Sausage Pasta Skillet is a quick and easy one pot meal the whole family will love. Creamy, cheesy, sausage pasta dinner.
The week of Christmas is here! I am sure you are running around like crazy trying to get everything done. I know I am. My son is now off from school until January 6th. So not only do I have him to entertain, I have to get ready for Christmas, get work done, and everything else I forgot about for the last month.
Hopefully you have a couple extra days off this week, and can get everything done before the big days arrives. And because I know everyone is busy, I have a super quick and easy pasta dinner to get you through the week. Seriously, 20 minutes and you are done!
I am all about super quick skillet meals. Enchilada Pasta Skillet, Cheeseburger Macaroni Skillet, Mexican Rice Skillet, and I have two more that I still need to share with you! Everything is cooked in one pan (including the pasta), and it is ready in about 20 minutes.
You really can’t beat that, especially this time of year. My son is always excited when I tell him we are having a pasta skillet for dinner. He loves to scoop up all the sauce, and get his plate perfectly clean!
Sausage Pasta Skillet uses just a few ingredients, most of which you can keep on hand at all times. I used kielbasa for the sausage. Kielbasa lasts for a really long time in the fridge if you don’t open it. So stock up when it is on sale, and you will always be ready to make this.
You can mix up the flavor and use just about any kind of sausage you have on hand or your family likes for this. Creamy, cheesy, tomato-y, with a slight kick can never be wrong!
Want more? Check out all of the other One Pan Dinner Recipes here and here are some more you might like:
Mexican Rice Skillet
Spicy Sausage and Spanish Rice Skillet
One Pot Creamy Tuscan Pasta by Belly Full
One Pot Creamy Spaghetti and Sausage by Wine and Glue
Some of my favorite kitchen items used to make this recipe
Pots and Pans – A good set of pots and pans is a must! You want the food to cook evenly, and the pans to last for years and years! I have had these Calphalon Comtempory pans for many years, and I will love them.
Knives: A good set of kitchen knives is essential for preparing any meal. We splurged on these Global knives about 14 years ago, and to this day they are still my favorite. These are hands down my favorite knives I have owned.
Cutting Board: For me this is a kitchen must-have and kitchen counter saver. While we have counter tops you can cut on, I find that this extra step will preserve my counter. I personally love the Epicurean cutting boards, because they clean up so easily, and you never have to worry about food getting stuck in the groves.
Liquid Measuring Cup – whether you are measuring oil for muffins, or milk for a sauce a good, sturdy measuring cup is a must.
- 1 Tbls olive oil
- 1 pound Kielbasa
- 1 cup onion , finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 3 cups short cut pasta
- 1 can Rotel tomatoes
- 2 cups milk
- 3/4 cup chicken stock
- 1 1/2 cup colby/jack cheese
- In a large skillet heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add onions and sausage. Cook for about 5 minutes, until onions are soft, and sausage is starting to brown. Add garlic, and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
- Stir in pasta, tomatoes, milk, and chicken stock. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and cook for 8-10 minutes until pasta is tender.
- Stir in cheese.
- Let stand for 5 minutes for sauce to thicken before serving.
Other Recipes You Might Like:
Spicy Sausage Spanish Rice Skillet
Creamy Sausage Spinach Pasta
Cheesy Skillet Gnocchi
Creamy Spinach and Artichoke Gnocchi
Pizza Pasta Skillet
One Pan Cheesy Sausage Pasta
Creamy Sausage & Artichoke Pasta
Cheesy Skillet Chili Mac
Enchilada Pasta Skillet
Sausage Tortellini Skillet
Mexican Rice Skillet
Homemade Hamburger Helper Lasagna
Kim (Feed Me, Seymour) says
I am all over this pasta! Keilbasa is definitely my most favorite and I only ever really eat it plain but I’m excited to try it like this!
Mhartley says
Does short cut pasta mean pasta that is is small bite sizes or are you referring to easy ” short cut” pasta…..like oven ready pasta? Sounds like a silly ? But….hey 🙂
Erin S says
Short Cut means small – so like rotini, penne, bowtie – anything that is more bite sized. Not spaghetti. Enjoy!
Carol at Wild Goose Tea says
This quick meal or something similar to it is ALWAYS a lick the pan event in my family.
Which of course makes the good feel good. Happy Holidays!!!!
Amy @Very Culinary says
Love those. Pinned and printed!
Dawn says
Why do we boil milk? It circled, looked disgusting but I guess it tasted ok.
Erin S says
Dawn – the milk is what makes it creamy. Tons of recipes call for adding milk and other liquid together and boiling and/or simmering it until cooked. It should not have curdled though. Even box mix Hamburger Helper calls for milk, so I am not sure what happened.
Rachel says
Milk curdled in mine too. Not sure if it was because I used 1% milk, put it on a burner that stays super hot even on warm, or a combination of both. Despite that, it still tasted great and was really good as leftovers as well. Thanks!
Theresa says
The milk curdled in mine too. My suggestion would be to not add the milk until the pasta is done cooking. When the pasta is tender, turn the heat on low, then add the milk and then the cheese.
Erin S says
I have made this monthly for at least the last 18 months, and have never had the milk curdle. I even did it live on a video, and the milk was fine. Do you slowly heat the milk? I add cold milk to the pan, so the pan cools quickly, and then comes up to a boil. This slow process has never caused me a problem. You could use water or stock in place of the milk, but the liquid is how the pasta cooks, so you can’t add it at the end. You could use a little less water, and add a tiny bit of cream with the cheese to make it creamier if you wanted.
Jessica says
Mine curdled too….did not look appetizing. Should still taste ok I hope.
tammy says
Do you think I could use almond milk in place of regular milk?
Erin S says
Definitely. There is a chance it would give it a slightly different flavor, but there is no reason I can think of that it will not work. Enjoy!
Ina says
Do you cook the pasta before adding it to the pot or should the pasta be uncooked?
Erin S says
It is uncooked Ina, that is why you add all the liquid to the pan. It all cooks together.
Denise says
Thanks for this great recipe – my family loves it. Sometimes, to get in more veggies I will put in fresh spinach or kale at the end and cook it enough so that it will wilt. Other times, I will heat a bag of frozen peas in the microwave and then mixed them in at the end.
Erin S says
Great way to get veggies in your family- glad you everyone enjoys it!
Andra M says
We love this recipe and have tried it several times now! Ours “curdles” also, but once the cheese is mixed in, everything comes together nicely. Thank you!
Ken Reiplinger says
Being new to cooking I use Pinterest to find new recipes and go straight to the recipes themselves. Having printed off the one for Sausage Pasta Skillet I found myself with a dilemma. When you say 3 cups short cut pasta is that dry or wet, and is that literally 3 cups measured? And staying with the pasta do you cook it before putting it in the skillet with the other ingredients? Thanks.
Erin S says
Ken, the pasta is dry. It cooks in the pan with the liquid – that is why it is a one pan meal. You do use a measuring cup and measure 3 cups of pasta straight from the box. It is really close to a 12 oz box of pasta.