This Spicy Vodka Pasta recipe has become viral since 2020 and without a doubt, I am not surprised! Gigi Hadid Pasta tastes utterly scrumptious, every bite is filled with delicious restaurant-quality flavors.
Make it with or without vodka, you’ll love this.
We absolutely love easy pasta recipes, they are so easy and go well with all the veggies! From our Creamy Chicken Fajita Pasta, Zesty Italian Pasta Salad, to Baked Pepperoni Pasta - there's something for everyone and guaranteed to satisfy even picky eaters. This Spicy Vodka Pasta is not an exception!
This TikTok viral recipe truly deserves the hype, and will become your new favorite pasta dish! It’s an easy, cheesy fix that requires virtually no effort.
Since supermodel Gigi Hadid posted this recipe back in 2020 on her Instagram (see her original instagram story here) it has been collecting so many raving fans and reviews, I decided to test this viral creamy tomato sauce recipe for myself.
Shell pasta is the best here and it’s what was in the original post but any small pasta variety will work.
Jump to:
Ingredients
Essentially pasta dishes have a few ingredients, yet they have so much flavor to them. This one is a keeper!
- Short Pasta - I used medium pasta shells. I love the texture of it and how a looot of the sauce gets stuck in it perfectly. That was a great choice! Use your favorite small pasta. It holds up more tomato sauce and fills all the small holes and textures. What I recommend: Fusilli, rotini, penne pasta, orecchiette, rigatoni, shell pasta, penne, farfalle (bowtie), conchiglie.
- The spicy vodka sauce - the sauce is so good that I am now making it quite often and serving it with pasta, rice, and veggies. Not always with vodka, though!
- Onion - red onion was what Gigi used, and is my preferred choice too here! Red onion has a nice zing to it and a stronger onion flavor when cooked up with tomato pasta and chili flakes. The combination is wild! My next up are shallots, well any brown/yellow onions are okay too.
- Parmesan Cheese - use freshly grated block of Parmesan cheese for delicious flavor.
- Tomato paste matters - it truly does! Good Tomato paste vs great high-quality tomato paste will give different results in terms of rich tomato flavor and color. It doesn’t have to be expensive, just of good quality.
- Vodka - the alcohol from vodka evaporates during the cooking process and you will not taste any vodka here. Unless you go overboard with it of course. This adds needed acidity but can be left out completely. if you can’t drink alcohol substitute it with pasta cooking water, vegetable broth, water, or more cooking cream. As Gigi was pregnant she didn’t add any vodka in her original Instagram story recipe at that time.
- Fresh herbs - parsley or fresh basil for garnish along with parmesan cheese.
For the full list of ingredients, please scroll down where you'll find the recipe card.
Instructions
Gigi Hadid's spicy vodka pasta recipe is absolutely NOT complicated, it is straightforward and requires just a few ingredients + 20 or so minutes.
Cook the pasta according to package directions to al dente, adding ½ teaspoon of salt to the water.
Drain pasta but reserve ½-1 cup of pasta cooking water before draining.
Saute red onions in ½ cups olive oil (I know, it’s a lot but this is what gives the beautiful flavor and texture to the pasta) in a large saucepan (or a medium dutch oven pot) over medium heat until they start to become soft.
Stir in garlic and saute until fragrant (about 1 minute).
Add tomato paste. Stir the mixture until it's thoroughly combined and as Gigi recommends darker and a bit caramelized. Reduce the heat to low.
Slowly pour in the vodka, being careful if your stove has an open flame (remove the pan from the heat before adding).
In Gigi’s original version she says you can make it with vodka (as penne alla vodka recipe) but this time she didn’t add any and says it was still gooood. Simmer until vodka is almost evaporated. About 2 to 3 minutes.
Pour in the heavy cream, and season with salt and black pepper, and chili flakes. Stir to combine, then turn heat to a low simmer. Cook until creamy and starts to thicken but not yet complete.
Add the parmesan cheese and stir until melts completely. The sauce should start to thicken, even more, it should coat the back of a wooden spoon.
Now add cooked pasta to the spicy tomato sauce and gently stir to coat. Top with butter. The sauce will be thick, you’ll need to add the reserved pasta cooking water to thin it out slightly.
Add ½ cup of water or more to achieve the desired consistency. You’ll have to do it every time you reheat it (in case there are some leftovers!).
Sprinkle more parmesan on top, fresh chopped basil, red pepper flakes, and black pepper if desired.
Serve right away with a side portion of green salad for a complete meal.
Tips
- Add salt when cooking the pasta - This helps increase the boiling point of the water while also adding a slight flavor to the pasta.
- It is essentially the penne alla vodka recipe just with another type of pasta. It has almost all the same ingredients and spice to it.
- With or Without Vodka - What Can you add instead of vodka in this pasta? Vodka adds some acidity to the dish, and all the alcohol evaporates during cooking. So, there’s no alcohol flavor to it! But this can be totally replaced with a little pasta cooking water, vegetable stock, a splash of vinegar or lemon juice, grape juice, and apple juice.
- Substitute penne pasta and you've got yourself the classic Italian 'penne alla vodka'
Freezing and Storing Instructions
Store Gigi Hadid's pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2-3 days. If you have any leftovers!
Reheat - this pasta is best enjoyed right away. The pasta will soak up al the sauce fairly quickly. To reheat, add a splash of cooking cream, milk, vegetable broth, or simply water.
Reheat over the stovetop at low heat until the sauce starts to thicken again coating the back of the spoon.
FAQ
In her original story in her Instagram Gigi Hadid used a type of shell pasta. It seems it is a smaller variety, more of an orecchiette (“little ears”) pasta type. You can use any shell pasta medium or large ill be good here.
Other small pasta choices are fine too: Fusilli, rotini, penne pasta, orecchiette, rigatoni, shell pasta, penne, farfalle (bowtie), conchiglie.
Milk can work in this recipe but is not ideal. It is not as rich and dense as cooking cream. For a healthier version, you can definitely use half and half instead of heavy cream or a plant-based cooking cream (soya-based cooking creams work well as a creamy vegan substitute).
This spicy vodka pasta has become viral for a good reason! It is of high quality, with very few ingredients but tastes 100% restaurant-quality meal.
Thank you so much for reading how to make Spicy Vodka Pasta.
Please feel free to comment with any questions you may have! I love reading your feedback.
Rita
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below. Thank you!
Easy Pasta Recipes
Spicy Vodka Pasta (Viral Gigi Hadid Pasta)
Ingredients
- 8 oz medium or large shell pasta gluten-free or regular + reserve ½-1 cup of pasta cooking water
- 6 tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small red onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic medium, minced
- ½ cup tomato paste
- 3 tablespoon vodka
- 1½ cups heavy cooking cream double cream
- salt to taste
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoon red chili flakes
- ½ cup parmesan cheese finely grated
- 2 tablespoon butter
- basil leaves optional chopped
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to package directions to al dente, adding ½ teaspoon of salt to the water. Drain pasta but reserve ½-1 cup of pasta cooking water before draining.
- Saute red onions in ½ cups olive oil (I know, it’s a lot but this is what gives the beautiful flavor and texture to the pasta) in a large saucepan (or a medium dutch oven pot) over medium heat until they start to become soft. Stir in garlic and saute until fragrant (about 1 minute).
- Add tomato paste. Stir the mixture until it's thoroughly combined and as Gigi recommends darker and a bit caramelized. Reduce the heat to low.
- Slowly pour in the vodka, being careful if your stove has an open flame (remove the pan from the heat before adding). In Gigi’s original version she says you can make it with vodka (as penne alla vodka recipe) but this time she didn’t add any and says it was still gooood. Simmer until vodka is almost evaporated. About 2 to 3 minutes.
- Pour in the heavy cream, season with salt and black pepper, chili flakes. Stir to combine, then turn heat to the low simmer. Cook until creamy and starts to thicken but not yet completely. Add the parmesan cheese and stiruntil melts completely. The sauce should start to thicken even more, it should coat the back of a wooden spoon.
- Now add cooked pasta to the spicy tomato sauce and gently stir to coat. Top with butter. The sauce will be thick, you’ll need to add teh reserved pasta cooking water to thin it out slightly. Add ½ cups of water or more to achieve the desired consistency. You’ll have to do it every time you reheat it (in case there’s some leftovers!).
- Sprinkle more parmesan on top, fresh chopped basil, red pepper flakes and bkack pepper if desired.
- Serve right away with side portion of green salad for a complete meal.
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Don't miss this Viral Gigi Hadid vodka pasta recipe yet, it is so delicious!