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–+ servings
A close-up of a bowl filled with One Pot Creamy Tomato Pasta, topped with grated Parmesan and fresh parsley.

One Pot Creamy Tomato Pasta

This recipe provides a quick, satisfying meal using a single pot for easy cleanup. It combines ground beef, tomato, herbs, and cream into a rich sauce cooked with short pasta.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 5 people
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Calories: 610
Ingredients Equipment Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1.5 tbsp Olive oil
  • 2 Garlic cloves, finely minced
  • 1 Onion, finely chopped
  • 500 g Beef mince / ground beef
  • 2 tsp Italian herbs Use a store bought mix or dried oregano, parsley, basil.
  • 2 tbsp Tomato paste
  • 400 g Crushed tomatoes (or tomato passata)
  • 0.5 tsp Red pepper flakes (chilli flakes) Optional
  • 1.5 tsp Cooking salt/kosher salt
  • 0.5 tsp Black pepper
  • 4 cups Chicken stock/broth, low sodium Or use water with stock powder.
  • 350 g Fusilli, penne, elbow macaroni or other short pasta Do not use tiny pasta like risoni/orzo.
  • 0.75 cups Thickened / heavy cream
For Serving
  • To taste Parmesan cheese, finely grated
  • To taste Parsley, finely chopped Optional

Equipment

  • Large heavy-based pot

Method
 

  1. Heat the oil on high heat in a large heavy-based pot. Cook garlic and onion for 1 1/2 minutes.
  2. Add beef and cook, breaking it up as you go, until you can no longer see red meat. Add the Italian herbs and cook for 30 seconds, then add tomato paste and cook for 1 minute to cook out the raw flavor.
  3. Add crushed tomato, chicken stock, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes, if using. Stir, then add the pasta.
  4. Bring the liquid to a simmer, then cook for 15 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes then more frequently towards the end until the pasta is just about cooked. Check that the pasta does not stick to the base.
  5. Add cream, then simmer for a further 1 to 2 minutes. The sauce will still look quite liquid; this is correct as the pasta absorbs liquid quickly.
  6. Remove the pot from the stove. Stir well, then ladle into bowls. Serve with grated parmesan and chopped parsley, if desired.

Nutrition

Calories: 610kcalCarbohydrates: 64gProtein: 35gFat: 24gSaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 97mgSodium: 988mgPotassium: 1013mgFiber: 5gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 868IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 105mgIron: 5mg

Notes

Leftovers keep for 3 days in the refrigerator. This recipe is not suitable for freezing.

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