I love homemade vodka sauce. It’s an easy-to-make creamy, pink sauce that you can serve on any type of pasta you prefer.
This is a super simple vodka sauce recipe with just six main ingredients and ways to customize to your preferences.
I think vodka sauce is the perfect blend of a tomato sauce mixed with a creamy element. While it’s not simply tomato sauce and Alfredo sauce mixed together, it is delicious over pasta or gnocchi.
Related: 60 Easy Dinner Recipes
You can serve this homemade pasta sauce over any pasta you have on hand, OR you can learn to make your own pasta to take this to the next level.
And, if you’d like a vodka sauce recipe with more spice and a few other variations, try this red pepper vodka sauce.
Main Ingredients for Vodka Sauce:
- Onion (I prefer yellow but white works, too)
- Garlic
- Whole stewed tomatoes
- Tomato paste
- Vodka
- Cream (I used heavy cream, but half and half or a non-dairy version can work, too)
Directions:
Cook the onion and garlic (aromatics) first. Then, add the stewed tomatoes, tomato paste, and vodka. Blend the sauce together with an immersion blender or in a blender. Finally, stir in the cream and you’re ready for dinner!
Tips for Making Vodka Sauce:
- You can swap the yellow onion for a large shallot.
- Add some cayenne or red pepper flakes if you’d like to add some heat.
- Add some fresh herbs at the end, like basil or oregano.
- This will make enough sauce for 32 ounces of cooked pasta. If you don’t need that much, you can store half of this in the refrigerator for 3-5 days or for longer in the freezer.
Serving Suggestions:
Other recipes you may like that go with vodka sauce pasta:
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is there vodka in vodka sauce?
The vodka helps to maintain a cohesive texture, allowing the creaminess of the dairy to blend with the tomato base. While other spirits could also achieve this, vodka is not very flavorful, so it doesn’t take away from the flavors of the sauce.
Is vodka sauce alcoholic/Is it safe for children?
While the sauce does contain vodka, some (if not all) of the alcohol evaporates out of the sauce as it cooks. Vodka sauce is safe for children to consume.
What pasta goes best with vodka sauce?
Any pasta or gnocchi goes great with vodka sauce!
Get our FREE recipe guide with our most popular recipes of all time!
Free Popular Recipe Guide
Our top 25 recipes of all time!
Get the Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ onion (yellow )
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 28 ounces stewed whole tomatoes (1 can)
- 6 ounces tomato paste (1 can)
- ¼ cup vodka
- 1 cup whipping cream (heavy )
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne (optional)
- salt and pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Chop up the onion and mince the garlic.
- In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.
- Cook the onions and garlic until soft for about 2-3 minutes.
- Add the stewed tomatoes, tomato paste, and vodka.
- Cook for 5-6 minutes.
- Using an immersion blender or transferring to a blender, puree the mixture until smooth.
- Season with cayenne if using and a little salt and pepper.
- Continue to cook for another 10 minutes.
- Stir in the cream and cook for another few minutes so everything gets hot.
- Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.
- Serve over 32 ounces of cooked pasta. See notes for storage.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
One of my all time favorite pasta sauces!
This looks so delicious! I just got a jar and my kids loved it. Now I have a good recipe to make my own!