Easy Penne Alla Vodka Recipe (with video)
An easy Penne Alla Vodka dinner is a comfort dish on its own. Pasta noodles tossed with a delicious tomato and cream sauce. Add a side salad and a chicken dish for a complete and succulent dinner for the whole family.
Penne Alla Vodka is a dish that we crave when we see it on the menu of our favorite restaurant. For one reason or another, we only remember to make it during the holidays. It is not a dish that we say out of the blue; let’s make it today!
Before we dig in and savor the creamy and delicious tomato sauce, let’s talk a bit about pasta. Did you know that not all pasta noodles are created equal? The shape and taste of the noodles should be paired with certain types of sauces. Some pasta noodles hold tomato or creamy white sauce better than others.
Red or white sauces for pasta should not only coat each noodle but also must taste deliciously good. Fresh ingredients, seasoning, and spices will make any pasta taste great. Check out our pasta recipe for Gemelli Pasta with Summer Squash, roasted chicken, and Ricotta Tomato Sauce made with creamy tomato base sauce.
What are the ingredients in this pasta recipe?
The ingredients to make this recipe are as follow:
- Penne Pasta
- Butter
- Fresh Garlic
- Onion
- Whole Tomato Sauce
- Vodka
- Heavy Cream
- Salt
- Ground Black Pepper
- Parsley
How to make the recipe
- Cook the pasta in salted boiling water according to package directions.
- While the pasta is cooking, prepare the sauce.
- Melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add the garlic, onion, and red pepper flakes and cook for 45 seconds. Do not burn the garlic.
- Place the whole tomatoes with the juice in a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Pour the tomato puree into the pan and stir to mix well.
- Add the vodka to the pan. Simmer the sauce for 10 minutes over medium low heat.
- Stir in the heavy cream, grated parmesan cheese, parsley and simmer for another 5 minutes or until thickened. Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.
- Pour the sauce over the pasta and toss to coat. Sprinkle more parmesan cheese, then serve.
Tips and Notes
- Add salt to the boiling water for the pasta. The noodles need to have seasoning before adding the tomato and vodka sauce.
- Make sure you let the sauce simmer long enough after adding the vodka. The alcohol needs to cook off to avoid any after-taste from the vodka.
- Make the sauce the day before to save on time. This way, you will have more time to create other dishes, such as a delicious Roasted Broccoli and Cheese recipe to serve with the pasta dish.
- Add meat or seafood to the pasta to change things a bit. You can add meatballs, sausages, grilled chicken or roasted chicken, any roasted meat you like, seafood (shrimp or crabmeat). Grilled shrimp or garlic shrimp go well with this dish.
- Add vegetables such as spinach, shredded carrots, watercress, or mushrooms. Gourmet mushrooms will make this dish even tastier. Their flavors are fantastic with any pasta dish.
- Do not overcook the pasta. Cook it al dente. The tomato sauce will complete the cooking process. This way, the sauce will coat the noodles much better.
- Add a drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil to the pasta before serving. This will also help with moisture.
Other Pasta recipe ideas for dinner
- EASY RIGATONI PASTA WITH MEAT SAUCE
- WHOLE WHEAT ROTINI PASTA WITH SPICY MARINARA SAUCE
- QUICK PASTA DINNER WITH LEFTOVER STEAK
Easy Penne Alla Vodka Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 ounces penne pasta
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 teaspoons garlic chopped
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 28 ounce can Italian style whole tomatoes
- 1/4 cup vodka
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese plus more for serving
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Instructions
- Cook the pasta in salted boiling water according to package directions.
- While the pasta is cooking, prepare the sauce.
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic, onion, and red pepper flakes and cook for 45 seconds. Do not burn the garlic.
- Place the whole tomatoes with the juice in a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Pour the tomato puree into the pan and stir to mix well.
- Add the vodka to the pan. Simmer the sauce for 10 minutes over medium-low heat.
- Stir in the heavy cream, grated parmesan cheese, parsley, and simmer for another 5 minutes or thickened. Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.
- Pour the sauce over the pasta and toss to coat. Sprinkle more parmesan cheese, then serve.
Video
Notes
- Add salt to the boiling water for the pasta. The noodles need to have seasoning before adding the tomato and vodka sauce.
- Make sure you let the sauce simmer long enough after adding the vodka. The alcohol needs to cook off to avoid any after-taste from the vodka.
- Make the sauce the day before to save on time. This way, you will have more time to create other dishes, such as a delicious Roasted Broccoli and Cheese recipe to serve with the pasta dish.
- Add meat or seafood to the pasta to change things a bit. You can add meatballs, sausages, grilled chicken or roasted chicken, any roasted meat you like, seafood (shrimp or crabmeat). Grilled shrimp or garlic shrimp go well with this dish.
- Add vegetables such as spinach, shredded carrots, watercress, or mushrooms. Gourmet mushrooms will make this dish even tastier. Their flavors are fantastic with any pasta dish.
- Do not overcook the pasta. Cook it al dente. The tomato sauce will complete the cooking process. This way, the sauce will coat the noodles much better.
- Add a drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil to the pasta before serving. This will also help with moisture.
Nutrition
Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used.
Nutrition info is automatically generated and provided as a courtesy and as an estimate only.
