Sausage and Kale Pasta is a simple but delicious, quick and easy weeknight dinner that works equally well for a dinner party or a date night. This rigatoni pasta dish comes together with minimal effort in only 20 minutes.
Pasta is always a go-to dinnertime staple for me and I always have some on hand for quick and delicious meals like lasagna or some other favorites like Cajun shrimp and sausage pasta or salmon alfredo. This tasty kale and sausage rigatoni is one of those favorites.
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Why you’ll love sausage kale pasta
- Quick and simple: Just a few simple ingredients are needed and you have a delicious dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes.
- Customizable: You can keep it mild with sweet Italian sausage or spice it up with hot Italian sausage. It’s delicious either way.
- No heavy cream: This kale and sausage pasta is dairy-free and doesn’t need cream. Instead this simple recipe uses just parmesan cheese and some of the water that the pasta is cooked in to form a creamy sauce.
Ingredient notes
- Pasta: Orecchiette (small ear-shaped) pasta is often used to make this dish, but you can use any kind of pasta. I do recommend a short pasta shape like rigatoni or orecchiette that captures and holds the sauce and bits of sausage and kale. Bow ties or small shells are also great choices. Use gluten-free or regular pasta.
- Pasta water: Reserve some of the starchy water the pasta has cooked in before draining. This combines with parmesan cheese to make a silky sauce. If you forget (yup, been there), don’t worry, you can use a splash of white wine or chicken broth instead.
- Sausage: Use a good quality sausage for a dish with so few ingredients. Both mild Italian sausage and spicy Italian sausage are usually made with ground pork flavored with Italian seasoning and fennel seeds. However, you can also find Italian turkey or chicken sausage. If you have ground sausage meat, it’s ready to cook. Otherwise, you will need to remove the casings from the sausages.
- Kale: You can use common curly kale, and this is perfectly fine. However, if you can find Lacinato kale (also called Tuscan kale, or cavolo nero, which means black kale), it’s perfect for this spicy sausage and kale rigatoni recipe.
- Tomato: Canned diced tomatoes are convenient. But when I have them in the garden or fridge, I use halved cherry tomatoes instead of canned tomatoes.
- Parmesan Cheese: Use freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Pre-grated cheese contains an anti-caking agent and will clump instead of melting smoothly. My favorites are Parmigiana Reggiano, or Grana Padano.
- Aromatics: Onion and plenty of garlic add tons of flavor to this simple dish. This recipe has four garlic cloves, but you can either add or omit one or two if you like less, or more garlic.
How to make it, step by step
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions for al dente pasta. When pasta is cooked, scoop out a cup of the pasta water before draining.
- In a large skillet or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Cook the onion until it softens.
- Add garlic and sausage to the pan and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon until it’s browned with no trace of pink.
- Stir in the drained tomatoes and chopped kale. Cook, stirring, until kale has wilted.
- Add the cooked pasta and parmesan cheese, and about ¼ cup of the reserved pasta water. Stir gently to combine and keep adding more pasta water until the sauce is the consistency you like.
- Season with salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes (if using), and top with more Parmesan cheese before serving.
Helpful Tips and Variations
- Sausage casings: To remove sausage meat from casings, use a sharp knife to make a thin slice the length of the sausage, then peel the casings off.
- Gluten-free: Be sure to use gluten-free sausage and use gluten-free rigatoni.
- Mushrooms: If you are a mushroom fan, they are a delicious addition to this creamy pasta dish. Any kind of mushroom is great, but I really love porcini mushrooms for Italian sausage pasta dishes. Add sliced mushrooms to the hot pan along with the onions.
- Peas: Green peas are another ingredient that I often throw into this kale and sausage pasta. Just add a handful of frozen or fresh peas along with the tomatoes and kale.
- Kale: Remove the kale leaves from the tough ribs and stems before tearing them into small pieces. You can substitute the kale with spinach, swiss chard, or collard greens.
- Storage: Store any leftover sausage and kale pasta in an airtight container in the fridge and use within 3 days. Reheat in the microwave.
- Freezing: I don’t recommend freezing this recipe, because the texture will change after thawing.
More Delicious Pasta Recipes
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Recipe
Sausage and Kale Pasta
This easy Pasta with Kale and Sausage is a hearty and delicious weeknight dinner that the whole family will love. With just a few simple ingredients, it takes just 20 minutes to make.
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Servings: 6
Calories: 626kcal
Instructions
Cook rigatoni according to package directions until al dente. Scoop out a cup of the pasta water before draining. Set aside.
While the pasta cooks, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes.
Add garlic and sausage to skillet and cook, breaking up with a spoon, until browned, about 5 minutes.
Add kale and drained tomatoes. Cook until the kale is wilted, about 1 minute.
Stir in the Parmesan cheese and then the reserved pasta water, a little at a time, until thickened to a creamy sauce.
Taste and season with salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes if using.
Remove from heat and serve hot, garnished with more Parmesan cheese.
Notes
- Sausage casings: To remove sausage meat from casings, use a sharp knife to make a thin slice the length of the sausage, then peel the casings off.
- Gluten-free: Be sure to use gluten-free sausage and use gluten-free rigatoni.
- Mushrooms: If you are a mushroom fan, they are a delicious addition to this creamy pasta dish. Any kind of mushroom is great, but I really love porcini mushrooms for Italian sausage pasta dishes. Add sliced mushrooms to the hot pan along with the onions.
- Peas: Green peas are another ingredient that I often throw into this kale and sausage pasta. Just add a handful of frozen or fresh peas along with the tomatoes and kale.
- Kale: Remove the kale leaves from the tough ribs and stems before tearing them into small pieces. You can substitute the kale with spinach, swiss chard, or collard greens.
- Storage: Store any leftover sausage and kale pasta in an airtight container in the fridge and use within 3 days. Reheat in the microwave.
- Freezing: I don’t recommend freezing this recipe, because the texture will change after thawing.
Nutrition
Calories: 626kcal | Carbohydrates: 53g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 34g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16g | Cholesterol: 69mg | Sodium: 935mg | Potassium: 717mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 4735IU | Vitamin C: 51mg | Calcium: 367mg | Iron: 3mg
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Colleen
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