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!
5/5 this was absolutely amazing, I used better than chicken bullion and added in tofu, yellow zucchini and some kale. I added in some sumac as well cuz I just love that spice haha. We topped ours with a homemade hemp parm. Would go great with some sautéed mushrooms like another comment said. Next time I will just have to make more!
Oops forgot to mention I used cashew milk instead of the coconut and it was perfect.
So tasty, Sonja! Thanks for sharing your experience!
I have made this recipe a few times now and it is always insanely delicious. However, I make some changes, I never use coconut milk because I never seem to have the can, so I use soy milk and flavor it with a tbsp or two of coconut butter. And then I also sub the tahini for more coconut butter. I don’t always have paprika, so I skip that , but other than that, I make the recipe the same as it calls and it is so fricken good. I have made it with tahini but I think the coconut butter adds the best creaminess. Please try it .
Interesting, thanks for sharing your substitutions Emma!
I love all your recipes! Thank you! I just wanted to point out, as someone allergic to both nuts and soy-you mentioned above “BRAGGS LIQUID AMINOS.” This is made from soy…best to use alternative like coconut aminos!
xo
Thanks for noticing that, Tali! We’ll get that edited!
This was delicious and the whole family loved it!
Yay, Carolyn! Thanks for your review!
Another winner! So savory and yummy!
Thanks for the lovely feedback, Shannon!
Delicious and creamy and very fulfilling. Another wonderful recipe thank you!
Awesome, Sarah. Thanks for your comment and for taking the time to review!
This has been my 2nd time making it and my boyfriend can’t get enough. I added sautéed mushrooms for some added protein and it works great with this creamy sauce. So happy to add another dish to my repertoire. Thanks Nisha!
Good to hear you loved this pasta recipe, Lavhana! Thank you for taking the time to review!
I made this last night and it was amazing! Nisha’s recipes always have so much depth of flavour and this dish is no different. My other half who normally only appreciates pasta with cheese ate this with me and even he said it was delicious! Such a flavourful and tasty recipe!
Awesome, Ritika. Thanks for your comment and for taking the time to review!
Great recipe!
Thanks, Cher!
Another delicious recipe!!! I made this last night for the first time…I had leftover veggies in the fridge and added thin strips of red pepper, sliced baby bellas, cherry tomatoes, a couple of handfuls of baby spinach, crushed red pepper and additional italian spices. It was perfection! Thank you so much for your wonderful recipes!
Delicious! Thanks for sharing your experience cooking the dish, Courtney!