27 Quick and Easy Pasta Recipes (2024)

There's a recipe for every mood. Sure, sometimes I want to spend hours lingering over a perfect slow-cooked red sauce or hearty lasagna Napoletana, but there are also days when I get home late and just need to get a filling dinner on the table, fast.

Pasta is a natural solution on those occasions, and luckily, we have lots of pasta recipes that can be prepared in 30 minutes or less, from Italian classics like cacio e pepe and spaghetti puttanesca to stovetop baked ziti and a fresh take on tuna noodle casserole. For a delicious pasta dinner that's doable on a weeknight, check out 27 of our favorite quick and easy pasta recipes, below.

Here's a pro tip for those who want to get the job done even sooner: You don't have to heat up a huge pot of water. Using a skillet and just enough water to cover the noodles is a better way to get water boiling fast, while the extra starchiness in a smaller volume of pasta water will help you achieve a more emulsified sauce.

Vegetarian Pasta Recipes

Fast and Easy Pasta With Blistered Cherry Tomato Sauce

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Pasta doesn't get much quicker or easier than this—the sauce requires four ingredients and is ready in the same amount of time it takes to cook the noodles. Its bright flavors come from garlic, basil, and cherry tomatoes, which we sauté until they burst. Because cherry tomatoes have lots of pectin, their juice easily emulsifies with olive oil and pasta water to form a light sauce.

Get the recipe for Fast and Easy Pasta With Blistered Cherry Tomato Sauce

Pasta With Butternut Squash and Sage Brown Butter

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While it's still chilly outside, make this warming pasta, dressed up with browned butter, fresh sage, and tender chunks of butternut squash. We like to use small cupped pasta shapes, like orecchiette, to capture the rich, nutty sauce. Lemon juice is the secret ingredient that prevents the browned butter from burning. If you struggle with cutting the tough, irregularly shaped squash, we've got a handy video guide to help you out.

Get the recipe for Pasta With Butternut Squash and Sage Brown Butter

3-Ingredient Stovetop Macaroni and Cheese

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Of course, you can always make mac and cheese by turning to the boxed stuff, but honestly, this recipe is just about as easy. It takes only three ingredients (fewer than Kraft's!) and about 10 minutes of your time. All you have to do is cook the pasta in a small amount of water until it's almost al dente, pour in evaporated milk, and melt in the cheese. The sauce stays smooth, thanks to the evaporated milk, which doesn't scorch like regular milk and contains helpful emulsifying proteins called micelles.

Get the recipe for 3-Ingredient Stovetop Macaroni and Cheese

Spaghetti Aglio e Olio

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If you're looking for a dead-simple dish for dinner (or a snack), you can't do much better than this Italian classic made with garlic and olive oil. Just cook garlic—and red pepper flakes, if you'd like—in the oil; then add cooked pasta and a little pasta-cooking liquid, stirring vigorously to emulsify the oil and starchy water. Don't forget one last drizzle of oil for brighter flavor before serving.

Get the recipe for Spaghetti Aglio e Olio

Pasta al Limone

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Just as simple as aglio e olio is pasta al limone, or lemon pasta. The secret to the dish is the same: creating a satiny emulsion with the pasta-cooking liquid and fat, but in this case, you're using butter. The lemon zest and juice combined brighten up the dairy notes from the fat and cheese.

Get the recipe for Pasta al Limone

Cacio e Pepe (Spaghetti With Black Pepper and Pecorino Romano)

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Cacio e pepe seems simple, all right—it's nothing more than pasta, olive oil, butter, Pecorino Romano cheese, salt, and pepper. But with the wrong technique, it's easy to end up with a sauce that's greasy or clumpy (or both). Our trick for making a creamy, thick sauce is to grate the cheese finely on a Microplane and combine it with pasta in a relatively cool skillet.

Get the recipe for Cacio e Pepe (Spaghetti With Black Pepper and Pecorino Romano)

Vegan Carbonara Pasta

The traditional version of this beloved Roman dish is made with eggs, cheese, and cured pork, making it an unlikely candidate for veganizing, to say the least. Yet this easy take on carbonara manages to be meat-free, egg-free, dairy-free, and still absolutely delicious. We do it by replacing the pork with meaty king oyster mushrooms; mimicking the egg-rich sauce with a combination of silken tofu, miso paste, and nutritional yeast; and replicating the lactic tang of the Pecorino with a surprise ingredient—sauerkraut brine.

Get the recipe for Vegan Carbonara Pasta

Penne With Hot-As-You-Dare Arrabbiata Sauce

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Penne arrabbiata is a great year-round pasta dish—it can be made with fresh tomatoes during the summer, but this time of year, canned ones will yield delicious results. Arrabbiata is Italian for "angry," and we like to embrace that fieriness by adding lots of red pepper flakes (or fresh red chilies if we have them). We also finish cooking the pasta in the sauce, ensuring that each piece is evenly coated.

Get the recipe for Penne With Hot-As-You-Dare Arrabbiata Sauce

Penne With Melted-Vegetable Sauce

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This rustic dish's Italian name, penne con stracotto di verdure, translates to "penne with overcooked vegetables"—which admittedly doesn't sound particularly appetizing. But you can produce a surprisingly tasty sauce by chopping a medley of vegetables, like potato, fennel, green beans, and carrots, into small pieces; boiling them until they're fall-apart tender; and blending them up. Experiment with different combinations of vegetables if you like, but be sure to keep the potatoes, since the starch they contribute when they break down is necessary for thickening the sauce.

Get the recipe for Penne With Melted-Vegetable Sauce

Pesto Pasta With Potatoes and Green Beans

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Making our perfect pesto with a mortar and pestle instead of a food processor takes more elbow grease, but it's totally worth the effort. Once you've got a stash of it, this traditional Genovese preparation of pasta with pesto, green beans, and potatoes requires minimal effort and time. It's important to add the pesto to the other ingredients off the heat in order to retain its bright, fresh flavors.

Get the recipe for Pesto Pasta With Potatoes and Green Beans

Lighter Fettuccine Alfredo

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With its emphasis on heavy cream, traditionally made fettuccine Alfredo tends to be a bit of a guilty pleasure for many of us. This modern variation satisfies a lot of the same cravings without weighing you down. We incorporate just a little cream, turning instead to pasta water, cornstarch, and an egg to achieve a brighter, but still thick, sauce.

Get the recipe for Lighter Fettuccine Alfredo

Roman-Style Fettuccine With Alfredo Sauce

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On the other hand, if you're in Rome and looking to make fettuccine Alfredo in a culturally appropriate way—or even if you're not in Rome and still want to make Alfredo but without any cream—then you'll want this recipe. All you need is pasta, a nice piece of young Parmigiano Reggiano, and butter, and you're good to go.

Get the recipe for Roman-Style Fettuccine With Alfredo Sauce

Vegan Fettuccine Alfredo

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What if you wanted to go even lighter? What if you wanted the creaminess of Alfredo, but with no dairy at all? Well, you turn to cauliflower—a cauliflower and cashew purée, to be exact. Sure, this may be vegan, and thus not really an Alfredo sauce at all, but it hits all the same notes: creamy, tangy, and delicious.

Get the recipe for Vegan Fettuccine Alfredo

Vegetarian Citrus Pasta With Swiss Chard

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This simple vegetarian dish of whole wheat fusilli uses both leaves and stems of Swiss chard, so nothing goes to waste. Its unexpected tartness comes from the citrusy Middle Eastern spice sumac. These days, it's getting easier to find sumac in the international aisle of your local supermarket, but depending on where you live, you might need to make a trip to a speciality grocery or order your sumac online.

Get the recipe for Vegetarian Citrus Pasta With Swiss Chard

Nonvegetarian Pasta Recipes

Ricotta Gnocchi With Asparagus and Prosciutto

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Ready to leave winter behind? Celebrate the coming of warmer days by pairing fresh asparagus with heavy cream, Parmigiano Reggiano, crispy prosciutto, and bright lemon. This dish takes only 20 minutes if you have store-bought gnocchi on hand, but making these simple ricotta gnocchi from scratch adds just another half hour to the process.

Get the recipe for Ricotta Gnocchi With Asparagus and Prosciutto

Shrimp Fra Diavolo (Spaghetti With Spicy Tomato Sauce)

27 Quick and Easy Pasta Recipes (16)

Lobster fra diavolo is a restaurant favorite, but a version made with shrimp is more practical and economical for home cooks. We start ours by marinating the shrimp in baking soda to give them a snappy crispness; reserving the shrimp shells and sautéing them infuses the oil with their flavor. Adding clam juice to a sauce of garlic, chili flakes, and canned tomatoes also heightens the dish's briny notes, and we like to splash in some brandy at the end for extra richness.

Get the recipe for Shrimp Fra Diavolo (Spaghetti With Spicy Tomato Sauce)

Bucatini all'Amatriciana

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Amatriciana is a classic Roman tomato sauce, enriched with cured pork and spiced up with chili flakes. Guanciale (pork jowl or cheek) is our meat of choice here, but it can be hard to find, and pancetta is a great substitute. As for the tomatoes, we use hand-crushed canned San Marzanos, cooking them quickly to preserve their bright flavor.

Get the recipe for Bucatini all'Amatriciana

Spaghetti Puttanesca (Spaghetti With Capers, Olives, and Anchovies)

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No need to spend too much time wondering about the origins of the name, which famously translates to "spaghetti in the style of prostitutes." Let's move on to the recipe instead: The intensely savory, briny sauce gets its umami flavors from a bold mixture of garlic, anchovies, capers, and olives. Fortifying the pasta with high-quality, oil-packed tuna adds another dimension to this pungent Southern Italian favorite.

Get the recipe for Spaghetti Puttanesca (Spaghetti With Capers, Olives, and Anchovies)

Japanese Mentaiko Spaghetti (Pasta With Spicy Cod Roe and Butter Sauce)

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A classic example of fusion cuisine that's actually good, mentaiko spaghetti is also a fine representative of another category of dishes that is often maligned: drunk food. Just as good when you're five beers deep as it is when you're totally sober, mentaiko spaghetti deserves a place in your weekly meal rotations, if only because it's dead simple to make. All you need is butter, soy sauce (usukuchi, or light soy sauce, to be specific), nori, and some cured pollack roe, and you're ready to go. The pollack roe can be found online or at any Japanese grocery store, and since it freezes very well, it's easy to buy a lot to have on hand for whenever you get the craving.

Get the recipe for Japanese Mentaiko Spaghetti (Pasta With Spicy Cod Roe and Butter Sauce)

Easy One-Pot, No-Knife, Lighter Tuna Noodle Casserole

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Tuna noodle casserole might bring to mind some of the worst of mid-century American cooking, but this version is 100% canned-soup-free and lightened up with crème fraîche, peas, parsley, and lemon juice. The recipe is just as easy as a from-the-can casserole, though—it takes 15 minutes, one pan, and not a single bit of knife work.

Get the recipe for Easy One-Pot, No-Knife, Lighter Tuna Noodle Casserole

One-Skillet Orecchiette With Shrimp, Spinach, and Mushrooms

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Here, cooking the orecchiette in the same skillet as the sauce leaves you with one less dish to clean. We start by browning mushrooms; then deglaze the pan with white wine to save all the flavorful bits. Tossing the shrimp and spinach in toward the end ensures neither is overcooked.

Get the recipe for One-Skillet Orecchiette With Shrimp, Spinach, and Mushrooms

Skillet Pasta With Mushrooms, Pancetta, and Wilted Greens

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This one-pot fusilli dish packs in a lot of flavors, with earthy shiitakes, browned pancetta, and wilted bitter greens. Emulsifying the rendered fat from the pancetta with the stock used to cook the pasta produces a nice creamy sauce.

Get the recipe for Skillet Pasta With Mushrooms, Pancetta, and Wilted Greens

Pasta With Mushrooms, Brussels Sprouts, and Parmesan

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Orecchiette's cuplike shape makes it perfect for catching little pieces of flavorful ingredients—in this case, mushrooms, Brussels sprout leaves, shallots, garlic, and thyme. A quick sauce of chicken stock, lemon juice, and butter helps them all cling to the pasta.

Get the recipe for Pasta With Mushrooms, Brussels Sprouts, and Parmesan

Easy Skillet Baked Ziti With Sausage and Ricotta

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Our No-Boil Baked Ziti recipe calls for 30 minutes just to soak the noodles, so it's better as a weekend option. This saucy, gooey skillet version, cooked on the stovetop and requiring just 10 minutes of soaking for the noodles, is almost as good and takes a fraction of the time of the oven-based recipe. We make it with a creamy tomato sauce, a mix of low-moisture mozzarella and ricotta, and hunks of Italian sausage.

Get the recipe for Easy Skillet Baked Ziti With Sausage and Ricotta

Crispy Baked Pasta With Mushrooms, Sausage, and Parmesan Cream Sauce

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You don't need a lot of time to make a baked pasta—this comforting dish takes only about 30 minutes. Cooking the mushrooms in sausage fat and finishing them with soy sauce and lemon juice gives them a big umami punch. We finish the dish with a generous layer of seasoned bread crumbs and crisp it up under the broiler.

Get the recipe for Crispy Baked Pasta With Mushrooms, Sausage, and Parmesan Cream Sauce

Pasta With Swordfish, Tomato, and Eggplant (Rigatoni Con Pesce Spada)

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This swordfish pasta takes inspiration from Sicily, where seafood reigns supreme. The swordfish is complemented by velvety eggplant and tomatoes simmered in white wine, along with a mixture of fresh mint and oregano. A simple preparation lets all the fresh ingredients in this light pasta shine.

Get the recipe for Pasta With Swordfish, Tomato, and Eggplant (Rigatoni Con Pesce Spada)

Pasta alla Gricia

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It takes just five ingredients to put this rich and creamy pasta together. We start by rendering guanciale in a pan and then blooming freshly ground pepper in the bubbling fat. Emulsified with starchy pasta water, the sauce is finished with a generous helping of Pecorino Romano, for a perfect rendition of the Roman classic.

Get the recipe for Pasta alla Gricia

27 Quick and Easy Pasta Recipes (2024)

FAQs

How to jazz up boring pasta? ›

Fresh or dried herbs will also add flavor to pasta dishes.

"I use a lot of parsley, either fresh or even dried," Montillo said. "Oregano, garlic powder, onion flakes, black pepper all work well in a variety of sauces."

What is the secret to perfect pasta? ›

Cook your pasta to just before al dente.

Because pasta continues to cook after it's drained, remove it from the stovetop just before reaching the al dente stage. This is super important for thin pastas like angel hair and for pastas that will be baked with a sauce like lasagna.

How to make simple pasta tastier? ›

One simple trick to enhance the flavor of pasta is to add a dash of salt to the boiling water before cooking the pasta. This will infuse the pasta with salty flavor and help it to taste better. Additionally, try tossing the cooked pasta with olive oil, herbs, and Parmesan cheese to add more depth of flavor.

What pasta cooks in 3 minutes? ›

All the flavour of Panzani Fusilli in a slightly finer dough. Cooks in 3 minutes, food lovers should lay the table straight away!

Does pasta get softer or harder the longer you cook it? ›

As the pasta cooks, the starches gradually absorb more and more water, becoming softer and more edible, while the proteins begin to denature (protein unfolds because of the cooking process), adding structure to the noodle (something that is much more obvious when cooking soft fresh egg-based pastas).

What can I add to plain pasta for flavor? ›

18–22. Herbs and spices
  1. Basil. Basil is a flavorful herb and a mainstay in many Italian dishes, including pasta. ...
  2. Oregano. Oregano is a culinary herb known for its peppery and pungent taste. ...
  3. Rosemary. ...
  4. Red pepper flakes. ...
  5. Garlic powder.
Apr 11, 2022

What is the one ingredient that makes spaghetti sauce so much better? ›

Add butter. Yes, that's right. Toss in a few tablespoons of butter, and let it melt into the sauce. If you've never tried it before, it might seem strange, but a little butter makes tomato sauce rich and smooth, and also balances out too much acidity, which is common in jarred sauces.

What seasoning to add to pasta? ›

Top Spices for Tastier Pasta
  1. Tellicherry Black Pepper. 'Black pepper is a must for all Roman pasta dishes, such as Carbonara, Amatriciana, Cacio e Pepe, and Gricia. ...
  2. Cloves. 'I love cloves in long stewed meat and red wine ragout. ...
  3. Crushed Red Chiles. ...
  4. Sweet Curry Powder. ...
  5. Sumac.
Feb 15, 2022

What is the golden rule for pasta? ›

To be sure that your pasta is cooked correctly, it is enough to follow a few, simple rules. To begin with, you should keep in mind the right quantities. In Italy, the golden rule for cooking pasta is 1, 10, 100 or 1 liter of water, 10 grams of salt for every 100 grams of pasta.

What not to do when making pasta? ›

Here's our list of no-nos.
  1. Use a small pot to boil the pasta.
  2. Neglect to salt the water.
  3. Forget to give the pasta a stir or two as it cooks.
  4. Cook it past al dente.
  5. Dump out all of the pasta water.
May 1, 2019

What is the pasta water trick? ›

If your dish seems a bit dry or the sauce isn't coating the noodles as much as you like, add a splash of hot pasta water — about a quarter cup per pound of pasta. Toss until the cooking water is completely incorporated.

How can I jazz up pasta? ›

Just mix your leftover pasta with some egg, garlic, parmesan, fresh herbs, and a sprinkle of flour to bind. Stir through some grated zucchini or riced cauliflower if desired, to bulk up your 5-a-day.

What can I add to pasta to make it more interesting? ›

Experiment with different spices too! I like to add plain cooked pasta to a skillet with some butter and add garlic salt, black pepper, and paprika to it. Depends on your preferences, but I usually add red wine, garlic, oregano, onions, basil, pepper, hot peppers, sometimes just the merest hint of cinnamon.

What to put in spaghetti sauce to make it taste better? ›

Tossing in strips of basil, a sprig of thyme or some oregano can take your sauce to the next level. Although fresh herbs might pop a bit more, dried herbs and spices can work just as well. Sprinkling in some red pepper flakes, a pinch of parsley and a dash of salt and pepper can liven up your jarred pasta sauce.

What makes quick cook pasta quick? ›

As such its unique structure and thin, curved walls allow for not only a quicker cooking time than traditional pasta but far more ways it can be used, such as stirring straight into sauce dishes, adding straight to oven baked casseroles without precooking or even as a substitute for other staples such as rice or cous ...

Is it quicker to cook pasta in the microwave? ›

Most pasta can be microwaved according to the cooking time on the box plus an extra minute or two. For example, spaghetti that's recommended to cook for 9 to 11 minutes on the stove takes 11 to 13 minutes in the microwave. Penne or rotini that has an 11- to 13-minute cook time takes 15 minutes or slightly longer.

How do you cook pasta without boiling it first? ›

Yes, you can cook pasta directly in the sauce that you're preparing … it just has to be thinner so the liquid absorbs into the pasta as it's cooking. You can get ready to use lasagna noodles, or use fresh without being cooked first, which makes it a lot easier to make.

How do you soften pasta quickly? ›

If you've just dumped the water and discovered that the pasta is still crunchy, the easiest thing to do is simply put it back in boiling water. When you do this, it's important that you stay by the stove the entire time, testing the pasta every 30-60 seconds to make sure you don't end up overcooking it.

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