Creamy Rigatoni and Sausage

Posted on by Jeff the Chef

This cheesy and creamy rigatoni and sausage is studded with fresh Italian basil and spiked with fennel seeds. It’s a flexible, everyday-cooking recipe that forces you to open a bottle of white wine that you might as well serve with the meal.

Rigatoni alla toto
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Rigatoni alla toto

Recipe by Make It Like a Man!
Serves

4

generously
Prep time

10

minutes
Cooking time

50

minutes
Total time

1

hour 

Ingredients

  • Basil leaves picked from a ¾-oz. package

  • 3 Tbs olive oil

  • 1 small onion, peeled and chopped

  • 1 lb. sweet Italian sausage (bulk)

  • 1 cup dry white wine

  • ½ tsp fennel seeds, finely chopped

  • 1½ cups heavy cream

  • Salt

  • Coarsely ground black pepper

  • 1 lb. rigatoni

  • 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan

Directions

  • Gather up the smallest of the basil leaves and set them aside to be used for garnish.
  • Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat (setting 4). Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 3 minutes. Push the onion to the circumference of the pan in order to make room for the sausage. Lay the sausage into the pan and leave undisturbed until browned, 4 minutes. Now and then, stir the onions around the circumference of the pan, so that they do not brown too deeply. Flip the sausage, and brown for 4 more minutes. During this time, if the onions start to turn too dark, pile them atop the sausage. Add the wine and cook for 1 minute, as you break the sausage up into bite-sized chunks. Add the basil, fennel, and cream. Raise the heat to med-high (setting 6) and bring to a lively simmer. Reduce heat to med-low (setting 3) and simmer until the sausage is cooked through and the sauce has thickened just shy of your liking, 20 minutes. Salt to taste, if necessary. Add pepper, to taste.
  • Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the rigatoni in the boiling water 1-2 minute less than package directions. Drain well and return to the empty pot. Add the sauce, and toss. (If the rigatoni is done before the sauce, ladel in 1/2 cup of the unfinished sauce and stir it around, to prevent the rigatoni from sticking together.) Either serve immediately with the Parmesan, or toss with the Parmesan. Garnished with reserved basil leaves.

Notes

  • Substitutions: sausage in casings instead of in bulk – in that case, remove and discard casings. Grated Parmesan for the shredded.
"Rigatoni," from Make It Like a Man!

Social Learning

If the sausage cooks before the sauce it thickened, remove it with a slotted spoon and raise the temperature under the sauce to medium until it is thick. Note that the rigatoni will soak up liquid, so get the sauce to the perfect texture and then serve immediately. Get the sauce just shy of perfect otherwise. 

Want to be creative? This pasta is a vehicle you could drive in so many directions: add mushrooms, add garlic – maybe roasted garlic. I think sundried tomatoes, especially if they were dry (not packed in oil), cut into small pieces, would be a nice addition. Italian herbs in addition to the basil. 

Good microwaved later, but best fresh. 

My preference is to toss the Parm into the sauce, but it’s good both ways. 

"Rigatoni," from Make It Like a Man!
Creamy Rigatoni and Sausage

Credit for images on this page: Make It Like a Man! unless otherwise credited. This content was not solicited by anyone, nor was it written in exchange for anything. Thank you, ⌘+C. References: Dunaway, Suzanne. “Rigatoni alla toto.” The Best American Recipes, 2005-2006, ed. by Fran McCullough and Molly Stevens. Houghton Mifflin (Boston) 2005, pp. 109. Make It Like a Man! is ranked by Feedspot as #13 in the Top 30 Men’s Cooking Blogs.

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36 thoughts on “Creamy Rigatoni and Sausage”

  6. You’ve created the ultimate gourmet pasta using just 11 ingredients… and it even includes a homemade sauce!!! Talk about awesome! This is the definition of easy gourmet… and I am so in love with it!

    Reply

  9. Oh yum! I have some Italian sausage in the freezer and everything else on hand. I will be making this

    Reply

  12. ¡¡Hola Jeff!! Qué ricos tus rigatoni, con las salchichas y la albahaca, que le aporta frescor. Una manera de comer pasta riquísima. Besitos.

    Reply

  16. We just had brunch, and I am salivating for this dish! It looks so flavourful and delicious. The fresh basil must add a wonderful flavour to the sauce. I think I may have everything I need for this recipe.

    Reply

  17. This dish sounds like pure comfort in a bowl, Jeff! Creamy, cheesy, herby, and with that fennel-spiked sausage, what’s not to love? Also love how you nudged us to open a bottle of wine “for the sauce” and then casually pour a glass for ourselves. Totally my style of cooking and living!

    Reply

  18. You’re talking my kinda language with creamy pasta sauces like this one, Jeff. And the Italian sausage in there just takes this to a new level. This recipe is up there really high on my list of all-time favorite comfort foods! Can’t wait to try your version out…hopefully sooner than later.

    Reply

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