This creamy Harissa pasta is a super quick, one-skillet meal. Harissa paste, nondairy cream, and just a few herbs combine to make a flavorful vegan dinner in just 1 Pan. Soyfree. Options for nutfree glutenfree.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 10 minutes
  • Cook time: 30 minutes
  • Total time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 3
  • Category: dinner, Main, Main Course, Pasta
  • Cuisine: fusion

Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons oil
  • 4 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 4 ounces thinly sliced mushrooms
  • 3 tablespoons harissa paste
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 1/2 red bell pepper (sliced)
  • 2.5 cups water or stock
  • 6 ounces spaghetti (or other pasta of choice)
  • 1/2 teaspoon or more salt

To add later:

  • 1/2 cup cashew cream or tofu cream ((1/3 cup of cashews blended with 1/2 cup of water OR 1/2 cup silken tofu blended with 2 tbsp water))
  • 3 tablespoons vegan parmesan

For garnish:

  • chopped parsley, vegan parmesan

Method

  1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Once the oil is hot add the garlic, onion, and a good pinch of salt. Cook until the onion is translucent.
  2. Then mix in the mushrooms and harissa paste and cook until the mushrooms are just about cooked. You can reserve some of the mushrooms for garnish at this point or continue with the next step.
  3. Mix in all of the herbs and nutritional yeast. Then add in the bell pepper, water or stock and salt.
  4. Let the liquid get boiling hot, then add the spaghetti and press it into the liquid. Cover with the lid and continue to cook for about 11 to 16 minutes, depending on your stove and the skillet and the spaghetti. Check after 10 minutes and stir really well so that noodles don't stick to each other. If you need more water, you can add some hot water at this point.
  5. When the spaghetti is cooked to preference, add in the nondairy cream along with the vegan parmesan. Once the sauce is boiling, switch off the heat.
  6. Taste carefully and adjust salt and flavor, then serve it in bowls topped with some more vegan parmesan and a sprinkle of fresh parsley. If you have reserved some of the mushrooms, add those now, as well.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.