Rigatoni with Sausage, Tomatoes and Zucchini

This mouthwatering pasta dish has sausage, zucchini, cheese, garlic, and more. It’s a satisfying, comfort food style meal which is sure to fill up everyone at the dinner table. It’s a nice recipe to either make as it’s written or use as the basis for your own customization. You can use your own choice of meat, vegetables, cheese, and so on, and even swap the rigatoni for another pasta shape.

This recipe is sure to appeal to everyone. Who doesn’t love a nice, meaty pasta recipe?

You don’t need to bake anything in this recipe. You just cook the pasta shapes in one pot and make the sauce in another, and then combine both.

This dinner is especially good during the chillier months, since it’s so hearty, robust and filling. But it’s also nice at any other time of the year, whenever that pasta craving hits!

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Why You’ll Love the Recipe:

This simple pasta recipe is hearty, meaty and delicious. It’s also customizable so you can adapt it to your palate or whatever you want to use up from the refrigerator. And leftovers reheat well too.

How to Serve It:

Enjoy this sausage rigatoni hot, perhaps paired with a salad or with some garlic bread.

Ingredients:

• Italian sausage
• Minced garlic cloves
• Yellow onion
• Chicken broth or white wine
• Rigatoni pasta shapes
• Small zucchini
• Olive oil
• Tomato concentrate
• Cherry tomatoes
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Red pepper flakes (optional)
• Handful of chopped fresh basil
• Freshly grated parmesan, to serve

How to make Rigatoni with Sausage, Tomatoes and Zucchini:

Bring a pot of water to a boil and add a pinch of salt and the pasta.

Cook the pasta following the instructions on the package, then drain and keep warm.

Reserve ½ cup of the pasta sauce.

Meanwhile, as the pasta cooks, heat up the oil in another pan.

Sauté the onion in the oil for 10 minutes, along with the red pepper flakes if using.

Add the sausage and cook until browned, breaking it up with a wooden spoon.

Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes.

Add the tomato paste, stir and cook for another 2 minutes.

Add the broth or wine, tomatoes, salt and black pepper, and cook for 10 minutes

Scrape the stuck-on browned bits off the bottom of the pan as you go.

Stir in the zucchini and cook for 5 minutes.

Mix the drained cooked pasta into the zucchini mixture, adding some of the reserved pasta water if needed.

Stir in the basil, then serve with grated parmesan on top.

No matter how hungry you are, this wonderfully meaty rigatoni dish is sure to fill you up in the tastiest way possible. It’s a filling combination of sausage, pasta, tomato sauce, and vegetables, and will definitely appeal to your inner Italian.

Can You Make It Ahead?

You can make it ahead and warm it up. If doing this, only cook the pasta to al dente so it doesn’t overcook when you’re reheating the recipe.

Storage Instructions:

Leftovers will keep for up to 4 days in an airtight container and can be reheated in the microwave.

Variations and Substitutions:

Use any type of Italian sausage in this rigatoni sausage zucchini recipe. Sweet, mild and spicy all work well, or you can use ground beef instead if you prefer. Swap the zucchini for mushrooms if you prefer, or use some of each.