Creamy Tomato Shrimp and Sausage Pasta Recipe With Peppers
Each bite is a savory explosion of Italian sausage meat, perfectly cooked pasta, crunchy bell peppers, and all complemented by a rich and velvety tomato sauce that's both tangy and comforting. Perfect for a quick lunch or a satisfying dinner, it's a dish that's sure to become everyone’s favorite.
Ingredients
- 10 ounce shrimp fresh or frozen, see notes
- 14 ounce Italian sausage or breakfast sausage, raw or smoked I used 2 large
- 2 ½ cup uncooked pasta , I used larger fusilli
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 large onion, diced, about ¾ cup
- 1 teaspoon garlic cloves, crushed or minced
- 1 large red or green bell pepper , sliced medium thick
- 1 can 15 oz fire-roasted tomatoes, or diced tomatoes
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasonings
- 1 ½ teaspoon cajun seasoning
- 1 pinch salt
- black peppee to taste
- 3 ¼ cup beef broth, or veggie or chicken broth
- 3-4 fresh thyme stalks
- 4 tablespoons cream cheese for a touch of creamy texture but you can add a whole 8 oz pack here too for extra creamy flavor, Note: the pasta will become less spicy due to this
For Serving
- grated Parmesan cheese
- red pepper flakes
- fresh parsley
Instructions
- Season shrimp with half Italian seasoning and half cajun. Salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with olive oil and toss shrimp until it's coated. Let marinate for 30 minutes.
- In a large skillet or cast-iron pan add a little cooking oil over medium-high heat. Cook the seasoned shrimp for just a couple of minutes until it is no longer gray. This will happen very fast. Set aside.
- In the same skillet, over medium heat, saute onion and bell peppers until softened but not completely. It should remain crunchy. Add in garlic and saute for 30 seconds more. Season with leftover Italian herbs and cajun. Don't add salt or black pepper just yet.
- Squeeze the sausage meat out of the skins into the same skillet and cook for a couple of minutes until browned.
- Add the dry pasta, crushed tomatoes, broth, and thyme stalks. Close the lid and simmer on medium for 13-15 minutes until the pasta is cooked through.
- Return the cooked shrimp, add cream cheese and mix until all combined. If needed, add more broth to ''thin'' the sauce. Taste for seasoning and add salt if necessary.
- Serve with freshly grated parmesan, red pepper flakes (optional), or other fresh herbs (thyme or rosemary). We also like to squeeze fresh lemon juice for serving.
Notes
- Which type of sausage will work in this recipe? I prefer raw sausage that is not precooked before. Or you can also use ground sausage meat or simple ground beef, pork or leaner turkey, or chicken. You can either slice the sausage or remove the casings and cook until browned. Hot or Mild Italian sausage, or Pork breakfast sausage, chicken sausage, or Bratwurst, Kielbasa, or Andouille sausage.
- Shrimp: Raw and frozen - opt for raw frozen shrimp as in most cases the shrimp you see behind the counter in the stores was initially frozen and then defrosted for the display. Thaw it before use.
- What size shrimp to use? You’ll need about 9-10 oz of medium, large or extra large shrimp, about 40-60 or 26-30 count (deveined shrimp). I prefer removing the tails if shrimp is served in a dish with sauce.
- How long does it take to cook shrimp? It will depend on size, but for a medium, to jumbo shrimp, it generally takes about 1 minute per side (top and bottom).
- Using Gluten-free pasta - If using gluten-free pasta, depending on the brand, you may need to cook it a bit longer until it's soft but not too soft as the pasta continues to cook in the sauce even more. Some corn pasta types needs double the time of cooking to soften.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!