This peperonata pasta is made with onions, garlic, and LOTS of sweet bell peppers in a light tomato basil sauce. It's so delicious and super easy to make!
This is the ultimate pasta recipe for pepper lovers! I happen to be one of those pepper lovers, which you may have noticed based on some of my past recipes like vegan stuffed peppers, vegan stuffed pepper soup, vegan pepper steak, and vegan sausage and pepper ragù.
Peperonata, if you're not familiar, is an Italian stew that includes sweet bell peppers as the main ingredient. Since I love veggie-packed pasta dishes, I decided to go and turn peperonata into a pasta sauce. The results were delicious!
We're using a full two pounds of bell peppers here! Sounds like a lot, but they'll cook down quite a bit, which means the sauce is packed with that sweet smoky bell pepper flavor.
This is a great recipe to make when you're looking for an easy summer dinner. It's also the perfect way to use up a bumper crop of bell peppers from the garden!
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Ingredients You'll Need
- Olive oil. You'll need a fair amount of oil for cooking the veggies. While you could get away with substituting another high-heat oil, I highly recommend sticking with olive to get the best flavor.
- Onion.
- Bell peppers. You can use any combination of red, orange, and yellow bell peppers — all of which are sweet! I recommend using at least one red (the sweetest), and avoiding green (which isn't so sweet).
- Garlic.
- Tomato sauce.
- Balsamic vinegar. Try to use a good quality balsamic vinegar, which should be dark, a bit syrupy, and slightly sweet.
- Sugar. Use organic sugar to keep the recipe vegan. Non-organic sugar is often processed with animal bone char.
- Dried penne pasta. Feel free to swap this out with another variety of dried pasta.
- Fresh basil.
- Salt and pepper.
- Vegan Parmesan cheese. This is optional, but it makes a nice topper for peperonata pasta. You can use store-bought or homemade vegan Parmesan cheese.
How It's Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
Begin by cooking sliced onion in your olive oil. Let it cook for about ten minutes, just to start the softening process.
Now add sliced peppers to the pot. Cook them with the onions for another ten minutes. By now the peppers should be starting to soften.
Push the peppers and onions to the side, then add minced garlic. Sauté the garlic briefly, stirring constantly.
Stir in the tomato sauce, balsamic vinegar, and sugar. Bring the sauce to a low simmer.
Let the sauce simmer for about twenty minutes, adding a splash of water if it gets too thick. You can prepare the pasta while the sauce cooks.
Stir in the pasta and briefly cook it in the sauce. Take the pot off of heat and stir in the basil, then season your pasta with salt and pepper to taste.
Your peperonata pasta is ready! You can give it a taste-test and adjust any seasonings to suit your taste at this point.
I like to top each bowl with a sprinkle of vegan Parm.
Leftovers & Storage
Leftover peperonata pasta will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for about three days. You can reheat it in the microwave or in a pot on the stove, adding a splash of water if needed.
More Summer Pasta Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Peperonata Pasta
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion, sliced into half rings
- 2 pounds sweet bell peppers, sliced into strips (Notes 1 and 2)
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 (15 ounce/425 gram) can tomato sauce
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 ½ teaspoons organic granulated sugar
- 10 ounces dried penne pasta (or pasta shape of choice)
- ½ cup chopped fresh basil leaves
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Vegan Parmesan cheese, for serving
Instructions
- Coat the bottom of a large pot with the oil and place it over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the onion. Sweat the onion for about 10 minutes, stirring often, until it starts to soften.
- Stir in the bell peppers. Cook the peppers and onion together for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the peppers soften and brighten a bit in color.
- Push the peppers and onions to the side of the pot and add the garlic. Sauté the garlic for about 1 minute, stirring constantly, until it becomes very fragrant.
- Stir in the tomato sauce, balsamic vinegar, and sugar. Bring the sauce to a simmer, then lower the heat and let the mixture cook at a low simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the peppers are very soft. You can add a bit of water if the sauce becomes too thick while cooking.
- While the sauce simmers, cook the pasta according to the package directions, until al dente. Reserve about 1 cup of the cooking water, then drain the pasta into a colander when done.
- Stir the cooked pasta into the sauce. Cook the mixture for about a minute, stirring constantly. Thin the sauce with some of the reserved pasta water if needed.
- Remove the pot from heat. Stir in the basil and season the pasta with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve.
Notes
- Two pounds is about equal to four medium bell peppers.
- You can use a combination of red, orange, and/or yellow bell peppers, but I recommend including at least one red.
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