Vegan One Pot Pasta

Veggie packed and easy to make, this vegan one pot pasta deserves a spot on your weekly dinner rotation! It’s creamy, made with simple pantry staple ingredients and comes together in just 30 minutes.

One pot pastas can be tough. But I love them. And based on the response to my one pot mushroom stroganoff, you love them too!

They’re really easy to make and completely customizable. Throw in some other veggies, peas, bell peppers, beans or some ground turkey. It’s easy to make simple swaps with this recipe.

This pasta calls for cashew cream which gives the sauce a rich creamy flavor. You can very easily just omit this ingredient, no need to make any substitutions. The sauce will be a bit thinner, but will still have some creaminess thanks to the nature of one pot pastas!

For this recipe, you’ll need your favorite pasta, I used brown rice pasta to keep it gluten free, some mushrooms, zucchini, tomatoes, tomato sauce, vegetable broth, onion and some spices like basil!

It’s ready in under 30 minutes and make the perfect cozy weeknight meal. If you love this recipe, try my carrot pasta or tomato tofu pasta next!

How to make vegan one pot pasta

Mince the garlic and finely dice the onion and add to a large pot or dutch oven with the olive oil.

Saute until translucent, about 5 minutes.

Add the sliced mushrooms, diced zucchini and saute an additional 5 minutes. Add in all remaining ingredients and stir to combine.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover with the lid slightly ajar. Let simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed and the pasta is cooked through.

You don’t want the heat too high or too low or the liquid can cook off before the pasta is done cooking. If it’s too low, however, the pasta will be done before the liquid is absorbed. A nice low simmer is ideal.

If the liquid is absorbed but the pasta isn’t done, add in another 1/2-1 cup of WARM vegetable broth. If it’s too liquid and the pasta is cooked, stir in an additional tablespoon of two of flour to absorb the liquid.

Serve immediately with fresh basil, a sprinkle of cashew parmesan and enjoy.

Troubleshooting tips

If you notice the noodles are cooking too quickly before the liquid is absorb, let the pasta simmer with the lid off. If they aren’t cooking fast enough but the liquid is cooking off, reduce the heat further and keep the lid tightly sealed. 

I recommend using rotini/fusilli pasta or something similar to ensure a similar cook time.

Can you freeze it?

I haven’t tried freezing this recipe, but I think it might cause the noodles to be a bit mushy upon re-heating, as is common with frozen foods in general. The flavor would be great, but I can’t guarantee it won’t have a mushy texture.

If you are planning to freeze it, I would recommend cooking the noodles al dente and using slightly less broth than the recipe calls for.

Let it thaw, then reheat with a bit of broth to help everything get creamy again. If you give it a try, let us know how it turns out!

Make it your own!

While I think this vegan one pot pasta is great just as is, feel free to get creative with the veggies you use or protein you add.

Bell peppers are great, small white beans or even some ground meat like turkey would be delicious if you aren’t vegan or vegetarian.

If you are planning on adding any meat, you’ll want to first saute the onion, then add the meat to the pot to cook, then add everything else once the meat is cooked.

It’s ok if it’s not completely cooked through since it will continue cooking with the rest of the pasta.

Give these a try next!

• Tomato Basil Cream Sauce
• White Bean Pasta
• Pasta Primavera
• White Wine Cream Pasta

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