Description
This Crock Pot Italian Sausage Pasta is a delicious, hearty dish combining savory Italian sausage, creamy Alfredo and tangy pasta sauces, and tender rigatoni pasta. Cooked slowly to meld the flavors and topped with melted mozzarella cheese, it's a perfect easy-to-make main course for a comforting family meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Sauce and Seasoning
- 16 ounce bottle Alfredo sauce
- 16 ounce bottle pasta sauce
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
Meat and Vegetables
- 5 Italian sausage links
- 1 medium green bell pepper seeded and sliced
- 1 medium red bell pepper seeded and sliced
- 1 medium yellow onion sliced
Pasta and Cheese
- 1 pound rigatoni or small pasta
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese grated
Instructions
- Prepare the sauce: Add the Alfredo sauce, pasta sauce, and Italian seasoning to the slow cooker. Mix thoroughly until well combined to ensure an even flavor base.
- Add sausage and vegetables: Place the Italian sausage links, sliced green and red bell peppers, and sliced yellow onion into the slow cooker. Toss everything gently to coat with the sauce.
- Cook slowly: Cover the slow cooker and cook on high for 3 hours and 30 minutes or on low for 5 hours, allowing the flavors to meld and the sausage to cook through.
- Cook the pasta: While the sausage and sauce cook, prepare the rigatoni pasta in boiling water according to the package instructions until al dente. Drain and set aside to maintain the pasta’s firm texture.
- Slice sausage and combine: Remove the sausage links from the slow cooker and slice them into ¼-inch thick rounds. Return the sausage slices along with the cooked pasta to the slow cooker, tossing everything to coat evenly in the sauce.
- Add cheese and finish: Sprinkle the grated mozzarella cheese over the pasta mixture. Cover and cook on low for an additional 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted gently without overcooking the pasta.
Notes
- Combine the Alfredo and pasta sauces thoroughly before adding the sausage to ensure even distribution of flavor throughout the dish.
- Keep the pasta separate until the final step to preserve its al dente texture and prevent it from becoming mushy.
- Slice the sausage after cooking to achieve cleaner, well-defined rounds that mix evenly with the pasta and sauce.
- Melt the cheese slowly by cooking it covered for 10 minutes to avoid overcooking the pasta and to ensure a creamy topping.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 520 kcal
- Sugar: 6 g
- Sodium: 700 mg
- Fat: 25 g
- Saturated Fat: 10 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 12 g
- Trans Fat: 0.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 50 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 30 g
- Cholesterol: 70 mg
