way of turning them into an entirely new dinner that nobody complains about eating again.
Ingredients (and why they matter)
- Cooked sausages – Use whatever you like best here. Cumberland, Lincolnshire, caramelised onion – all work brilliantly. Because they’re already cooked, this dinner comes together incredibly quickly. Don’t have any leftover cooked sausages to hand? Just fry, bake or grill some sausages before starting to cook this recipe.
- Roasted peppers – The absolute star of the show. Jarred roasted peppers are one of my favourite shortcut ingredients because they bring SO much flavour with almost zero effort. Once blended, they create a naturally sweet sauce that coats the pasta beautifully.
- Onion – Adds sweetness and depth to the sauce. Nothing fancy, just a good base flavour.
- Frozen peas – A bit of freshness, colour and sweetness (and another portion of veg!).
- Parmesan – Savoury, slightly nutty – it balances the sweetness of the peppers perfectly.
- Pasta – Short pasta works best here because it catches all that lovely sauce. Penne, fusilli or farfalle are all ideal.
How to make Sausage and Roasted Pepper Pasta
This is one of those excellent ‘cook pasta while everything else happens’ dinners.
1. Cook the pasta
Cook the pasta according to packet instructions, then drain. Before draining, you can reserve a splash of pasta water if you want to loosen the sauce later.
2. Make the roasted pepper sauce
Peel and chop the onion. Cook in the olive oil over a medium heat for 3-4 minutes until softened.
Add the drained roasted peppers and stir for a minute, then pour in 100ml water. Take the pan off the heat and blend until smooth using a hand blender.
At this point the sauce turns this BEAUTIFUL deep orange-red colour and honestly looks far fancier than a 15-minute dinner has any right to.
3. Add the sausages
Slice the cooked sausages and stir them into the sauce along with the Parmesan.
Return the pan to the heat and simmer gently for 5 minutes.
4. Bring everything together
Add the cooked pasta and peas to the sauce and stir well until coated.
Serve with extra Parmesan on top if you like.
(And garlic bread if it’s been that kind of day.)
Why children love this recipe so much
I think it’s the sweetness of the peppers more than anything.
The sauce has that same comforting, slightly sweet flavour that tomato pasta sauces have, but somehow softer and creamier without loads of cream or butter involved.
It’s also very smooth – no suspicious “bits” for children to inspect dramatically.
This is one of those recipes that’ll get properly eaten rather than just pushed around the plate for 40 minutes. A parenting win, frankly.
Easy swaps and variations
This recipe is wonderfully flexible.
- Use leftover roast sausages from another meal
- Swap peas for spinach or broccoli
- Add chilli flakes if you want a bit of heat
- Stir through mascarpone for an even creamier sauce
- Use chicken sausages if you prefer
You can also make the sauce ahead of time and keep it in the fridge for a couple of days.
Sausage and Roasted Pepper Pasta
Equipment
- large saucepan
- Frying pan or sauté pan
- Colander
- Knife
- Chopping board
- Hand blender or stick blender
Ingredients
- 3 cooked sausages
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion peeled and chopped
- 450 g roasted peppers from a jar, 350g drained weight
- 200 g frozen peas
- 400 g pasta
- 40 g Parmesan grated
- 100 ml water
Instructions
Cook the pasta
- Cook the pasta according to packet instructions. Drain and set aside.
Make the roasted pepper sauce
- Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook for 3–4 minutes until softened.
- Stir in the drained roasted peppers and cook for 1 minute. Pour in 100ml water.
- Remove the pan from the heat and blend until smooth using a hand blender.
Add the sausages
- Slice the cooked sausages and stir them into the sauce along with the Parmesan.
- Return the pan to the heat and simmer gently for 5 minutes.
Combine and serve
- Stir the frozen peas and cooked pasta into the sauce and cook for another minute or two until the peas are heated through.
- Serve topped with extra Parmesan if desired.
Notes
Reserve a splash of pasta water before draining if you want to loosen the sauce slightly.
The roasted pepper sauce is naturally sweet, which makes this a great pasta recipe for children.
Penne, fusilli and farfalle all work particularly well here.
You can add chilli flakes for extra heat if serving adults.
More easy pasta dinner recipes
If you enjoy easy pasta dinners like this one, you might also like to browse my collection of easy pasta recipes, where you’ll find plenty of simple meals perfect for busy weeknights.
Here are a few reader favourites to try next:
- Garlic Chilli Prawn Tagliatelle – a quick and flavourful pasta dish ready in just 15 minutes.
- Chorizo and Halloumi Pasta – bold flavours and golden fried halloumi make this a real weeknight winner.
- Mozzarella, Tomato and Basil Pasta Bake – a cosy baked pasta packed with classic Italian flavours.
- Ham and Leek Pasta – a creamy, comforting pasta that’s perfect for using up leftover ham.
Or explore all of my easy pasta dinner recipes here.
Easy peasy and kids love it!