Need a new spin on your weeknight pasta? This Three Pepper Pasta is kind of like pizza, but in pasta form. It has crispy pepperoni and a trio of colorful peppers for extra flavor, texture, and visual appeal. You could even make it even more pizza-like by adding some cheese (because we all know cheese makes everything better), but I thought this pasta had plenty of flavor to hold its own without even the slightest sprinkle of Parmesan. So, I went sans cheese this time to keep my costs and my dietary splurge within reason. :)
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If you’re not a fan of pickled things or are sensitive to vinegar flavors, you may want to skip the banana pepper rings. You could always do a fresh yellow pepper to keep with the tri-pepper theme, or go for another pizza-topping type ingredient like black olives. This pasta is very flexible. The pepperoni, though, provide a lot of flavor, so I wouldn’t suggest skipping that one. Subbing turkey pepperoni would work just as well, though.
Three Pepper Pasta with Crispy Pepperoni
Servings 6Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.16)
- 3 oz. pepperoni (half of a 6oz. package) ($1.99)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 green bell pepper ($0.69)
- 1 red bell pepper ($1.79)
- 1/2 cup mild banana pepper rings ($0.95)
- 1 24oz. jar pasta sauce ($1.00)
- 1/2 tsp dried basil ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano ($0.05)
- 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper (optional) ($0.02)
- 1 lb. thin spaghetti or angel hair pasta ($1.55)
Instructions
- Thinly slice the green and red bell peppers. Remove about 1/2 cup of the banana peppers from the brine. Set the peppers aside until ready to use.
- Begin to boil a large pot of water for the pasta. Break the long pasta in half and then add it to the boiling water. Cook until al dente, then drain in a colander.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pepperoni and sauté the slices until they become crispy on the edges (about 5 minutes). Remove the crispy pepperoni to a plate covered with paper towel to drain.
- Mince the garlic and add it to the oil in the skillet. Sauté for about one minute or just until the garlic is soft and fragrant, but not brown. Add the sliced peppers and continue to sauté for 5-7 minutes more, or until the peppers have just begun to soften.
- Add the pasta sauce, basil, oregano, and red pepper flakes to the skillet with the peppers. Stir to combine and allow the sauce to heat through.
- Return the drained pasta to the large pot, then add the pasta sauce and peppers. Stir until everything is evenly combined and coated in sauce. Add the crispy pepperoni and stir to combine again. Serve warm.
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Notes
Nutrition
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Step by Step Photos
Slice one green bell pepper and one red bell pepper so they’re ready to go when you need them. Take about half of the banana peppers (about 1/2 cup packed) out of the brine. Set the peppers aside until you’re ready to add them to the skillet later.
Begin heating a large pot of water to cook the pasta. Once boiling, break the pasta in half, then add it to the water. Boil the pasta until it is tender, then drain in a colander. This can be in progress as you prepare the sauce.
For this recipe I used half of this 6oz. bag of traditional pepperoni. Leftovers can be frozen, or saved in the fridge for a pizza later in the week… or sandwich… or snacking. I’m sure they’ll get eaten! You can use turkey pepperoni, but I wouldn’t skip the pepperoni all together because they add quite a bit of flavor.
Add 1 Tbsp of olive oil to a large skillet. Heat the skillet over a medium flame, then add the pepperoni. Fry the pepperoni until the edges get a little crispy. The fat and seasoning from the pepperoni ends up flavoring the olive oil and adding a lot of flavor to the rest of the pasta dish. Plus, the crispy pepperoni is kind of like bacon and just… YUM.
Once they’re a little crispy, drain the pepperoni on a paper towel covered plate. The most difficult part of this recipe is trying not to eat these crispy pepperonis. Oh my.
Mince two cloves of garlic and add them to the oil in the skillet (Notice the oil is sort of orange? That’s the flavor from the pepperoni). Sauté the garlic for a minute or so to soften it up, but don’t let it brown.
Add the peppers to the skillet and continue to sauté until they are slightly softened (5-7 minutes).
Add one 24oz. jar of your favorite pasta sauce. I always doctor up my store bought pasta sauce, so I also added 1/2 tsp each of dried basil and oregano, plus a pinch of red pepper flakes. I got this sauce on sale for $1 and it was a “no sugar added” sauce, so it definitely needed some doctoring! Stir and heat the sauce and peppers through.
If your skillet is big enough, you can add the drained pasta straight to the skillet with the sauce. Otherwise, return the cooked and drained pasta to the pot it cooked in, then add the sauce to that. Stir until everything is combined and covered in sauce.
Finally, add the crispy pepperoni to the pasta and stir to combine. It’s okay if they crumble a bit like bacon.
And there you have it! Three Pepper Pasta with Crispy Pepperoni. Who wouldn’t want to dive into that?!
Weeknight pasta is no longer boring when there’s Three Pepper Pasta and Crispy Pepperoni around.
I think it’s giving me that “go ahead… add some Parmesan.” look. I shall resist!
Another great recipe from your fantastic site! Thank you so much. I’ve used many of your recipes and haven’t had a blooper yet!
Forgot to rate the recipe
Can I use jalapenos in place of banana rings?
May be spicy but delicious!
Making this tonight, but adding in some spinach and and black olives I need to use. Can wait to eat!
We’ve loved almost every recipe that we’ve made from Budget Bytes! This one was so delicious, it is very full of flavor and filling.
This turned out great. I would, however, recommend using spaghetti instead of angel hair–angel hair clumped a lot around the mixture, requiring extra stirring, whereas spaghetti would have made it easier to coat individual strands.
This is my 3rd review for the 3rd recipe I’m trying. ANOTHER family-approved winner:)
I am obsessed with this pasta. I’ve been eating it for dinner for the past 3 nights and brought some for lunch today. I used black olives instead of the banana peppers like you suggested and it’s sooo good.
Excellent! My wife loves pepperoni, I love peppers! Used pepperoncini peppers because it’s what we had in the house. Going to make lunches for a few days.
This was delicious! I jarred a lot of my homemade tomato sauce last summer, and I used my last jar on this meal. I’m gonna have leftovers for days, which I’m definitely looking forward to :)
So easy and simple to make. I ate this through out the week. It was really good!
My favorite way to make pepperoni crispy is to put it in between a couple layers of paper towels and then nuke it in the microwave for about 45-60 seconds. I often throw peppers into my version of the Wonderpot and any other veggies I have on hand that I’m in the mood for.
This one’s a keeper!! I was using leftover pepperoni so I didn’t have a ton and wish I could have added 3x as much – crispy pepperoni is amazing.
I added some onion (because why not?) and swapped out the banana peppers (too much vinegar for me). My chunky pasta sauce has some hunks of tomato in there which was super tasty as well.
Made grilled zucchini & yellow squash as a side (leftover from making your delicious oven roasted ratatouille) for a nice sweet contrast.
A nice easy dish – oh and I used whole grain angel hair pasta to make it a little healthier, and tossed a little parmesean on top. Delish!
I also diced up the onion & peppers, purely out of personal preference – not a fan of giant bits of peppers. Very adaptable recipe!
Oh my god! This was so good. Thank you!
Perfect! Made this tonight for dinner, made almost a double batch. I used yellow, red, green, and the banana peppers. Since I misjudged the size I was making it, I have a little bit less sauce than I anticipated but that’s all on me.
Oh, my God. My sister and I fell in L-O-V-E with this recipe, because it’s so simple! The crispy pepperoni took the pasta to a whole different level (it was impossible for me NOT to snack on them!). Also, I used sausage to stretch the dish, and the spaghetti sauce didn’t need dried oregano, basil, and garlic. I will definitely make it again. :-)
Oh. My God. I used to make something very similar back when I worked in my family’s pizzeria and got bored of the standard menu items. So much nostalgia…
Wonder if dad’ll be bothered if I stop by later for a jar of banana pepper rings and a fistful of pepperoni…
This sauce is unbelievable! It looks so tasty. Thank you for sharing.
OH MY WORD this was amazing!!! The pepperonis MAKE the dish!!! So, so good.
Do you think this would work with Konjac noodles, too?
Hmm, I’ve never heard of those!
Looks delicious! Can I substitute the pepperoni for sausage?
Yes, sausage would be great in this. :)
I used BOTH pepperoni and sausage for this pasta dish. :-)
YUM!! This looks fantastic! Will try!
I think one eighteenth of a teaspoon would be about two red pepper flakes ;) I’m going to guess you mean one eighth lol
Ha! Thanks for catching that for me. ;)
I have a pizza crazed SO, so I’m pretty sure he would devour this!
This pasta definitely looks like a winner!
I have a suggestion, though… Try crisping pepperoni in the microwave! Seriously easy. Cover a plate with paper towels. Make a single layer of pepperoni, and heat for 30 seconds to 1 minute and a half, depending on how much pepperoni you have.
While that would work, you wouldn’t get the flavor of the pepperoni in the oil though to add flavor to the entire dish =)
WOW! – I love everything in this and can also see some kalamata olives!
My favorite pepperoni is Applegate uncured and it crisps wonderfully.
Kalamata olives are good, but very rich. I will definitely try that!! :-)
My sister and I LOVE pepperoni, and I can’t wait to try this recipe!! :-)
I can imagine modifying this and doing it all in one pot like your previous Italian Wonderpot recipe, using canned tomatoes and making the sauce in the pot. I’d use vegetarian pepperoni for myself. I often throw peppers into my version of the Wonderpot and any other veggies I have on hand that I’m in the mood for.
Oh man, this looks so good. Can’t wait to make it!
My favorite way to make pepperoni crispy is to put it in between a couple layers of paper towels and then nuke it in the microwave for about 45-60 seconds. Once you take it out and it cools, it becomes like a little chip and is crunchy! I use it in place of crackers for dips and other snacks – that would be a nice substitution for this recipe too! Looks great, can’t wait to try it!
I never thought to crisp up pepperoni! Oh, the possibilities this creates~!
I still have some Thick & Rich Pizza Sauce in the freezer. Can I use it in this recipe?
Yep, as long as you have enough to coat the pasta that should work fine. :)