My recipe for an easy and quick Italian roasted red pepper sauce is great for anyone wanting to flavor up their pasta without using a regular tomato-based sauce. In fact, for this recipe we don’t use any tomatoes at all!
Instead we use fire-roasted peppers that come in a jar- convenient, quick, and very tasty!
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About this Recipe
This recipe was inspired by my Italian husband who like me, grew up on homemade marinara or spaghetti sauce. In an effort to try new things and be healthier, he decided to throw together a few ingredients and make a red pepper sauce.
I have to admit, at first I was skeptical. I mean, I’ve seen these sauces on the store shelves but I’ve never been attracted to them in the least bit. But he made me try his version and I was actually surprised!
It didn’t taste bad at all, in fact it had a great flavor. And of course he didn’t do any measurements so I had to try to replicate his recipe, which I did!
Recipe Summary
To make this roasted red pepper sauce, you don’t have to roast your own peppers. At least I don’t. I buy them online from places like Thrive Market or Amazon or just grab some jars at the store.
This saves me time and extra steps I don’t really want to deal with.
Take your blender and toss in the peppers and any other ingredients and blend. I’ll step you right through the recipe below, and I’ve got a nice video too for you.
Ingredients Needed
- Roasted red pepper from a jar. I like the Fire Roasted peppers for more flavor.
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Large garlic clove
- Salt and pepper (optional)
Recommended Equipment
Any blender will do – or you can use a food processor. Here’s a blender similar to the one I used (no longer available).
Recipe Video
Step by Step Recipe Instructions
This recipe will create 16 oz (1 cup) of sauce.
Step one. First, cook the pasta according to package instructions or to your taste.
Step two. Meanwhile, take the red peppers out of the jar and place in your blender. You want to make sure that your blender will blend the peppers to a liquid.
Step three. Add your extra virgin olive oil to the blender.
Step four.Take your garlic clove and cut into medium pieces to help with the blending.
Step five. Place the lid on the blender and blend on low about 30 seconds and taste to see if you like the texture and flavor. Blend more if it’s too chunky.
Add extra garlic if you want more garlic flavor.
Step six. Strain the pasta of your choice and pour the sauce into the pan with the pasta and mix well. This will heat the sauce, but if you need to wait for dinner, heat up the sauce in a pan then serve on top of the pasta.
Top with any Romano or Parmesan cheese if you want. This helps enhance the flavor – you really don’t need much and you can actually omit it if you want it dairy-free.
You don’t need much sauce to coat the pasta.
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Recipe Card
Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce
Equipment
- 1 blender
Ingredients
- 2-3 Roasted red peppers (in a jar) add more if they are small.
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large garlic clove use two if they are small.
Instructions
- Take the red peppers out of the jar and place in your blender. You want to make sure that your blender will blend the peppers to a liquid.
- Add in your extra virgin olive oil to the blender.
- Take your garlic clove and cut into medium pieces to help with the blending.
- Place the lid on the blender and blend on low about 30 seconds and taste to see if you like the texture and flavor. Blend more if it’s too chunky.
- Add extra garlic if you want more garlic flavor.
- Store in the fridge or use immediately on your favorite pasta!
Video
Notes
- Different brands will have different size peppers, so adjust accordingly. But two would be the minimum.
- I do not use salt in this recipe, I just don’t think it’s needed especially when I add the cheese on top of the pasta – but you may want to add salt so feel free to do so.
- Store in the fridge in an air tight container for a week or freeze up to 6 months.
Nutrition
Roasted Red Pepper Sauce Tips
Every brand is different, and I really love the ones I get from Thrive Market. So adjust accordingly. If your peppers seem small, add a few more.
I do not rinse my jarred peppers for this because I want the flavor and don’t want to rinse off any of the charred skin.
Feel free to add in extra seasonings like crushed black pepper or even some arugula. I like to keep it simple and let the pepper flavor come through on it’s own.
Storage Tips
Store your homemade roasted red pepper sauce in the fridge tightly sealed for up to a week. Otherwise freeze it in a tight container for up to 6 months.
Reheat over the stove over medium-low heat.
Other Recipes You May Enjoy
Homemade marinara sauce from tomato paste. Yup – it tastes great and is economical!
Enjoy these marinated roasted sweet peppers as a healthy side dish!
I hope you enjoy this recipe. Let me know in the comments below if you made any changes to make it your own or if you kept it just as it is!
Liz
using jarred roasted peppers give a vinegar taste…. Fresh roasted peppers would be best…. and I bet some shrimp certainly would not hurt…..