Sriracha Pasta Sauce

This sriracha pasta sauce has rich and bold flavours, and it's just perfect if you love fiery pasta dishes. It's also super easy to make in just 20 minutes using a handful of ingredients!

Sriracha may not be the first ingredient that comes to mind when thinking about pasta, but this doesn't mean that sriracha pasta is not delicious.

I love fusion pasta dishes, and this sriracha pasta sauce is perhaps one of the best I've ever made. It has Asian vibes and incredible flavours, and it requires very little effort to make.

I make it with spinach and chickpeas for extra vitamins and protein, but you can definitely use any other veggies you want — think mushrooms, bell peppers or zucchini!

Why you'll love this sriracha pasta sauce

• The sauce is bursting with flavour and the perfect treat if you love spicy food.
• You can easily adjust the level of spiciness to suit your taste.
• It only takes 20 minutes to have a bowl of creamy sriracha pasta on the table.

Ingredients and substitutions

Pasta — I used pasta shells to make this sriracha sauce because they do a great job at catching the chickpeas. Orecchiette are also great, but you can definitely use any other type of pasta you have on hand.

Coconut oil — You can also use extra virgin olive oil, but the flavour of coconut oil is better here.

Garlic — Freshly chopped garlic is a must — don't substitute it with jarred garlic if possible.

Sriracha sauce — Feel free to adjust the amount of sriracha sauce to suit your personal taste. I tested it with 3 tablespoons, and the result was a medium-hot pasta sauce, so go up or down as you like.

Coconut milk — You'll need just the creamy top of a can of full-fat coconut milk. Alternatively, use a small can of coconut cream.

The sauce needs to be thick and creamy so you won't need too much liquid. You can use more coconut cream as needed to make it as thick as you like.

Baby spinach — Any other greens such as kale or collard greens work here. If using kale, you may need to cook it for a couple of minutes more.

Chickpeas — add a can of chickpeas for texture and to up the protein intake of this hot sauce pasta.

Peanuts — I like to sprinkle some toasted peanuts on the pasta for extra flavour and crunchiness.

How to make sriracha pasta

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it, and cook the pasta 2 minutes less than the time mentioned on the package. Reserve 1-2 cups of pasta before draining.

Meanwhile, heat the coconut oil over medium heat in a large, deep pan and add the chopped garlic. Cook for 1 minute, careful not to burn the garlic.

Stir in the sriracha sauce, coconut milk and lime juice and stir continuously until completely melted.

Add the baby spinach and simmer for 1-2 minutes until almost wilted.

Stir in the chickpeas and cooked pasta, lower the heat and cook for 2-3 minutes until the sauce thickens. Add a bit of the reserved pasta water if it looks too thick.

Stir in the peanuts, season to taste and serve immediately.

Leftovers and storage

• If you have any leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
• Reheat the pasta in the microwave or on the stovetop. You may need to add a splash of plant-based milk when reheating.
• If you want to freeze this sriracha pasta sauce, it's best to do so separately from the pasta. The sauce will keep well in the fridge for up to 3 months.

Recipe notes and tips

• Use red lentil pasta, quinoa pasta or chickpea pasta to make this pasta dish gluten-free.
• To make the sauce extra creamy and smooth, add half a cup of plant-based cream before stirring in the chickpeas and pasta.
• Other things that go well with this sriracha pasta sauce include snap peas, broccoli and spring onions.

If you liked this sriracha pasta sauce, you might also like some of my other creamy vegan pasta recipes:

• Creamy Avocado Pasta Sauce
• Creamy Vegan Fajita Pasta
• Vegan Instant Pot Creamy Pasta
• Creamy Vegan Peanut Pasta
• Creamy Vegan Buffalo Pasta

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