Are you ready to create a truly stunning, restaurant-quality pasta dish that is absolutely bursting with a deep, savory, and unbelievably delicious flavor? This incredible, from-scratch Rigatoni with Sausage and Fennel, all tossed in a luscious and elegant cream sauce, is that perfect meal. It’s the ultimate sophisticated comfort food, perfect for a special date night in, a cozy Sunday dinner, or any time you’re craving a truly spectacular pasta experience.
This isn’t just another pasta recipe; it’s your definitive guide to mastering a complex-tasting dish that is secretly simple to make. We’ll show you the professional secrets to building a rich, deeply flavorful pan sauce from scratch. This is a show-stopping meal that will make you feel like a gourmet chef in your own kitchen.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Recipe Overview: The Ultimate Restaurant-Quality Pasta
What makes this Sausage and Fennel Pasta so spectacularly delicious is its incredible depth of flavor and its luxurious, creamy texture. This is a true, rustic, Italian-inspired dish. The flavor foundation is built by browning rich, savory sweet Italian sausage with sweet onions and the star of the show: fresh, aromatic fennel. The sauce is a masterpiece of classic techniques: the pan is deglazed with a dry white wine to capture every last drop of flavor, then enriched with a combination of heavy cream and half-and-half, and given a touch of savory depth and a beautiful rosy color from tomato paste. It’s a foolproof recipe for a meal that is elegant, satisfying, and completely unforgettable.
| Metric | Time / Level |
| Total Time | 50 minutes |
| Active Prep Time | 25 minutes |
| Difficulty Level | Easy |
| Servings | 6-8 |
The Essential Ingredients for This Elegant Pasta
This iconic dish uses a handful of high-quality ingredients to create its signature savory and aromatic flavor.
- The Sausage & Fennel (The Perfect Pairing!):
- Sweet Italian Sausage: For the best, most authentic flavor, it is highly recommended to use a high-quality, bulk sweet Italian sausage. The classic, mild fennel seed seasoning in the sausage is the key that beautifully complements the fresh fennel in the sauce.
- Fresh Fennel & Fennel Seeds: This is the secret ingredient that gives the dish its unique, sophisticated, and aromatic flavor. A fresh fennel bulb has a wonderfully crisp texture and a subtle, sweet, and aromatic flavor reminiscent of licorice or anise. When cooked, it becomes very tender and its flavor mellows beautifully. The addition of crushed fennel seeds adds a second, more intense layer of that same classic flavor.
- The Pasta:
- Rigatoni: The recipe calls for rigatoni, which is the perfect choice. These large, sturdy, and ridged pasta tubes are ideal for catching and holding onto a thick, chunky, and creamy sauce like this one.
- The Luxurious Cream Sauce:
- Dry White Wine: A splash of a dry, crisp white wine like a Sauvignon Blanc or a Pinot Grigio is used to deglaze the pan. This adds a bright, complex, and acidic note that is crucial for building a sophisticated sauce.
- Cream & Half-and-Half: The combination of rich heavy cream and lighter half-and-half creates the perfect, luscious, and velvety texture that is decadent without being overly heavy.
- Tomato Paste: Just a few tablespoons of a good quality tomato paste add a deep, savory umami flavor and a beautiful, warm, rosy color to the cream sauce.
Step-by-Step to the Best Sausage and Fennel Pasta
This elegant meal comes together in one pot while your pasta cooks.
Step 1: Cook the Pasta and Build the Flavor Base
Step 1: First, bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a rolling boil. Cook your 1 pound of rigatoni according to the package directions until it is perfectly al dente.
Step 2: While the pasta is cooking, heat the 3 tablespoons of good olive oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.
Step 3: Add the 3 cups of chopped fennel and the 1 1/2 cups of chopped yellow onion. Sauté for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and fragrant.
Step 4: Add the 1 1/4 pounds of sweet Italian sausage to the pot. Cook for 7 to 8 minutes, using a fork or a wooden spoon to crumble the sausage as it cooks, until it is beautifully browned.
Step 5: Add the 2 cloves of minced garlic, the 1/2 teaspoon of crushed fennel seeds, the 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes, 2 teaspoons of salt, and 1 teaspoon of black pepper. Cook for one more minute, until the garlic and spices are very fragrant.
Part 2: Create the Creamy Sauce and Finish the Pasta
Step 1 (Deglaze the Pan!): Pour in the 1 cup of dry white wine. Bring the mixture to a boil, using your spoon to scrape up any delicious, flavorful browned bits (the “fond”) from the bottom of the pot.
Step 2: Add the 1 cup of heavy cream, the 2/3 cup of half-and-half, and the 2 tablespoons of tomato paste to the pot. Bring the sauce back to a boil.
Step 3: Reduce the heat to low and let the sauce simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes. This crucial step allows the sauce to reduce and thicken, and all the incredible flavors to meld together.
Step 4: Drain your cooked pasta. Add the hot, drained rigatoni directly to the pot with your sauce and stir to coat the pasta.
Step 5: Continue to cook the pasta in the sauce over a low heat for about 5 more minutes. This allows the pasta to absorb some of the delicious sauce and become even more flavorful.
Step 6: Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the 1/2 cup of chopped fresh parsley and 1/2 cup of the grated Parmesan cheese.
Serve the pasta immediately in warm, shallow bowls with the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmesan on the side.
Creamy Sausage and Fennel Pasta (Restaurant-Style Rigatoni!)
A rich and creamy pasta dish featuring rigatoni in a savory sausage and fennel sauce. The sauce is built on a flavorful base of crumbled sweet Italian sausage, sautéed with chopped fresh fennel and onion until tender. It is seasoned with crushed fennel seeds and red pepper flakes, deglazed with white wine, and then enriched with heavy cream, half-and-half, and a touch of tomato paste. The cooked rigatoni is simmered in the finished sauce to absorb the flavor and is finished with fresh parsley and grated Parmesan cheese.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons good olive oil
- 3 cups chopped fennel (1 large bulb)
- 1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion
- 1 1/4 pounds sweet Italian sausages, casings removed
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 cloves)
- 1/2 teaspoon whole fennel seeds, crushed
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2/3 cup half-and-half
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 pound rigatoni
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
- 1 cup freshly grated Italian Parmesan cheese, divided
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the chopped fennel and onion and sauté for 7 minutes, until tender.
- Add the sausage and cook for 7 to 8 minutes, crumbling it with a fork, until browned.
- Add the minced garlic, crushed fennel seeds, red pepper flakes, 2 teaspoons of salt, and 1 teaspoon of black pepper. Cook for one minute until fragrant.
- Pour in the white wine, bring it to a boil, and then add the heavy cream, half-and-half, and tomato paste.
- Bring the sauce back to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer for 20 minutes, until it has thickened.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the rigatoni according to the package directions until al dente.
- Drain the pasta and add it to the pot with the sauce. Stir to coat the pasta.
- Cook the pasta in the sauce over low heat for 5 minutes to allow it to absorb the flavors.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the fresh parsley and 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese.
- Serve hot in shallow bowls with the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmesan on the side.
Notes
- Using both fresh fennel and crushed fennel seeds provides a multi-layered, aromatic fennel flavor.
- Simmering the cooked pasta in the sauce for a few minutes before serving is a key step that allows the rigatoni to absorb the rich, creamy sauce.
- This is a one-pot sauce that comes together while the pasta is boiling, making it an efficient meal to prepare.
Storage and Make-Ahead Tips
This fresh pasta dish is at its absolute peak of deliciousness when it is served immediately.
- Make-Ahead: For a super-fast and impressive weeknight meal, you can get a head start by preparing the entire sausage and fennel cream sauce up to 3 days in advance. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. When you are ready to eat, simply reheat the sauce gently on the stovetop while you cook your fresh pasta, and then stir everything together.
- Storage: Store any leftover pasta in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Reheating: The best way to reheat this dish is in a skillet on the stovetop over a low heat. You will likely need to add a generous splash of milk, cream, or broth to loosen the sauce and bring back its creamy consistency.
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Creative Recipe Variations
- Use a Different Protein: If you’re not a fan of pork sausage, this rich and creamy sauce is also absolutely fantastic with about 1 to 1 1/2 pounds of browned, crumbled Italian-style chicken or turkey sausage. You could also use sautéed mushrooms for a delicious vegetarian version.
- Add Some Leafy Greens: For a beautiful pop of color and some extra nutrients, you can add a few large handfuls of fresh baby spinach or chopped kale to the sauce during the last 5 minutes of the simmering time and let it wilt.
- Use a Different Pasta Shape: If you don’t have rigatoni on hand, this delicious and hearty sauce is also absolutely fantastic with other sturdy pasta shapes, like penne, ziti, or a large shell pasta.
Enjoy The Ultimate Restaurant-Quality Pasta!
You’ve just created a truly special dish that is a perfect harmony of wholesome, classic ingredients and delicious, satisfying flavors. This classic Sausage and Fennel Pasta is a testament to the power of a simple, from-scratch meal to be both incredibly fast and wonderfully elegant. It’s a rewarding and deeply satisfying recipe that is sure to become a new favorite for special occasions.
We hope you enjoy every last, perfect, and delicious bite!
If you enjoyed making this recipe, please leave a comment below or share it with a friend who loves an easy and impressive meal!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1: What is the absolute secret to a rich and flavorful pan sauce like this one?
The number one secret is to build your flavors in layers in the same pot. By first sautéing the vegetables, then browning the sausage, and then deglazing the pot with the white wine, you are capturing all the delicious, caramelized brown bits (the fond) that are stuck to the bottom of the pan. These little bits are pure, concentrated flavor and are the key to a truly deep and savory sauce.
Q2: What does fresh fennel taste like?
Fresh, raw fennel has a crisp texture and a bright, slightly sweet flavor with a distinct note of anise or licorice. When you cook it, as in this sauce, that licorice flavor becomes much more mild, sweet, and beautifully aromatic, adding a wonderful, sophisticated depth to the dish that is a classic pairing with pork.
Q3: Can I make this pasta dish ahead of time?
Yes! The best method is to prepare the entire sausage and fennel cream sauce and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When you are ready to eat, you can simply reheat the sauce gently in a saucepan on the stovetop while you cook your fresh pasta.
Q4: What is the best way to reheat a cream-based pasta sauce?
The key to reheating a cream sauce is to do it low and slow. Place the leftover pasta and sauce in a skillet or a saucepan over a low heat. Add a generous splash of milk, cream, or broth and stir it gently as it heats up. The extra liquid will help to bring back the original, luscious and creamy consistency of the sauce.
Q5: Can I make this recipe with a different kind of sausage?
Of course! A spicy Italian sausage would be fantastic in this recipe if you enjoy a bit of heat. A classic Italian-style chicken or turkey sausage would also be a delicious and slightly leaner option.