Vodka Sauce Recipe
Now you can make this popular creamy pink vodka sauce right at home! Incredibly easy lightened-up recipe with olive oil, tomatoes, half and half, and fresh basil.
Cooking dinner together with my hubs is one of my all-time favorite things. Sunday night is normally our go to night…and my hubby is the opposite of me.
He cooks on a whim. Throws things together as he owns it and it always turns out delicious.
This past weekend he made a classic Russian dish…borscht while I made homemade vodka sauce. It felt like a mini date in the comfort of our cozy kitchen.
And since it is Valentine’s Day…I hope you guys are staying in and cooking together. Because of crowds, cold, and overpriced pre-fixed menus…I mean we can do better than that?! Right?
This homemade creamy pink vodka sauce is the perfect recipe for date night in! It’s really simple to make and I promise you’ll never go back to jarred sauce ever again.
It tastes like restaurant quality but without the heavy price tag. Pair it with hot buttery penne pasta and an Avocado Caesar Salad and you’ve got yourself effortless Valentine’s dinner.
There’s so many different versions of vodka sauce recipes but the base is tomatoes, vodka, and heavy cream. Some include butter, parmesan cheese, and fresh herbs. If you’re concerned about the taste of vodka…don’t be!
You can’t taste the harshness of the vodka, it is simply here to enhance the flavors. It adds a touch of heat to help balance out the sweetness of the tomatoes and the cream.
Is it necessary??…well no….but then it wouldn’t be a vodka sauce.
To make this recipe a little lighter, I used olive oil in place of butter, half and half in place of heavy cream, a fraction of the cheese, and also plenty of fresh basil.
Basil adds just the right amount of fresh flavor and half and half along with parmesan cheese all the creaminess.
This sauce is a combo of the sweet-spicy mixture and when you pair it with hot buttery penne pasta…it’s a match made in heaven! All you need is a simple salad, such as Tomato Mozzarella Salad and you’re set!
Ways To Serve Vodka Sauce
One of my personal favorite ways to serve vodka sauce is simply swapping it in some of our favorite recipes where it calls for a pasta sauce. It’s a great way to add flavor without compromising the overall recipe.
- Orecchiette with Baked Mini Chicken Meatballs in Tomato Cream Sauce
- Italian Zucchini Spaghetti Bake
- Zucchini Lasagna Roll-Ups with Spinach and Artichokes
- Sheet Pan Chicken Parmesan Meatballs
But of course, you can always simply toss the vodka sauce with hot buttery noodles, pair it with a salad and call it a day. Here are some of our favorite salads to pair with pasta:
Video: How to Make Vodka Sauce Recipe
Love vodka sauce? Try our Penne Vodka Sauce recipe, which is an easy and quick version of this popular pasta sauce.
Print
Vodka Sauce Recipe
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 40 mins
- Total Time: 55 mins
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Blend
- Cuisine: Italian
Description
Now you can make this popular creamy pink vodka sauce right at home! Incredibly easy lightened-up recipe with olive oil, tomatoes, half and half, and fresh basil.
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium sweet onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 28 oz. can whole peeled tomatoes
- 1/3 cup vodka
- 1 Tbsp. tomato paste
- 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/4 cup fresh chopped basil
- 1/2 – 3/4 cup half and half
- 2 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese
- 16 oz. penne pasta
- Fresh black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a large sauté pan, heat olive oil over medium heat; add onions and garlic and cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes. Add red pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in tomatoes and vodka and continue cooking the mixture for 5-7 minutes until slightly reduced, stirring occasionally.
- Then stir in the tomato paste, balsamic vinegar, salt, and black pepper to taste. Reduce heat to low and simmer partially covered for 20 minutes until reduced by half, stirring occasionally.
- In the meantime, cook pasta in salted water according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- Transfer tomato mixture to a food processor or blender, add basil, and purée until smooth. Return sauce to the pan and stir in half and half. You want creamy and slightly sweet consistency. Start with 1/2 cup of half and half, taste, and add more if needed. Cook until warmed through, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in parmesan cheese and then the cooked pasta. Toss to combine.
- Serve immediately with additional sprinkle of cheese and basil, if desired.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/2 cup sauce + 1 1/4 cup cooked pasta
- Calories: 316
- Sugar: 8.2 g
- Sodium: 609.7 mg
- Fat: 9.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 53 g
- Protein: 10.3 g
- Cholesterol: 6.2 mg
Keywords: best vodka sauce recipe, vodka sauce pasta, vodka sauce ingredients, vodka sauce recipe
Hi! I'm Katya -- a former corporate paralegal turned full-time recipe developer and blogger behind Little Broken. Here you'll find family-friendly and seasonal recipes made from real ingredients.
Very good! Even when I only had habanero vodka in the the liquor cabinet.I didn’t say anything and all kids ate it
★★★★★
Is it spicy with the red pepper flakes? I’m cooking this for a crowd and don’t want it to be too spicy. Kids included.
It’s not at all. Very subtle aftertaste. I serve this recipe to my kids without any issues.
This recipe is BOMB! Hands down best vodka sauce recipe out there. I’ve made it countless times for family, friends, as a food gift for new moms…my kids even request it for dinner on their birthdays. I always use the best imported tomatoes I can find &freshly grated parm. Do not skimp on the red pepper flakes. The hint of heat in this recipe is just perfect, and so is the use of half & half (way better than heavy cream) Thank you!
★★★★★
Oh my, this insanely delicious! I followed the directions and I am glad did so I remember for next time that it’s perfect the way it is. Thank you!
★★★★★
thank you!
By far the best tomato/vodka sauce ever. I make it without the cream. My kids and fiance love it. I make it at least once a week with either butternut or cheese ravioli.
Thank you Suzanne!
Any idea what the serving size of just the sauce is. Trying to calorie count and will be using chickpea pasta.
About 1/2 cup
This recipe was very easy. I actually used fresh Roma tomatoes from my garden and by blending the sauce you’d never know that I didn’t peel or seed the tomatoes. I also cooked ground chicken Italian sausage and added to the sauce. It was absolutely delicious! Adding this one to my go to recipes!
★★★★★
Made this tonight, so good! Subbed in half fresh tomatoes and half tomato sauce for the canned tomatoes, turned out great!
★★★★★
Is there any seafood in your vodka sauce?
no there’s no seafood
Hi…was wondering how many days will it keep in the fridge after making
Hi , it should be fine for 4-5 days.
Great recipe!!! I made it without onions (ran out) and it still turned out delicious. One shortcut I took was that I used an immersion blender rather than transferring to food processor (one less thing to clean).
I’ve made this 3 or 4 times now (with creative liberties, not necessarily measuring exact quantities of ingredients) and it’s delicious every time. You can’t go wrong with this recipe. I am curious – what is the reasoning behind spacing out some of the ingredients going in? For example, adding the balsamic vinegar 5-7 minutes after the vodka and tomatoes have had time to simmer. Is there a reason for not just dumping in all the ingredients after the onions and garlic have had time to cook? Thank you for this delicious recipe, it is a new go-to!
★★★★★
It’s all about building flavor and giving ingredients time to cook down as each ingredient requires a different amount of time to cook.
Would it freeze well? I’d love to make a huge batch and have it handy in the freezer?
Hi Lucy: I haven’t tried freezing this sauce so I can’t answer with 100% certainty but I think it should be okay to freeze. When you reheat it, make sure to use gentle heat so the cream does not separate.
My eldest suggested this as a food recommendation when I asked for dinner ideas. That was I think almost 2 yrs ago. EVERYONE loves it even my youngest and pickiest eater. This is such a flavorful meal, I don’t even care how long it takes me to make it because I love seeing everyone asking for seconds and thirds.
★★★★★
Great recipe! At times I don’t purée the sauce, still delicious.
Absolutely amazing recipe. I’ve made this multiple times and both my boyfriend and I absolutely love it!
★★★★★