I am often in the mood for a creamy comforting pasta, and this 10-Ingredient Creamy Vegan Pantry Pasta is the easiest option that actually tastes amazing.
It’s made with just pantry ingredients, is quick and simple to make, and is packed with flavor. It’s also easy to customize, so you can round it out with your favorite vegetable or protein.
This recipe is straightforward, but if you want a few cooking tips (including the proper way to dice an onion and peel garlic) or want to see me cooking in action, I’ve included the video down below.
If you love the sound of a pantry-friendly pasta, you should also try my 10-Ingredient Lentil Bolognese and my Italian White Bean and Pasta Stew!
And for even more pasta-recipes, check out my round-up of 30 amazing vegan pasta recipes right here!
Watch: How to make Creamy Pantry Pasta!
Why you’ll love this vegan pantry pasta
10 main ingredients. Okay, not counting water, oil, salt and pepper. But yeah, just 10 main ingredients, woohoo!
Pantry staples. And all those ingredients are pantry staples (i.e., you might already have all the required ingredients in your pantry).
Budget-friendly. In addition to being a pantry meal, it’s budget-friendly!
Weeknight-friendly. It takes 20ish minutes to make, from start to finish.
Comfort food heaven. It’s creamy, cheesy, and smoky, and incredibly indulgent. It tastes like a slightly smoky version of fettuccine Alfredo! It was inspired by my Creamy Mushroom Stroganoff, which is one of my most popular recipes, so you know it’s good!
Easy to customize. Feel free to make this your own meal. Toss in frozen peas at the end, pair with a side of roasted broccoli, bulk up with some beans or tofu or your favorite protein source. I personally love it with roasted broccoli or charred zucchini and smoked tofu.
Substitutions for this recipe
Gluten-free? Use gluten-free soy sauce (aka tamari), use gluten-free flour or cornstarch, and use gluten-free pasta.
Plant milk. Canned lite coconut milk is the most pantry-friendly option, but I typically use oat milk because I always have it on hand. Any creamy plant-based milk such as oat, coconut, cashew, or soy will work—just make sure it’s a plain / unsweetened variety.
No tahini? The tahini adds extra richness and creaminess, so you can omit it, though at least one reader subbed almond butter with delicious results.
No Dijon or coarse-grain mustard? Add a splash of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice. The acidity at the end helps balance the creamy richness.
If you give this recipe a try, be sure to tag me on Instagram with your recreations and please rate and review the recipe below 🙂
Introducing
Big Vegan Flavor
Techniques and 150 recipes to master vegan cooking.
10-Ingredient Creamy Vegan Pantry Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 generous tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional, for mild heat)
- 3/4 cup (180 mL) vegetable broth or water
- 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium tamari or soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour*
- 3/4 cup (180 mL) canned “lite” coconut milk or unsweetened oat milk (ideally a creamy full-fat version)**
- 1 tablespoon tahini
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt + more to taste
- Freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 6 ounces (170g) linguine, fettuccine, or any pasta of choice (including gluten-free)
- Optional garnishes: chopped flat-leaf parsley or vegan parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until al dente.
- Meanwhile, heat a deep sauté pan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. Once the oil is shimmering, add the onions and season with a pinch of kosher salt. Cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until browned around the edges. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes (if using), and stir to combine for 1 minute, until fragrant.
- While the onions are cooking, pour the vegetable broth (or water) into a measuring cup or bowl and add in the tamari or soy sauce and flour. Whisk to combine until all the flour is dissolved.
- Pour the vegetable broth-flour mixture into the onion-garlic mixture and whisk to combine, ensuring there are no flour clumps. It should thicken almost immediately. Reduce the heat to medium-low and pour in the coconut milk or oat milk, tahini, nutritional yeast, paprika, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and black pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes***, or until the sauce is thickened and very creamy, whisking occasionally.
- Stir in the Dijon mustard, and taste for seasonings, adding more salt as needed. Turn on the pan with the sauce to low heat and add the hot cooked pasta. Use tongs to toss the pasta until it's well coated in the sauce and it's all heated through. Garnish with parsley and/or vegan parm, if using.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Love this? Leave a rating below!
Do you use tahini spread or the powder(seed) form?
Hi Kaleigh, tahini is sesame seed butter! Nisha’s favorite brands include soom foods, seed and mill, baron’s, beirut and the 365 brand. Enjoy the pasta!
I added broccolini and spinach and I might have added a bit more nooch (I’m addicted) but I was amazed how creamy and delicious this was. Thankyou!
Hi there, it’s great to hear you had success with the recipe. Thanks for the review!
Just made this recipe for myself and my roommate, he absolutely loved it, said it was the best meal he had had in a very long time! I loved how easy and quick it was too. I used soy milk and added a bit of baby spinach and it was great.
I was hoping to ask though, is there a reason this wasn’t made as a one-pot/pan recipe? I’ve made pasta recipes in the past where you just add the pasta into the sauce, cover the pan and it cooks in like 12-15 minutes, super convenient.
I guess that might technically take longer overall but i’d rather do that than have to boil pasta on its own which I find tedious and another large dish to clean. I’m gonna play around with it and see if I can turn it into a one-pan dish.
Thanks for yet again another amazing recipe!
So yom!
Thanks for the lovely feedback, Dana!
This pasta recipe is super delicious and so easy to make. I made it exactly as is and topped it with some Pecorino. This will definitely be on rotation in our kitchen. My husband and teenage son (who is normally super picky) loved it as well. 🙂 Thank you!!!
Hi Kathy, Thank you so much for such a fantastic review! Appreciate you taking the time!
Hi really like your recipes can you give me a version of this recipe made in a ninja pressure cooker. Thanks
Hi Shirley, thanks for your support! Unfortunately I don’t think this recipe is a good contender for being made in a pressure cooker since creamy sauces like this tend to stick in the pressure cooker. Also, pasta dishes made on the stove come out way better than in a pressure cooker, which have a tendency to get too soft or mushy. That being said, it’s a pretty quick recipe so we hope you’re still able to try it!
has anyone left out nutritional yeast. I do not like nutritional yeast
Hi Jeaniene, you can try a teaspoon of soy sauce or white miso instead. We hope you enjoy!
Made the gluten free version and it was amazing. The sauce is so creamy and has such a comforting taste. My ten year old is a very picky eater, but she gave this a chance and even had seconds! We’ll have to double the recipe next time.
We’re so happy that the pasta turned out well for you, Linni. Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment and for trying out the recipe!
So delicious, so umami-ful and so easy. Simple to make gluten free, too.
Thanks for the lovely feedback, Fenice!
Yum! I made as directed and added peas and kale….very good!
Hi Deb, it’s great to hear you had success with the recipe. Thanks for the review!