When you want a healthy & quick dinner this easy roasted red pepper & chickpea pasta is the perfect choice. A deliciously creamy sauce flavoured with tahini.

Easy Roasted Red Pepper & Chickpea Pasta with Tahini

Name: Easy Roasted Red Pepper & Chickpea Pasta with Tahini
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 12 min
Yield: 5-6
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 500g (17 1/2 oz) pasta; 320g (11 oz) roasted red peppers (480g / 17 oz jar drained), don't worry if your jar is a little less of more, this recipe is forgiving; 280g (10 oz) cooked chickpeas (soaked and cooked dried beans or chickpeas from a jar, tin or carton); 1 clove garlic; 3 tablespoons tahini; 2 tablespoons tomato puree; 1 teaspoon dried oregano; 1 pinch salt & black pepper; 125ml (1/2 cup) pasta water, more if you like, to thin the sauce and give it a silky finish

I have an exceptional homemade pasta sauce for you to try.

This easy roasted red pepper and chickpea pasta is quick to make, delicious, and a healthy option for a quick dinner.

It contains vegetables (the peppers are a fruit, but classed as veg in cooking), pulses and seeds, covering all the bases.

There's also no oil added to the sauce, just the oils naturally found in the tahini which is made from sesame seeds.

Why is this pasta sauce so good?

Here are a few reasons why you should add this pasta dish to your meal plan.

It's a healthy option
Very quick to make - sauce is made while the pasta cooks
An easy recipe - and there's no chopping
It tastes amazing
The sauce works with lots of pasta shapes - from spaghetti to farfalle to spirali, or as my husband calls it curly wurly pasta
It clings to the pasta
The sauce can be made ahead - chilled or frozen until required
A good way to get veg, pulses and seeds into a child's diet - or the more fussy adults

I do hope I've convinced you.

Healthy Roasted Red Pepper & Chickpea Pasta.

What you need to make roast pepper & chickpea pasta

Here are the simple ingredients you need to make this gorgeous pasta.

Your choice of pasta shape
Roasted red bell peppers - freshly roasted or jarred
Chickpeas (garbanzo beans) - freshly soaked and cooked or bought ready cooked in a jar, tin or carton
Garlic - you can add extra if you like
Tahini paste
Tomato puree (tomato paste)
White wine vinegar - or lemon juice
Oregano
Salt and black pepper

To serve:

Dollops of pesto - thinned with a little olive oil or water
Fresh basil

These are optional but a real flavour boost.

The full ingredient list, method and nutritional values are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of page.

Variations

Here are a few tweaks you can make to this velvety pasta sauce.

Cherry tomatoes - whizzed into the sauce
Dried basil - instead of oregano
Lemon juice - instead of vinegar
Chilli flakes or chilli powder - for a bit of heat
Paprika - for a smoky finish

Do try it the way I make it first, then tweak to suit your tastes.

Jarred roasted red peppers

Freshly roasted peppers are always a thing of beauty, that add so much flavour to so many dishes.

However, the jars of roasted red peppers you will find in any supermarket or grocery store are very handy to have in your pantry, so you can throw together quick meals.

They add so much flavour to pasta dishes, pizza, salads, mezze, sandwiches and wraps.

I always have a couple of jars in the cupboard, just in case.

They are handy for making quick red pepper and olive spaghetti, butternut squash and red pepper soup or in a red pepper and kale wrap.

I use a whole jar of red peppers, drained, for this creamy red pepper pasta sauce.

Lebanese Tahini

I always thought tahini was bitter, but I recently discovered it was the supermarket tahini that I bought that was bitter and it was not how a good tahini should be.

This Lebanese Al Nakhil Tahini is a game-changer.

It's made from 100% sesame seeds and nothing else, it pours beautifully and doesn't thicken as it lies.

A creamy and very tasty tahini sauce with no bitterness at all.

This creamy tahini was recommended to me and I encourage you to get hold of some. It's so good!

I use it in my creamy tahini salad dressing, this Lebanese roast cauliflower bake and when I make hummus, but I've also started adding it to other sauces for a boost of flavour and nutrients.

Pasta water

It's well known that Italians add pasta water to their sauces.

The starch in the water from the pasta can help emulsify a sauce and thicken it, but it can also be used in larger quantities to thin down a sauce and give it a silky consistency.

It's always worth scooping some out near the end of pasta cook time, just in case you need it.

I use it in this red pepper sauce to thin it out, leaving a velvety sauce that clings to the pasta.

If you forget to scoop some pasta water out of the pot and your sauce is too thick, add some regular water to thin it.

Leftover pasta

Leftover pasta can be spooned into an airtight container to cool quickly, then add the lid and pop in the fridge for a couple of days.

You can eat leftovers cold or reheat in the microwave.

If you know you will have leftovers, I recommend leaving some of the pasta in the colander and rinse it with cold water until cold. to remove the starch and stop the pasta cooking.

It will leave you with glossy pasta you can stir cold pasta sauce into for the perfect pasta salad.

Make the sauce ahead

You can also prepare this sauce ahead and chill it in an airtight container until you need it.

It can be kept in the fridge for 3-4 days.

As it's so quick to make, I tend to make it while the pasta cooks.

Can you freeze the sauce?

Yes, you can freeze this chickpea and red pepper sauce.

Spoon it into individual (labelled) freezer tubs or bags and leave to cool, before freezing.

To defrost, leave a potion in the fridge overnight, then reheat.

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How to make Roasted Red Pepper & Chickpea Pasta

A step-by-step photo guide followed by a full printable recipe.

Step 1

Cook the pasta in a large pot of water at a fast boil (make sure it's salted too) according to the packet instructions until al dente (cooked but still a little firm).
While the pasta cooks, add the sauce ingredients (full list below) to a food processor or blender (you could use an electric hand blender and a tall jug, but chop the ingredients first) and blend until smooth.

Step 2

Pour the blended sauce into a large pot and warm through on a low heat.
If you're cooking less pasta (less portions), just heat enough sauce for the pasta you are cooking and chill or freeze the rest of the sauce.

Step 3

Near the end of the pasta cooking, scoop some of the pasta water out of the pot and pour it into the sauce to thin it.
The pasta water will make the sauce silky.

Step 4

Once the pasta is cooked, drain it well.
Pour the pasta into the sauce.

Step 5

Mix the pasta into the sauce until it is really well coated.
Keep scooping the sauce from the bottom of the pan, to make sure it's evenly distributed.

Step 6

Serve immediately, while the pasta is hot.
I like to serve it with small dollops of pesto that's thinned down with olive oil or water.
Fresh basil is good for serving too.
Enjoy!

pasta, red pepper pasta, chickpea pasta, high protein pasta, vegan pasta, quick dairy free pasta, quick pasta,

Dinner

Italian

Yield: 5-6

Author: Jacqueline Meldrum