Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
Updated Sep 30, 2025
This Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Pasta recipe is made with only 6 main ingredients: roasted red peppers, garlic, onions, olive oil, and spaghetti.
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Try my roasted red pepper pasta for something different!
Sometimes I want a change from marinara, and this roasted red pepper pasta recipe is what I make instead. The sauce is creamy and flavorful with just six ingredients, and it works with any pasta I’ve got in the pantry.
I usually grab a jar of roasted red peppers to keep things simple, but you can roast your own if you’ve got fresh red bell peppers on hand. It’s also a great way to use up peppers that are starting to wrinkle a bit and need to get cooked. This roasted red pepper pasta recipe is quick, naturally vegan, and easy to adjust with whatever milk you’ve got, plant-based or dairy.
Happy Cooking!
– Yumna
Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Ingredients
- Roasted Red Peppers: I like to use jarred roasted red peppers because it cuts down the prep time, but you can absolutely roast red peppers, too!
- Onion: I always use white onion for this pasta dish, but you can use any type of onion that you have on hand.
- Garlic: I prefer the taste of roasted fresh garlic, but you can also use jarred minced garlic or even garlic powder.
- Spaghetti: I like using long thin pasta like spaghetti for this dish, but any pasta shape will work!
- Oil: I use olive oil to roast my garlic and onions, but any cooking oil will do.
- Plant-Based Milk: I like almond milk in this recipe, but any type of plant-based milk will be good.
- Seasoning: I like to top my roasted red pepper pasta with salt, a sprinkle of crushed red pepper, and fresh basil, but feel free to get creative with toppings and seasonings (an Italian spice blend will also work well here).
How to Make Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 onion quartered
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- Salt to taste
- 12 ounces spaghetti
- 1 15 ounces jar roasted red peppers drained
- ½ cup milk of choice
- Fresh basil for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a small baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the onions, garlic and crushed red pepper on the baking sheet, and drizzle with olive oil. Roast until the onions are tender and golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until al dente according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup pasta water, drain and return the pasta to the pot, covered.
- Transfer the roasted onions and garlic to a blender when done roasting along with the drained roasted red peppers and milk. Blend until smooth and creamy.
- Transfer the sauce on top of the cooked pasta and toss to combine. Add as much of the pasta water as needed for your desired consistency. Serve immediately with fresh torn basil.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Recipe Tips
- Don’t over-char your onions and garlic. You want them to be nicely browned, not burnt.
- Make sure to drain your jar of roasted red peppers. Otherwise, your sauce will be too watery!
- Cook your pasta until just al dente. You want the pasta to absorb some of the sauce without getting soggy.
Serving Ideas
- Make a side salad. I like to serve this creamy roasted red pepper pasta with my kale Caesar salad, my wedge salad with blue cheese, or a simple fresh garden salad.
- Add protein. This pasta makes an easy base for protein if you want a more filling dish. Try adding chicken breast or chicken thighs, cooked shrimp, or some baked tofu!
- Serve with bread. I like having a little fresh bread to sop up any extra sauce. My favorites are cheesy garlic bread and homemade dinner rolls.
More Vegan Pasta Recipes
- Hummus Pasta
- Creamy Tomato Pasta
- Pumpkin Pasta
- Cauliflower Alfredo
- Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes
- One Pan Pasta
- Lemon Pasta
This Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Pasta recipe was originally published on June 19, 2017. The recipe has not been modified, but the post now includes new step-by-step photos of how to make the pasta recipe.
Comments
Can this be canned?
I’m not sure, I haven’t tried canning pasta before.
This sauce was delicious. I did not have a jar of pre-roasted red peppers. So I added two red bell peppers, one full red onion chopped into quarters, 3 cloves of garlic, olive oil, salt+pepper, red pepper flakes and Italian seasoning to the oven safe bowl to roast for 30 minutes (as suggested by Yumna). I then blended it after and added extra spices for our taste to the blender! We loved it tons! Simple and you can easily modify this to add more veggies to the sauce.
Amazing! Your tweaks sound so good, thank you for sharing!!
I have a question. I plan on roasting my own peppers. How many peppers do I need and could I roast the peppers, garlic, and onion together?
Great question! You’ll need 1 or 2 red peppers. Yes, you can roast them together—I would place the peppers under the broiler for 3-5 minutes until they get charred, then add the onions, garlic, crushed red pepper, and olive oil to continue roasting at 425ºF for 25-30 minutes.
I just tried this. For me it took about 10mins broiling per side, totalling around 40mins of broiling – much longer than 3-5mins total. Maybe it’s because the closest I could get my peppers to the broiler without touching was 3 inches. It took so long that I decided to broil my onions and garlic at the same time, rather than roasting as per the recipe.
Hmm, I am sorry to hear that! Every oven is different so it sounds like you adjusted to yours well.
Wasn’t a fan of this one. The roasted taste was too overpowering and it was very one dimensional. I even added some grilled shrimp and roasted zucchini. Next time I’ll saute the onion and garlic and blend them instead of roasting them. I made another roasted pepper pasta recipe about 10 years ago where it was delicious and you could taste the red bell peppers, so I’ll just stick to that.
So sorry that the red pepper sauce wasn’t to your taste. Thank you for the feedback!
I made this for a picnic and everyone loved it. I had two jars of roasted red peppers in oil so I used them but still roasted the onion and garlic. My sauce wasn’t super smooth (used my food processor) but it was still delicious.
So glad you liked it!
This tasted like a version of last years recipe from “Not another Cooking show” but with lower quality but easier ready ingredients. It’s absolutely delicious, so I appreciate how your turned it into dish you can throw together any weekday!
You’re so welcome Thomas!
I used green bell pepper and it felt a little raw but after seasoning with a generous amount of oregano the flavor was just perfect.
Thank you for this recipe.
Green bell peppers have a different flavor profile than red, I’ve never used one to make this recipe, but I am going to bet it’s like apples and oranges when finished. Glad it did end up working out for you!
I really liked this recipe! I roasted one huge red bell pepper and one medium yellow bell pepper as mentioned in the instructions. The yellow smelled like tomato sauce after broil. I used goat milk and sprinkeld some aged cheddar at the end. Next time Ill use parmesan instead. I had to get rid of bell peppers in the fridge and this was a great recipe. Thankyou!
You’re so welcome! Glad you enjoyed it!
We dont have Jarred Roasted Pepper here on our country on which we can order in, what I will do is I will actually roast Sweet Peppers; How many Sweet peppers you will recommend for roasting?
And also, I will use just water instead of milk; How long do you think is the Storing Length?
Hi Ziel, if you’re roasting sweet bell peppers, you want to use 2 1/2 large ones. If they are the mini sweet peppers, I am not sure exactly how many you’d need; roughly between 8-10 is my guess. The nice thing about this recipe is you can’t really put in too many peppers. If you find it’s too thick, you can just add splashes of water until you get the consistency you want. The storage length won’t vary much, even if you use water due to other fresh ingredients. I recommend using it within a week. Enjoy!
This looks soooo good! I’m really looking forward to make it for dinner tonight but had one question about it – do you think this recipe would go well with smoked salmon? I have some leftover (salmon) in my fridge and really don’t want it to go bad so just thought of adding it together if it would be a good combination
Hi Juju, I am excited for you to try the pasta! I have never paired it with smoked salmon myself, so I don’t want to steer you wrong by saying yes. That being said, there is no harm in trying it. I bet the smokiness of the salmon will pair well with the roasted red peppers. You’ll have to come back after you try it and let me know what you think!
Absolutely delicious! I doubled the sauce because i like extra sauce. Only thing i did differently was i heated the roasted red peppers and the whipping cream(instead of milk) in a pot for 5 minutes or so and then added it to the food processor with the roasted onions and garlic. Love Love Love this recipe! Thank you for sharing it.
Hi Natalie! I am so glad you enjoyed the pasta. I bet the heavy cream really made it extra creamy great sub!
I’ve made this a few times and enjoy it very much. I prep my lunches for the month all in one day and freeze them and was wondering if this freezes well!!!
That makes me so happy to hear! I love that!
I made this dish tonight. Was simple to make and soooooooo delicious !
Yay! Glad you enjoyed!
How is this vegan if you use milk?
You can use your favorite plant based milk in this recipe such as:
soy
hemp
almond
cashew
oat
rice
i just came across your website and I’m very impressed! I am a long-time vegetarian and enjoy various cuisines; unfortunately I also have celiac disease which limits a lot of my options. I occasionally like to make vegan meals and you’ve got that covered too. I like that you use fresh herbs and lemon and very basic kitchen staples; my only problem will be deciding which pasta recipe to try first! thanks
Thank you! You can’t go wrong with whichever one you decide!
If I roast my own peppers, how many should I use for this recipe? Thank you!
I would say around 2-3 red peppers. You can also roast them and then weigh them out, so you only use 15 ounces.
Thank you for the fast reply!
Soo goood you wasn’t lying keep up the great content
Thank you so much!!
First time cooking vegan for my husband’s health. Whole new world. I hope it is tasty. How do I cook the red peppers? He can’t have anything canned or jarred.
If you prefer to roast the peppers, just place them under the broiler for 3-5 minutes until they get charred. You can roast them whole without removing the seeds. Then, transfer them to a glass container, cover them with saran wrap for 15-20 minutes so the steam continues to cook and soften them. This is a wonderful method for roasting your own bell peppers which results in an amazing sweet and smoky flavor!
This was a great surprise. It was delicious and the organic red bell peppers I scored at the green market were put to great use. I recommend this recipe for ease of preparation and excellent taste. Definitely going in our recipe file.
That’s great to hear! Thank you so much!!
Hi. Sorry but what is a broiler and what is seran wrap?
I don’t find ready roasted peppers easy to find but drizzled in a little olive oil and herbs they taste great very slow roasted (100°C for a few hours) or in the air fryer.
I am from the UK and often find even though we all speak english terms, names and measurments are often very different!
A broiler is a setting on the oven that gives high, direct heat like a grill. Saran wrap is also known as plastic wrap, cling film, or cling wrap.
I love roasted red peppers! I wonder if this would be good with freshly grated parmesan cheese! Yum!
Sounds like a good idea to me!
Thank goodness for this recipe! I had a surplus of red peppers from a veg box subscription so I roasted them with the onion. I found the sauce little too sweet at first but that was nothing that a bit of extra salt and vinegar couldn’t fix. I also added some red pepper flakes for some heat. The sauce didn’t need any milk to thin it out after I added a splash of vinegar, but it was delicious served with linguine and Parmesan on top. I will definitely make this again 🙂
I love the red pepper flakes for a touch of spice! Thank you!
The recipe is amazing and so simple. I roasted my own bell pepper and it was super super tasty! Love your recipes. 🙌🏼
Yay! So glad to hear it. Thank you!!
Delicious and so simple. A new family favourite
So happy to hear that! Thank you!
Absolutely Brilliant, I am an IBS sufferer, and cannot tolerate Tomatoes, this recipe is perfect for me, for pasta meals,
I can now enjoy a favourite snack meal again, SPAGHETTI on toast, smothered with black pepper and Daddies Brown Sauce, yum 😋 😋
I’m so glad to hear it. And wow spaghetti on toast?! Gotta try!
I loved this recipe, it gives you a lot of room to experiment to your liking. The fact that I could emphasize certain flavours tells me I can play around with it each time to make it different, which I love. Also, it was SO QUICK!
The modifications that I had:
1) I roasted 2 whole peppers myself; sprinkled with paprika!
2) To the sauce, I added: 1 diced Roma tomato, 1/2 tsp red chili flakes, 1 tsp fresh coriander, 1 tsp fresh basil, 2 tsp balsamic vinegar and light cream instead of milk!
2) I used spiral pasta (it was all I had) and served it with avocado and a polish sausage!
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your modifications!! That’s super helpful and I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Simple, satisfying, healthy and so delicious! I made with whole wheat pasta but will make again with spirialized butternut squash next time.
Yay! I’m so happy to hear that! Thanks so much for sharing! And I love the idea of serving it with spiralized butternut squash!
We made this for dinner and it was SO good! It will definitely be on a regular rotation for dinner.
Yay! I’m so glad to hear that. Thanks for sharing!!
Will this sauce freeze well?
Yes it will actually!
Just discovered your site, love it
Aww thank you so much! Hope you enjoy the recipes!
Love it! I added shrimp to mine 🙂
Yum! Sounds perfect with shrimp! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Well done!! It’s delicious
Thank you!!
This is so yummy. Comforting is the key word, especially since it’s so easy to make. I tried it with gluten free pasta and it was still delicious.
Yay! SO glad you loved it!
So as you find all good recipes at those wee hours of the morning! I came across this and decided this was fridays donet after a hard week!
And I couldn’t of been more happier with the decision!! The flavor of the the roasted red peppers and the creaminess of the half and half created an ultimate combination of flavors! I even search for the right pasta and didnt go with angel hair! I cannot wait to make this meal again! It for sure become an once a month item???????
Haha…yes the best recipes are found sometimes when you least expect it! And I’m so happy you stumbled upon this in the wee hours of the night and that you’ll include it in your monthly meal prep! yay!
I have prepared this like three times and it is full of goodness. Just perfect for students like me. Thank you.
That’s so wonderful to hear! Thanks so much for the feedback :)))
What a delicious idea. I have a half dozen jars of roasted red peppers from Trader Joes in the pantry as I type–am going to make this right away. Came from pinterest for the plum cherry smoothie.
Hi Joanne – Hope you tried the pasta recipe and loved it! 🙂