This delicious Sour Cream Tomato Sauce Pasta tastes amazing - and it's amazingly simple to make!! What makes it amazing is that the tomatoes, which are still slightly chunky become this thick, creamy, smooth, velvety, and flavorful sauce. The combination of the San Marzano tomatoes and sour cream takes a simple red sauce to a perfect pink heavenly cream sauce!
Course Main Course, pasta
Cuisine Italian
Keyword pasta, sour cream, tomato sauce
Prep Time 10 minutesminutes
Cook Time 15 minutesminutes
Total Time 25 minutesminutes
Servings 4people
Calories 430kcal
Author Carrie Tyler
Ingredients
28ouncesSan Marzano Tomatoes, whole peeled(1 can)
1cloveGarlic
1teaspoonExtra Virgin Olive Oil
½cupSour Cream
1teaspoonVegetable Base
1tablespoonCornstarch
3tablespoonsbasil, finely sliced
1teaspoonSalt
1teaspoonFresh Ground Pepper
16ouncesuncooked Fusilli pasta(or any short cut pasta)
Instructions
Prep Ahead Steps
Mince 1 garlic clove and store in a small container or storage bag
Open the can of San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes and crush the tomatoes with your fingers into a storage container or bag. Pour in the remaining sauce from the can and store crushed tomatoes and sauce in the fridge
Into a small bowl, add the sour cream, the Vegetable Base, and cornstarch and mix to combine. Seal the bowl with plastic wrap or cover with lid and store in the fridge.
Place the 5 prepped ingredients on a pan in the fridge to create your Kit: garlic, tomatoes, sour cream mixture, and pasta.
Cooking Steps
Cook the pasta to al dente according to package directions.
Add the garlic to a preheated large skillet with a teaspoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Saute the garlic for 2 minutes on medium to low heat stirring it around so it doesn't burn.
Next add the tomatoes and the tomato sauce that you have crushed. If you haven't crushed them yet, do so right as you add them to the pan! Stir with the garlic and cook on medium-low heat for 5 minutes.
Slowly whisk in the sour cream mixture to the tomatoes in the skillet. Cook for another 5 minutes until the sauce thickens and starts to bubble (lightly cover with aluminum foil if it starts to splatter). Add salt and pepper, mix, then add more if needed to taste.
Stir in the basil, leaving a little for garnish. If you cooked the pasta ahead of time and it is cold, put it in a strainer and run warm water over it to soften and separate it. Stir the cooked pasta into the tomato sauce.
Serve in a bowl or plate and garnish with basil and grated parmesan cheese (if you like). Enjoy!
Notes
What Pasta is best to use for this recipe? I love a short cut pasta with places for the sauce to creep into, like a fusilli, rotini, campanelle, penne, farfalle, or even elbow. Of course, if you only have long pasta on hand, like spaghetti or linguine, any pasta will work! You can use either dry or fresh pasta, but I find that if you are making this ahead and reheating it, then a dry short cut will hold up best during the reheating.
What protein is best to add to this? You could cut chicken breast into bite-size cubes and cook it in the pan and then transfer it to a plate before making the sauce. Then add the chicken bak into the sauce at the end. You could do the same method with shrimp. You could also use a chickpea-based pasta in this, which will give you lots of protein!
Can I freeze this sauce? If you want to make this ahead and freeze, my recommendation is to leave the sour cream out until you thaw the sauce and reheat it. When you reheat it, do so in a skillet over medium heat. While the sauce is reheating, follow Step 3 in the Prep Ahead Steps and then Steps 3-5 in the Cooking Steps.