Italian Chicken Sausage Pasta
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Pasta, chicken sausage and peas all coated in a creamy, spicy sauce is what this Italian Chicken Sausage Pasta is all about! The best part is that it’s ready in under 25 minutes, and it’s still delicious the next day.
Besides my lentil bolognese, this chicken sausage pasta might be my favorite pasta recipe on my site.
You know I’m a huge fan of recipes that use sausage. There’s my one pot gnocchi with sausage, my spicy sausage potato soup and my chorizo sweet potato soup, all of which are reader favorites. Well, this pasta lightens it up just a bit by using chicken sausage — so good!
If you need a quick weeknight meal the whole family will love, this is it!
Ingredient notes
- Pasta – any kind; can use regular or gluten free pasta
- Chicken sausage – preferably Italian, but can also use andouille or any kind other than apple
- Marinara sauce – use your favorite kind! Traditional, tomato basil, arrabbiata, etc.
- Milk – dairy or dairy-free. I used oat milk and it worked great.
- Heavy cream – can sub half and half or omit altogether. If you omit, use extra milk instead.
Method
First: Cook the pasta in a saucepan as you normally would.
Second: Cook chicken sausage in a large skillet or dutch oven over medium heat. Once it’s cooked, add the butter and garlic and sauté for one minute.
Third: Lower the heat, then add the marinara sauce, milk, cream, peas, and red pepper flakes and simmer for 2-3 minutes or until the peas are cooked. Top the whole dish with parmesan cheese, salt and pepper and dig in!
Notes
- Don’t want to use heavy cream? Try using half and half instead.
- Gluten free pasta works great in this recipe.
- Top the whole thing off with shaved parmesan, goat cheese or even burrata.
Can I reheat this dish?
Of course! You can easily place it in the microwave, but personally, I think the sauce maintains its flavor and texture a bit better if it’s reheated in a skillet.
What sides go well with this meal?
Technically, this is a one pan kind of meal, since it includes pasta, sausage and peas. But, if you want an additional side, you could try my roasted carrots with pesto or my easy fried brussels sprouts.
More pasta recipes
If you made this recipe, be sure to leave a comment and star rating below. Thanks!
Italian Chicken Sausage Pasta
Video
Ingredients
- 12 oz. pasta
- 2 links chicken sausage, Italian or spicy
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 24 oz. marinara sauce, favorite kind
- 1/2 cup milk, any kind
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 cups frozen peas
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes, or more
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup parmesan, optional
Instructions
- Cook pasta in a saucepan as you normally would.
- In a separate large skillet or dutch oven, cook the chicken sausage with the olive oil over medium heat.
- Next, add the butter and garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Then, reduce heat to medium-low and add the marinara sauce, milk, cream, peas, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper; stir to combine.
- Bring mixture to a low simmer and simmer for 2-3 minute or until peas are cooked. Remove from heat, then add parmesan cheese.
- Add the cooked pasta to the skillet and stir to combine. Top with more parmesan cheese and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
UPDATE NOTE: This post was originally published in October 2014. It was updated with new text and photos in October 2020.
Amazing flavor, super easy to make! Definitely a win for mom and the family. Thank you
Happy to hear the family liked this meal!
Just made this tonight. It was super easy to make and very yummy. I will definitely be making this again!
Thanks Emily, I’m glad you liked the pasta!
The ratios in this recipe are off. I used 4 chicken sausage and 1 1/2 cups of peas. There were way too many peas and way too much sauce in relation to pasta and sausage. The flavor was good, but I would bump the recipe up with more vegetables, maybe zucchini, broccoli and spinach.
Delicious! Thank you!
This was a big hit with my family. I did omit the red peppers and let people add them because I cook for some who can’t have them. I used peas but may try spinach next time. I had leftover chicken pesto sausages and they worked perfectly. The sauce combination was perfect and I used oat milk for my milk portion with heavy cream.
YUM! Love the sound of using pesto chicken sausages. Glad everyone liked the recipe!
Thank you Erin! Absolutely delicious. My husband needs low sodium dishes and I made this with reduced sodium sausage and pasta sauce. It was absolutely delicious and with the spice we did not even miss the sodium. We will definitely have this again.
This makes me happy to hear — I’m glad you both liked the pasta!
Really tasty and easy dish to make for all the family
Thanks for the review — I’m glad everyone enjoyed the pasta!
Delicious! I had left over spinach and grape tomatoes, so I used those instead of peas ( before they went bad). My husband and kids all loved it!
Happy to hear the whole family approved 🙂 Thanks for the comment!
So glad to find a recipe for chicken sausages!! While I love pork and beef, as a renal patient on dialysis I am not allowed to eat them any more. I look forward to recipes with chicken…however I have to stay away from tomatoes as well as…what can I substitute the marinara sauce with?🤔
Hi! Great question — if you can’t do anything tomato-based, I might suggest pesto. I have a kale pesto recipe, though if you don’t love kale you could always sub spinach. Here’s the link to the pesto if you want to give that a try: https://thealmondeater.com/kale-pesto/
I made this with almond milk and dairy free heavy cream so my milk allergy son could eat it. It was absolutely excellent. 3 kids ate it all up and Mom and Dad loved it. Was a perfect Sunday meal and loved that it converted over to dairy free flawlessly. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m so happy your son was able to enjoy this recipe and that the whole family approved!