Everyone needs an easy weeknight pasta recipe. This vegan vodka sauce pasta (penne alla vodka) is perfect for when you're craving a cozy dinner, but don't want to go to the grocery store. This recipe calls for simple pantry ingredients like olive oil, garlic, onion, tomato paste—and pasta, of course!
The sauce is silky, creamy, and loaded with umami. The trick is cooking down tomato paste until its caramelized and dark red. This step tempers the tomato paste's raw flavor, to create a deeply flavorful and savory sauce. What we love most about this recipe is that it tastes just like the real deal, even though it's completely vegan and dairy-free. We make this yummy pasta often—and think that you should too!
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Why you'll love this recipe
- Loaded with flavor: This quick-cooking recipe packs a ton of flavor! Cooking a whole tube of tomato paste, until its dark red and caramelized, creates a deeply savoury tomato flavor—all in a short amount of time. And, once it's combined with onion, garlic, and vegan parmesan, it's a match made in heaven!
- No coconut: Many vegan vodka sauce pastas use canned coconut milk for creaminess. But this often adds a slight but noticeable coconut flavor to the sauce. We prefer to use cashews instead, because they're more neutral in flavor, so the rest of the ingredients can shine through. (And, you won't be left with a half-used can of coconut milk after!)
- A short list of pantry ingredients: This recipe calls for less than 10 ingredients, many of which you probably already have in your pantry—like pasta, tomato paste, salt, garlic, and onion.
- Undetectably vegan: Thanks to neutral-tasting cashews and vegan parmesan cheese, this finished dish tastes just like regular vodka sauce pasta! If you're not vegan, you could use regular parmesan cheese instead—but for best results, we recommend you keep the cashews as the creamy component.
This vodka sauce pasta is flavorful, saucy, and super creamy!
Ingredients (and substitutes)
You'll need less than 10 ingredients to make this flavorful vegan vodka sauce pasta. And, you may already have most of these ingredients in your pantry!
- Raw cashews: Cashews give this sauce a creamy, luscious texture without any dairy. Use raw cashews—not roasted or salted—so the cashews don't introduce an unintended flavor to the sauce.
- Tomato paste: Tomato paste is the source of tomato flavor in this sauce. Caramelizing the tomato paste helps elevate the flavor. We recommend using a double-concentrated tomato paste, because it has a more intense flavor. Often, double-concentrated tomato paste is sold in tubes rather than cans.
- Vodka: It's not quite vodka sauce without it! But if you're in a pinch, you could try using white wine or vegetable stock instead—you do need to use some kind of liquid to deglaze and loosen any flavorful bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Penne (or other pasta): We used penne for a classic penne alla vodka. But, you could use a different noodle, such as rigatoni or rotini.
- Vegan parmesan: Choose a finely grated cheese that will meld into the sauce (like the cheese sold in a shaker bottle). We used a store-bought vegan grated parmesan. We don't recommend using a homemade cashew "parmesan"(or similar) in the sauce, because it won't melt into a smooth and silky sauce. If you're not vegan, you could use regular parmesan instead.
Find the recipe card below for the complete recipe, including all ingredients and instructions.
How to make (step-by-step photos)
It's easy to make this vegan vodka sauce pasta. Here are the steps to make it:
Find the recipe card below for the complete recipe, including all ingredients and instructions.
Frequently asked questions
Vodka helps enhance the flavors in the sauce, primarily through aroma. At low concentrations—like in this vodka sauce recipe—"the alcohol enhances the release of fruity esters and other aroma molecules into the air" (source). Adding vodka to vodka sauce pasta results in a delicious, balanced sauce.
You could make vodka sauce without vodka—but it won't have quite the same flavor. In a pinch, you can substitute white wine (which has a lower alcohol content). Or, if you don't consume alcohol, you can use vegetable stock instead. That said, in this sauce, you can't really taste the vodka—and much of the alcohol content evaporates—so if you can, we highly recommend following the recipe and adding vodka.
Vodka sauce pasta is quite satisfying, so you can definitely enjoy it on its own. That said, you could serve penne alla vodka with: Vegan Caesar Salad, Pesto Pea Spinach Salad, or garlic bread.
📖 Recipe
Vegan Vodka Sauce Pasta
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup raw cashews
- 1⅓ cup boiling water
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1½ cups diced yellow onion (about 1 medium)
- 5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 (5.3 oz/150g) tube tomato paste (double concentrated, see note 1)
- 1 lb dried penne (see note 2)
- ¼ cup vodka
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- ⅓ cup grated vegan Parmesan (more for garnish, see note 3)
Instructions
- Quick soak cashews: Add cashews and boiling water to a small heatproof bowl. Let soak (for at least 10 minutes) while you cook (see note 4).
- Boil water for pasta: Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
- Start sauce: Meanwhile, warm olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions, cook until golden around the edges, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and red pepper flakes, cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, until it's dark red and sticking to the bottom of the pot, 8 to 10 minutes. (If the tomato paste sticks as soon as you add it, reduce the heat slightly and continue cooking until the olive oil turns red).
- Cook pasta: Meanwhile, cook pasta until al dente, according to package instructions. Scoop out 2 cups of the pasta water and set aside, then drain noodles.
- Finish sauce: Pour vodka over the tomato paste mixture. Cook until the liquid evaporates, about 1 minute, while scraping up anything stuck to the bottom of the pot. Transfer mixture to a high-speed blender, along with cashews AND soaking water. Blend until completely smooth and creamy.
- Combine: Pour the sauce back into the pot. Add salt and ¾ cup of the reserved pasta water. Warm over medium-low heat until bubbling, then add noodles and parmesan. Toss to coat. Add small splashes of more pasta water until noodles are coated in a luscious sauce. Taste and season with more salt if needed. Garnish with more parmesan and serve.
Notes
- Tomato Paste: Choose double-concentrated tomato paste if you can find it. It has been cooked down more, to create a more intense flavor. Double-concentrated tomato paste is often found in tubes (rather than cans).
- Pasta: Instead of penne, you could use a different noodle such as rigatoni or rotini. Choose gluten-free pasta, if needed.
- Vegan Parmesan: Choose your favorite store-bought meltable vegan parmesan. We recommend a finely grated parmesan (like the ones sold in shaker containers) so that it melds into the sauce.
- If you don't have a high-speed blender: A high speed blender can typically pulverize cashews quite easily—even unsoaked ones! This recipe calls for a quick soak in boiling water for at least 10 minutes to make them soft so they blend very easily. If you don't have a high-speed blender, soak the cashews for at least 30 minutes. And if for some reason you notice any small pieces of cashew after blending, strain the sauce before adding it back to the pot.
David says
Loved this recipe! Super easy to make and doesn't taste "vegan".
bri says
Hi David! Glad to hear you enjoyed this vodka sauce pasta. Thanks for sharing:)
Sara J says
Yummy! I'm trying to eat plant-based for January so I made this for dinner. Even my vegan-hesitant husband loved it. He went for seconds!
bri says
Hi Sara! Woohoo, sounds like this recipe was a win! Glad to hear you and your husband both enjoyed it. Have a lovely start to the new year!
Pauline G says
This recipe is SO GOOD! I made it for dinner and have already sent the recipe to my friends to make. Really easy vegan recipe. Thanks!
bri says
Hi Pauline! That's so kind of you to share this recipe with friends. We're happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe!
Lauren says
I was looking for a vegan vodka pasta online and chose this one because I already had everything. Delicious!! I wouldn't change a thing.
bri says
Hi Lauren! Woohoo, so happy to hear you found this recipe online! And even better that you enjoyed it:) We really appreciate you taking the time to write in, thank you!
Scarlett says
Made this for date night! So yummy. My meat-eating boyfriend loved it and he's already requested we make it again:)
bri says
Hi Scarlett! We LOVE that you made this pasta for date night! We're happy that it was a hit! Thank you so much for sharing!