This Spicy Vegan Vodka Sauce is rich, and creamy, and comes together in under 30 minutes—but it tastes like you spent all day perfecting it. Made with simple pantry staples, it’s a game-changer for pasta night. So, start your pasta water and get ready to whip up a sauce that just might become your new favorite!
Pasta is always a good idea, no matter the time of year, but it tastes especially good on a cold winter day. Personally, I love a big bowl of pasta after a long surf sesh or big workout.
This pasta is the cousin of this butternut squash alfredo, vegan pesto pasta and lentil spaghetti bolognese. As you can see, I'm a BIG pasta fan.
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Why This Recipe Works
Vodka sauce traditionally gets its thick and creamy texture from, well, heavy cream. Since that's out us vegans and dairy free peeps, we're looking to our ride or die coconut cream to pick up the slack, along with pasta water, a homemade cashew cream, vegan butter, and of course, vodka!
All of the flavor, and NONE of the dairy, that's how we roll 😎.
📋 Ingredients
Here are some key ingredients for our thick and creamy vodka pasta:
- Tomato paste, shallot, and garlic combine to form the aromatic base for our spicy vodka sauce.
- Coconut cream gives us the creamy, thick, velvety quality that heavy cream usually adds. Remember to use a can of coconut CREAM. NOT coconut milk. While a can of coconut milk can be used in a pinch, a 15 oz can will throw off the ratios. Only attempt if you have experience adjusting recipes on the fly.
- A cashew cream also supplements our creamy sauce ingredient. Don't worry, it's MUCH easier than it sounds and makes a huge difference.
- Chili flakes make the sauce as spicy as you want
- Vodka (not pictured, optional) thickens the sauce as the alcohol burns off without adding extra flavor or seasoning. It's totally optional, as you can achieve similar results without vodka.
- It isn't a pasta sauce without some vegan butter (I love Miyoko's). It thickens the sauce and adds some extra creaminess, saltiness and a slight tang that just takes the sauce to another level.
Vodka sauce traditionally gets its thick and creamy texture from, well, heavy cream. Since that's out us vegans and dairy free peeps, we're looking to our ride or die coconut cream to pick up the slack, along with pasta water, a homemade cashew cream, vegan butter, and of course, vodka!
For the complete list of ingredients with measurements and instructions, please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
🔀 Substitutions & Variations
This spicy vodka sauce is naturally vegan and dairy-free. For a gluten free sauce, use gluten free pasta (and the resulting gluten free pasta water).
For a spicier sauce, add an extra half teaspoon of chili flakes.
If you like a milder sauce, add half a teaspoon of chili flakes, or leave them out completely.
This recipe calls for a can of coconut CREAM and some plain old coconut milk, ideally the kind from a carton. If you don't have any extra coconut milk laying around, it's ok to substitute with hot pasta water.
Looking for something more kid-friendly? Check out this butternut squash mac and cheese!
🔪 How To Make This Recipe
Ok, let's get to it! Before starting the sauce, boil salted water for pasta in a large pot. In a small saucepan, boil a few inches of water for cashews.
Boil cashews for 10-15 minutes. Cook pasta according to package instructions.
Sautee shallot in a teaspoon of vegan butter on medium heat in a large, flat bottomed frying pan for 3-4 minutes, until soft.
Then add minced garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent burning and sticking. Then add pepper flakes.
Now add tomato paste and coconut cream, stirring to combine and melt.
It's ok if there's some liquid in the bottom of your can of coconut cream. Add it to the sauce!
In a personal blender, add hot cashews, a couple ladles of the red sauce, and a half cup of hot water, preferably pasta water. Blend until smooth, ~1 minute, adding more water to keep things moving if needed.
Add cashew cream sauce to red sauce and stir to combine. Then add vodka (or not) and bring to a simmer for 5-10 minutes.
At this point, the sauce should be thickening and simmering. You may add the coconut milk (the kind from the carton) to thin out.
If you're out of regular coconut milk, you may replace with pasta water, a quarter cup at a time.
Add pasta, and stir gently to coat. Serve and enjoy!
👩🍳 Expert Tips
The key to making this vegan vodka pasta is patience, stirring and lots of tasting.
Stirring: stir frequently to prevent sticking and burning. If the sauce feels too thick, add a half ladle of pasta water to thin out. Remember: it's easy to add more liquid, but hard to remove, so add slowly and carefully.
Tasting: Once you've added the cashew cream to the sauce, if it needs salt, then add salt. Keep in mind salty pasta water seasons the sauce too.
It's ok to add a little more or a little less pasta water to sauce depending on the thickness of the sauce. We want a sauce a little thicker than a heavy cream, but thinner than a mac and cheese sauce.
💭 FAQs
In my opinion, no. The limited amount of coconut cream combined with the strong flavors of tomato, shallot, onion and garlic tends to overpower the sweeter coconut notes. However, the residual nuttiness tastes a little like Parmesan, so I'm calling that a win!
There are a few vegan substitutes for heavy cream that work well in a vodka sauce.
Full fat coconut cream adds a thick and creamy texture, but can't be the only source of creaminess otherwise the coconut flavor will overwhelm the sauce.
A cashew cream mixture of softened cashews, tomato paste, shallots, garlic, vegan butter, and pasta water can thicken the sauce as well.
Finally, a little bit of vodka will thicken the sauce without adding extra flavor or liquid.
This plant based vodka sauce can be gluten free if you use gluten free pasta and subsequently, gluten free pasta water.
🍜 Related Recipes
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Spicy Vegan Vodka Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 Shallot
- 2 Cloves Garlic
- 2 tablespoon Vegan Butter such as Miyoko's
- 8 oz Tomato Paste
- 8 oz Coconut Cream
- ½ Cup Coconut Milk from a carton, NOT a can
- 1 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
- 1 lb Pasta
- ½ Cup Cashews
- ¼ - ½ Cup Pasta Water
- 1 tablespoon Vodka
Instructions
- First, start boil salted water for pasta in a large pot. In a small saucepan, boil a few inches of water for cashews. Boil cashews for 10-15 minutes. Cook pasta according to package instructions.
- Sautee shallot in a teaspoon of vegan butter on medium heat in a large, flat bottomed frying pan for 3-4 minutes, until soft. Then add minced garlic and cook for another 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent burning and sticking. Then add pepper flakes.
- Now add tomato paste and coconut cream, stirring to combine and melt. It's ok if there's some liquid in the bottom of your can of coconut cream.
- In a personal blender, add hot cashews, a couple ladles of the red sauce, and a half cup of hot water, preferably pasta water. Blend until smooth, ~1 minute, adding more water to keep things moving if needed.
- Add cashew cream sauce to red sauce and stir to combine. Then add vodka (or not) and bring to a simmer for 5-10 minutes.
- At this point, the sauce should be thickening and simmering. You may add the coconut milk (the kind from the carton) to thin out. If you're out of regular coconut milk, you may replace with pasta water, a quarter cup at a time.
- Add pasta, and stir gently to coat. Serve and enjoy!
Angela Milnes says
We love this vegan vodka sauce. It's perfect with pasta and super easy to make. Glad you liked it.
Laura says
perfection in a bowl. it doesn't get better than this creamy spicy vegan vodka sauce, i can't believe vegan pasta could taste this good.