Vegan Pasta Amatriciana

Pasta Amatriciana gets an everyone-friendly and delicious makeover in this vegan version. A brick-red tomato sauce is flavored with garlic, onions, fennel, red pepper and parsley, then tossed with penne pasta. It is as tasty as it is easy, and it makes a great weeknight vegan pasta dinner.

If you love flavor loaded pasta recipes like this vegan pasta e fagioli, pasta alla Norma and vegan sage butter gnocchi, you will adore this vegan Pasta Amatriciana.

There are as many versions of an amatriciana sauce, a classic Roman pasta sauce, as there are cooks. Today, I have for you my very own version--one I arrived at after lots of research and testing. I guarantee you'll love it.

Some versions of Pasta Amatriciana, I found, are vegetarian, and use no meat. Others rely on guanciale, a kind of pork, for flavor. Some use onions, others do not. Mine is kinda my own.

This vegan Pasta Amatriciana is an easy recipe, especially if you buy garlic that has already been peeled, as you'll otherwise need to peel two whole bulbs. The only other prep needed is to slice an onion.

Try it, then come back and let me know!

What we love about this pasta amatriciana

• It's easy. It takes 10 minutes prep time, max, and just over 30 minutes to cook the sauce.
• It's versatile. You can stir in some lentils or vegan meat crumbles into the sauce to add a protein boost, making it a one-dish meal.
• It's gorgeous. I don't know what it is about red pasta sauces, but they make you so darn hungry just to look at them.

Helpful tips and steps

• Amatriciana is typically eaten with bucatini, which is a spaghetti-like pipe pasta which drinks up the delicious sauce. If you can't find it, use regular spaghetti or penne, like I did, which is great with this sauce.
• Cook the pasta until it is slightly less done than the al dente stage. This is because you'll cook it with the sauce for a minute or two and you don't want to overcook it.
• The pasta sauce is quite straightforward. Start it about 15 minutes before you begin the pot of pasta water so you can finish them up at the same time.
• Begin by sauteing two bulbs worth of garlic with olive oil in a large pot until golden, then pulse the garlic with San Marzano tomatoes or plum tomatoes.
• In the remaining oil, add 1 tablespoon of fennel seeds. You can crush them or run a knife through them to break them up, which wil release their flavors. Saute a bit, then add the tomatoes and garlic to the pot and mix. Add sliced onions to the sauce. If you want to use a meat substitute or lentils, add them at this point. A vegan Italian sausage would be great--break it up into largish crumbles. Or use cooked brown lentils.
• Add red pepper flakes. I like a spicy pasta (which makes this more like an arrabiata sauce) so I add a teaspoon which works great for me, but use less for less heat, and more for more heat. Add a cup of water.
• Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and let the sauce simmer 30 minutes. Stir in the cooked pasta with half a cup of the pasta cooking liquid. It might appear saucy at first but the pasta will soak up the juices and thicken quickly. Add more pasta water if you want a saucier pasta.
• Add salt and ground black pepper to taste. Stir in chopped parsley or basil. Sprinkle on vegan parmesan while serving.

More vegan pasta recipes

• The Best Vegan White Pasta Sauce
• Vegan Alfredo Sauce with Mushrooms
• The Best Marinara Sauce Recipe
• Vegan Lentil Marinara
• Vegan Zucchini Pasta
• Check out this collection of 30 Easy Vegan Pasta Recipes for Weeknight Dinners.