Orange Pepper & Grape Tomato Pasta alla Vodka or pasta with Orange Pepper & Grape Tomato Vodka Sauce is one of those ‘staple’ Italian pasta recipes that may get a place on your list of regular. Is it really Italian or American-Italian, or is their Russian influence – who knows. The important thing is: pasta with vodka sauce is a delicious combination.
While a typical Vodka sauce is made from tomato sauce (fresh or store-bought), Italian herbs, cream and vodka; I worked bell pepper into my recipe and used a combination of store-bought marinara sauce and fresh tomatoes.
This is the entire list of ingredients for the Orange Pepper & Grape Tomato Pasta alla Vodka:
- pasta
- butter
- onion
- garlic
- small orange grape tomatoes
- orange bell pepper
- marinara sauce
- cream
- parsley or basil
- Parmigiano Reggiano
- salt & pepper
- and let’s not forget the Vodka (not in the photo)!
This is how to make the Orange Pepper & Grape Tomato Pasta alla Vodka:
In general the vodka sauce is not difficult to make, after all it is a pasta sauce. The Vodka that is the odd ingredient if you like, and even without the vodka, this sauce is pretty amazing.
- Start by making the sauce. Melt the butter in a deep skillet or Dutch oven and add onions and garlic and a pinch of salt. If you want heat, you could add pepper flakes at this point as well. You can use a clove of garlic or use garlic paste, like Gourmet Garden (1 teaspoon of garlic paste equals 1 medium clove).
- Cook until onions become translucent and soft, no need to brown them, so stir frequently and on medium heat. This will take about 10-15 minutes.
- Add the halved tomatoes, chopped bell pepper and marinara sauce and simmer for about 10 minutes. The mixture will thicken a little. As far as marinara sauce is concerned you can use your favorite store-bought brand or your own creation. You could also use a combination of whole peeled tomatoes and tomato paste.
- Transfer the sauce to a blender or use an immersion blender until smooth. If the level of sauce in your pan is not high enough for an immersion blender, simply transfer the sauce to a narrow, high walled container.
- Add the cream and stir and season with salt and pepper.
- You can stop here as far as the sauce is concerned – just add most of the cheese and once the pasta is cooked add the pasta, mix and sprinkle with Italian parsley. But …….. let’s continue
- Now is a good time to start with cooking the pasta – according to the directions on the packaging.
- About 3-4 minutes before the pasta is done, transfer the pasta directly into the pasta sauce and reserve some of the pasta water. At the same time add the vodka. Continue to cook until the pasta is done. If the sauce becomes to thick, add some pasta water.
Does the pasta become boozy after adding vodka?
Well not really, at least not in this recipe with an amount of 2 tablespoon of vodka; that’s not a lot of alcohol, and there will be some alcohol in the sauce. Cooking off the alcohol, the sauce will need to simmer for at least 15 minutes and then only 40% of the alcohol is evaporated, but then there’s not much left of your sauce, unfortunately. Adding vodka to the sauce is for flavor reasons, this clear spirit changes the flavor of the sauce in a positive way. It adds a touch of heat and sharpness and creates a nice balance in combination with the sweetness of the tomatoes and the cream. It is interesting isn’t it that this popular neutral, odorless and colorless spirit improves the flavor of a pasta dish. Cooking is fun 🙂
- Remove the dish from the heat and stir in most of the Parmigianno Reggiano (you want to keep some for last minute sprinkles).
- Taste to see if you need to add salt and pepper. If you want to add more vodka, this is the time to do it, but be careful, too much can make this dish taste less than delicious.
- Divide the pasta with sauce over 2 plates, sprinkle with some cheese and Italian parsley.
Orange Pepper & Grape Tomato Pasta alla Vodka
Ingredients
- 4 ounces pasta
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1/4 onion chopped
- 1/2 clove garlic minced
- 4 ounces orange small grape tomatoes halved
- 1 orange bell pepper chopped
- 1 cup Marinara sauce
- 1/2 cup cream
- 2 tablespoons vodka
- salt & pepper
- 2 ounces Parmigiano Reggiano grated
- Italian or flat parsley finely chopped
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a deep skillet or Dutch oven and add onions and garlic (Note 1) and a pinch of salt. If you want heat, you could add pepper flakes at this point as well.
- Cook until onions become translucent and soft, no need to brown them, so stir frequently. This will take about 10-15 minutes.
- Add the halved tomatoes, chopped bell pepper and marinara sauce (Note 2) and simmer for about 10 minutes. The mixture will thicken a little.
- Transfer the sauce to a blender or use an immersion blender until smooth.
- Add the cream and stir and season with salt and pepper.
- About 3-4 minutes before the pasta is done, transfer the pasta directly into the pasta sauce and reserve some of the pasta water. At the same time add the vodka. Continue to cook until the pasta is done. If the sauce becomes to thick, add some pasta water. (Note 3)
- Remove the dish from the heat and stir in most of the Parmigiano Reggiano (you want to keep some for last minute sprinkles).
- Taste for salt and pepper. If you want to add more vodka, this is the time to do it, but be careful, too much can make this dish taste less than delicious.
- Divide the pasta with sauce over 2 plates, sprinkle with some cheese and Italian parsley (Note 3).
Notes
- If you prefer to use garlic paste, use 1/2 teaspoon.
- The marinara sauce can be your favorite store-bought brand or your own creation.
- The Italian parsley can be replaced with basil or cilantro.
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