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Cheesy Rigatoni With Sausage and Mushrooms Recipe

This cheesy rigatoni with sausage and mushrooms recipe comes together quickly for a warm and hearty meal that tastes like it took all day to make.

No matter the time of year, pasta has always been one of my favorite dinners. It usually comes together pretty quickly and is something pretty much everyone loves with its hearty comfort without being overly expensive.

While I do enjoy making my own homemade sauce to use with pasta, I have to also be real and say it's just not always possible nor practical to make with each pasta dinner.

Cheesy Rigatoni With Sausage and Mushrooms Recipe

Thankfully, these days there are a variety of store bought jarred pasta sauces that taste great without being super expensive.

I used Ragu's Thick & Hearty Roasted Garlic flavor for this recipe though I'm sure it would taste great with whatever your favorite sauce is.

I also like to pair pasta with some veggies, a lot of meaty goodness, and you can't forget plenty of cheese. I like using rigatoni because it's great for letting the sauce fill the pasta for that nice burst of flavor when you take a bite.

Cheesy Rigatoni With Sausage and Mushrooms Recipe

I also added Italian sausage, both hot and mild, for a nice meaty flavor bump. I also added mushrooms for a bit deeper flavor and because, well, mushrooms are awesome.

I then topped it with some nice scoops of super creamy ricotta and a healthy dusting of Italian cheese blend. The ricotta gets all melty and starts seeping down into the pasta for extra goodness.

After this rigatoni dish came out of the oven I topped it with some fresh basil. I even cooked everything, aside from the pasta, in the same cast-iron skillet for easy cleanup.

Eaten by itself, this cheesy rigatoni with sausage and mushrooms recipe is hearty and filling, but is also great with a side salad and/or garlic bread. We like it so much I always make a double batch so we have plenty of leftovers for lunch the rest of the week. Here's how I put it together.

Cheesy Rigatoni With Sausage and Mushrooms Recipe
Cheesy Rigatoni With Sausage and Mushrooms Recipe

Cheesy Rigatoni With Sausage and Mushrooms Recipe

Yield: 6-8 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

This cheesy rigatoni with sausage and mushrooms recipe comes together quickly for a warm and hearty meal that tastes like it took all day to make.

Ingredients

  • Olive oil
  • 1 pound of hot or mild Italian sausage, ground or links
  • 8 oz white mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
  • 1 cup chopped white or yellow onion
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 2 jars spagetti sauce (garlic flavor preferred), or about 48 ounces 
  • 1 1-pound box rigatoni
  • 8 oz ricotta cheese (I used whole milk based but you can use whatever % you like)         
  • 1 cup Italian cheese blend

Instructions

  1. Place a large skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat and add just enough olive oil to cover the bottom, about 1 tablespoon.
  2. Add Italian sausage. If using links, lightly brown on all sides. Sausage does not need to be cooked through yet. Once browned or lightly cooked, remove from pan and set aside.
  3. In remaining pan drippings, add mushrooms and cook for 2 - 3 minutes until lightly browned.
  4. In the meantime, start boiling water in a large pot for cooking pasta and preheat the oven to 350F.
  5. Add onion and garlic to the mushrooms and cook until onions soften. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
  6. Turn the heat down to low and add sausage back (slicing links into bite-sized pieces first) to the pan with onions and mushrooms. Pour in one and a half jars of sauce, reserving the rest to see if you want to add it later. Let simmer while pasta cooks.
  7. When the water is boiling, add a large pinch of salt and the pasta. Stir and cook 2 minutes less than the box states since it'll finish cooking in the oven, usually around 8 minutes.
  8. Thoroughly drain the pasta and add to the sauce. You can do this in the same pan you cooked everything in or in a baking dish. Add any extra sauce if needed.
  9. Place large spoonfuls of ricotta on top of the pasta and sauce. You can season the ricotta with salt and pepper and herbs, if desired.
  10. Sprinkle the Italian cheese blend on top.
  11. Place into the preheated oven with the rack in the middle for about 20 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted.
  12. Let sit for at least 5 - 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

You can also add spinach or kale to the sauce if desired. Leftovers can be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or oven. I recommend covering if reheating in the oven so it doesn't get too brown.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 509Total Fat: 27gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 58mgSodium: 1364mgCarbohydrates: 41gFiber: 6gSugar: 13gProtein: 24g

Nutrition information may not be accurate. Optional garnishes and toppings aren't included. Nutrition information is calculated automatically by and provided by Nutritionix. Exact nutrition information depends on the specific ingredients, brands, and amounts you use.

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