Y’all know I love one pot pasta meals, and I know a lot of you do too. They’re quick, easy, and pack a lot of flavor into only one little dish that needs to be cleaned at the end. Creamy one pot pastas, in particular, have become my go-to comfort food. This time I paired the tangy flavor of sun dried tomatoes with garlic and Parmesan for a simple but indulgent One Pot Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Pasta.
This post contains some affiliate links, which means that we make a small commission off items you purchase at no additional cost to you.
Changes to the Original Sun Dried Tomato Pasta Recipe:
Many readers were having trouble with the original recipe, so I reformulated it a bit based on my experience creating one pot pastas since this recipe was originally posted (it’s now based on my One Pot Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta). In particular, many people were having trouble with their milk curdling or the sauce not coming out smooth. Here is what I changed to create better and more consistent results:
- The milk is now added after the pasta simmers so the high heat and acidity from the tomatoes will not cause curdling.
- A small amount of cream cheese is added to the sauce to help stabilize and emulsify the Parmesan into the sauce.
- I also added a healthy dose of dried basil for a little more flavor!
Can I Substitute the Cream Cheese?
Cream cheese is great and keeping milk based sauces smooth and to help cheese melt smoothly without clumpig. If you just can’t stand cream cheese, you can replace half of the milk with heavy cream. This reduces the water content in the sauce, which will help the Parmesan emulsify properly.
Can I Add Meat?
Yes, this recipe is extremely flexible and can be made with or without meat. If you’d like to add chicken, you can dice up the chicken and sauté it in the skillet with the garlic in the beginning, or simply add sliced grilled chicken to the finished pasta. Italian sausage might also be great with this sun dried tomato pasta. Simply brown it in the skillet in the beginning with the garlic. Bacon would also be quite tasty. Brown the bacon in the skillet before the garlic, and drain off the excess fat before continuing with the recipe.
Tips for Cooking One Pot Pastas:
Getting one pot pastas just right can take some practice, so if you find you’re having trouble, here are a few tips:
- Stir every few minutes to keep the pasta from sticking to the bottom of the pot, or to itself.
- After the pot has been brought to a boil, turn the heat down to low, or just above low, so the liquid is still simmering. If the liquid is not simmering, the pasta will not cook. The temperature setting can vary depending on your stove top and cookware.
- Use heavy cookware. Skillets and pots that are thin on the bottom don’t heat evenly and do not yield good results with the one pot cooking method because some areas of the pot will be simmering, while other areas are not.
- Keep the lid in place at all times when not stirring. This holds in the steam and helps the pasta cook more evenly.
- Watch the pasta. One pot pastas are a little like riding a bike. You have to observe and adjust as you go. If the liquid is almost all absorbed before the pasta is tender, add a little more water. If the pasta is almost tender, but there is still a lot of liquid, allow it to simmer without a lid for the last couple of minutes.
One Pot Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Pasta
Servings 4Ingredients
- ½ cup sun dried tomatoes ($1.66)
- 2 Tbsp butter ($0.26)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- 8 oz. fettuccine ($0.67)
- 1/2 tsp dried basil ($0.05)
- Freshly cracked pepper ($0.05)
- 2 cups chicken broth* ($0.26)
- 2 oz. cream cheese ($0.30)
- 1 cups whole milk ($0.37)
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan ($0.44)
Instructions
- Chop the sun dried tomatoes into small bite-sized pieces.
- Add the butter and garlic to a deep skillet or Dutch oven. Sauté the garlic over medium heat for about one minute, or until it is very fragrant.
- Add the fettuccine, sun dried tomatoes, dried basil, some freshly cracked pepper, and the chicken broth to the skillet. If needed, break the fettuccine in half to make sure it lays flat in the skillet and is submerged in broth.
- Place a lid on the skillet, turn the heat up to high, and bring the broth to a boil. As soon as it reaches a boil, give the pasta a good stir, replace the lid, and turn the heat down to low or the lowest setting that maintains a simmer.
- Let the pasta simmer in the broth for 7-10 minutes, or until most of the broth is absorbed and the pasta is tender, stirring every couple of minutes and always replacing the lid.
- Keeping the heat on low, cut the cream cheese into chunks and stir it into the pasta. Once the cream cheese has melted, add the milk and stir until a smooth sauce forms. Finally, add the grated Parmesan over top and stir until it has melted into the sauce. Serve with extra freshly cracked pepper, if desired.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Deep Stainless Steel Skillet
- Garlic Press
- Liquid Measuring Cup
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Video
Scroll down for the step by step Photos!
Try These Other Creamy One Pot Pasta Recipes:
- One Pot Creamy Pesto Chicken Pasta
- One Pot Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta
- One Pot Bacon Broccoli Mac and Cheese
- One Pot Veggie Pasta
- One Pot Creamy Mushroom Pasta
How to Make Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Pasta – Step by Step Photos
Chop about ½ cup sun dried tomatoes into small bite-sized pieces. You want a little bit in every bite, instead of a few larger pieces throughout. I used dried, non-oil packed sun dried tomatoes for this recipe because I find them easier to work with and the leftovers easier to store (no refrigeration needed).
Add 2 Tbsp butter and two minced cloves of garlic to a deep skillet or Dutch oven. Sauté the garlic over medium heat for about 1 minute, or just until the garlic is a little softened and becomes really fragrant.
Add the chopped sun dried tomatoes, ½ tsp dried basil, some freshly cracked pepper, 8oz. fettuccine, and 2 cups chicken broth to the skillet. If your skillet or Dutch oven is not wide enough for the pasta to lay flat and submerged in the broth, you’ll want to break the pasta in half so it fits (I ended up breaking mine in half just after this photo).
Place a lid on the skillet, turn the heat up to high, and bring the broth up to a boil. As soon as it reaches a boil, give the pasta a good stir, replace the lid, and turn the heat down to low, or the lowest temperature that maintains a simmer. Continue to simmer the pasta for 7-10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes (always replacing the lid), or until the pasta is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed. If the pasta dries out while it cooks, add a little more water. There should be a little bit of thick saucy liquid left in the skillet once the pasta is cooked.
Cut 2 oz. cream cheese into chunks, then stir it into the pasta until it has melted (still over low heat). Adding the cream cheese before the milk helps stabilize the sauce and prevent curdling.
Once the cream cheese has melted into the pasta, add 1 cup milk and stir to combine.
Finally, sprinkle ¼ cup grated Parmesan over the pasta, and stir until it has melted into the sauce (the pasta is still over low heat).
And now you have a deliciously creamy and slightly tangy sun dried tomato pasta in cream sauce!
Season the pasta with more freshly cracked pepper, if desired, and serve!
This is a great base recipe. I added sautéed mushrooms, and poached cubed chicken breast. I had fresh basil in my garden, so used that, instead of dried. Would certainly make again, but add steamed veggies on hand, to pack out the nutrition.
super simple and really yummy! i added a bit of crushed red pepper at the end. didn’t have any basil so i missed out on some extra flavor there :( but still a great flavor!
Mad this pasta for dinner tonight! I had sun-dried tomatoes in oil so I used that to sauté the garlic along with a little butter. I used veggie broth which was what I had on hand. I added a good bunch of black pepper because I like a good peppery bit with cream sauces. I added a tad bit of garlic powder. I had no dried basil so next time I’ll try it with that as suggested. This was a delicious and quick recipe.
Have had a jar of sun dried tomatoes sitting in my closet for a while and thought to use this recipe to use them up! I didn’t quite double the recipe but I set it for 6 servings. Super cheesy and rich! I used about half of the milk that was recommended as I wanted more of a saucy texture that clung to the noodles, and I definitely prefer them this way. A cup and a half of milk felt excessive for 6 servings and would have completely drowned the noodles. It does lack a little depth, even when using extra garlic and extra sun dried tomatoes. I think next time I will use more sun dried tomatoes and possibly add a half of a cup of chopped up jarred roasted red peppers for some extra flavor.
Also for a bit of spice I added some red pepper flakes and it works really well to cut through some of that dense creamy cheesy sauce!
Very easy recipe with lots of opportunities to experiment with- will try again with the addition of red peppers and more sun dried tomatoes. Thanks for the recipe!
I really messed this recipe up while cooking. I was torn in different directions while cooking and didn’t go back to the recipe to read as I should have. It started out good, but I only had bow tie pasta, so I added that-the whole box 16oz!! Covered the pasta with water from the tea kettle, added BTB to get the “broth”, cooked as I should have, but hardly any water evaporated or got soaked up by the pasta, then I added 7 oz of cream cheese instead of 2-again, I didn’t refer back to the recipe, stirred, since it was so brothy I only added a splash of milk, then added the parm. Even with all my errors it is so flavorful!! I do have a big family so I would have doubled it anyway had I been paying more attention. This is so good, thank you!!
I used sun-dried tomatoes in oil as you didn’t specify. I also used veggie broth. I found it too stodgy for my liking but my family liked it.
Thank you for this quick and simple recipe. I made it with beyond sausage and no-chicken broth, so it was completely vegetarian but so tasty and satisfying.
Thank you so much for this quick and simple recipe! I made it with Beyond Sausage and No-chicken broth so it was vegetarian but very tasty and satisfying.
I was looking for something fast, easy and delicious tonight, and this fit the bill. I used homemade broth, added some pan fried shrimp, measured the basil with my heart, and added a few red pepper flakes- perfect! Thank you!
Absolutely delicious! Made this for a family dinner and it was demolished. I added some chicken for a protein. I ended up needing more chicken stock as it was fairly thick but that was no biggie. Definitely going in the dinner rotation.