Done in under 30 minutes this flavor packed Pink Pasta Sauce with bacon is the best tomato cream sauce there is. Made from common ingredients such as fresh tomatoes, heavy cream, and white wine this creamy Pasta with Rose Sauce is similar to a vodka pasta.
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To be honest, this Pink Sauce Pasta recipe is a shameless rip on a vodka pasta. I just really wanted to make a vodka pasta one day but didn't have any vodka, so I went for white wine instead. Added some bacon and then I had my new favorite pasta dish: my version of a Pasta Pink Sauce
A creamy pasta with rose sauce I've since made over and over, and over, again. Let's just say, I'm pretty sure you're going to love this Pink Pasta Sauce with bacon.
Why you will love this Pasta Pink Sauce
- It's quick and all done in under 30 minutes
- It's easy to make with a super simple recipe
- Perfect for busy weeknights
- Flavor packed and sure to have you coming back for seconds
- Acidic tomato flavors pair great with salty bacon and a creamy sauce
- A light spicy kick (optional)
- Leftovers are great reheated the next day
What you need to make Pink Pasta Sauce with bacon
Ingredient notes & substitutions
- Penne pasta can be swapped for rigatoni or fusilli or another kind of pasta entirely like spaghetti or tagliatelle
- Chili flakes (red pepper flakes): adjust the amount depending on how spicy you like it, and how spicy your chili flakes are. Mine are pretty spicy and the amount here gives the sauce just a small kick of spice. You can also skip them.
- Tomatoes should be ripe - rather over ripe than under
- Fresh parsley can be switched for frozen parsley, or fresh or dried basil. It can also be omitted.
- Shallots can be swapped for red or yellow onion - use one small to medium size onion in place of 3 shallots
- Top with cheese for an even more indulgent experience: I like half a ball of mozzarella, or shredded pecorino or parmesan cheese
How to make Pasta with Rose Sauce
- Place chopped bacon in a cold skillet, and set it over medium-high heat
- Cook until bacon is crispy - this will take about 7-8 minutes
- Add shallots and garlic and cook for 2 minutes until the shallots have softened
- Push the bacon, shallots & garlic to one side and add tomato paste and chili flakes on the other side. Fry the tomato paste and chili flakes for 1 minute, then mix it in with the rest.
- Add chopped tomatoes and white wine
- Cook for 1 minute
- Add cream and stir
- Simmer for 5 minutes
- Add chopped parsley
- Add cooked pasta (it should be very al dente) and pasta cooking water
- Mix well, then taste test and season with salt & ground black pepper as needed
- Simmer for 1 minute, then serve on its own or with a side of garlic bread
Tips & tricks
- Place the bacon in a cold pan to allow for as much fat as possible to release. This means crispier bacon, and no need for adding olive oil or butter.
- Fry the tomato paste before mixing with the rest, for a deeper flavor
- Undercook the pasta - it will finish cooking with the sauce
- Don't add salt until after the pasta & pasta water - the pasta water should be really salty, so taste test first to see if you really need more salt
- Make it gluten free by using gluten free pasta
- Store leftover pasta with rose sauce in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days
- Freeze leftovers to keep them for longer
- Reheat leftovers on the stove in a pot over low heat until warmed through
- Reheat leftovers in the microwave in 1 minute increments
Recipe FAQ
Pink pasta sauce or Rose Pasta Sauce is basically any sauce that's a mix of white sauce (cream sauce or Alfredo sauce) and red sauce (tomato sauce / marinara sauce). A classic Italian pink sauce is Parma Rosa Sauce.
It's got the taste from the tomato sauce with the creaminess from the cream, which makes it well balanced and not too heavy. It ends up being this perfectly creamy tomato sauce.
While some pink sauces are actually pink, most versions are more orange (like this one!). This depends on the tomatoes you use and if you use fresh tomatoes or tomato puree.
Vodka sauce is a type of pink sauce that is made with vodka.
There are many names for a pink pasta sauce like this one. Some examples are:
Pink Sauce
Vodka Sauce
Pink Marinara Sauce
Sugo Rosa
Parma Rosa Sauce
Rosé Sauce
Rose Sauce
Salsa Rosada
Pasta Pink Sauce
Generally, you can swap milk for cream in a pasta sauce. It will be a bit less full and not as creamy, but it's a good option if you don't have cream or don't want to use it.
However, for a sauce with an acidic component - like the tomatoes in this recipe - milk may curdle if added to the sauce, which is why I recommend using heavy whipping cream.
If you still want to try, use whole milk and first add some of the sauce to the milk, mix well, and then add this to the sauce while simmering over medium heat.
More quick pasta recipes
Looking for more quick & easy pasta recipes, like this Pasta with Pink Sauce?
- Salmon Crème Fraîche Pasta
- Buffalo Chicken Pasta
- Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken Pasta
- Chicken Broccoli Pasta Bake
- Creamy Red Wine Pasta Sauce with Chicken & Mushrooms
Did you love this recipe? Rate it five stars!
...and let me know what you loved about it in the comments.
Recipe
Pink Pasta Sauce with Bacon
Print RateIngredients
- 3 cups dry penne pasta cooked 1 minute less than package instruction
- ½ lb bacon chopped
- 3 shallots chopped small
- 1 garlic clove chopped small
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- ½ teaspoon chili flakes or more or less according to taste and type of chili flakes
- 3 tomatoes seeds removed then chopped
- ¾ cup dry white wine
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ cup chopped parsley
- 1 cup pasta cooking water
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt or according to taste
Instructions
- Place bacon in a cold skillet and set it over medium-high heat. Cook for 7-8 minutes, until bacon is crispy. Meanwhile, get the pasta water cooking in a large pot.½ lb bacon
- Add shallots and garlic and cook for 2 minutes, until shallots have softened. Meanwhile, salt the pasta water heavily and pour in the dry pasta.3 cups dry penne pasta, 3 shallots, 1 garlic clove
- Push the bacon, shallots and garlic to one side of the pan and add tomato paste and chili flakes on the other side. Fry the tomato paste and chili flakes for 1 minute, then mix in with the rest.2 tablespoon tomato paste, ½ teaspoon chili flakes
- Add the tomatoes and white wine. Cook for 1 minute to allow some of the alcohol to cook off.3 tomatoes, ¾ cup dry white wine
- Add cream, bring to a simmer, then lower the heat to keep that simmer and cook for 5 minutes.1 cup heavy cream
- Mix in chopped parsley.½ cup chopped parsley
- Drain the pasta and reserve 1 cup of cooking water.
- Mix in pasta and pasta cooking water with the sauce. Taste test and season with salt and pepper as needed.3 cups dry penne pasta, 1 cup pasta cooking water, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Simmer for 1 minute, then serve.
Equipment (may contain affiliate links)
- Measuring cups (metric or US)*
Video
Notes
Ingredient notes & substitutions
- Penne pasta can be swapped for rigatoni or fusilli or another kind of pasta
- Chili flakes (red pepper flakes): adjust the amount depending on how spicy you like it, and how spicy your chili flakes are. Mine are pretty spicy and the amount here gives the sauce just a small kick of spice. You can also skip them.
- Tomatoes should be ripe - rather over ripe than under
- Fresh parsley can be switched for frozen parsley, or fresh or dried basil. It can also be omitted.
- Shallots can be swapped for red or yellow onion - use one small to medium size onion in place of 3 shallots
- Top with cheese for an even more indulgent experience: I like half a ball of mozzarella, shredded pecorino or parmesan cheese
Tips & tricks
- Place the bacon in a cold pan to allow for as much fat as possible to release. This means crispier bacon, and no need for adding olive oil or butter.
- Fry the tomato paste before mixing with the rest, for a deeper flavor
- Undercook the pasta - it will finish cooking with the sauce
- Don't add salt until after the pasta & pasta water - the pasta water should be really salty, so taste test first to see if you really need more salt
- Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days
- Freeze leftovers to keep them for longer
- Reheat leftovers on the stove in a pot over low heat until warmed through
- Reheat leftovers in the microwave in 1 minute increments
Nutrition
Nutritional information is approximate and automatically calculated, and should only be viewed as an indication.
Kevin ORourke
Good base to start a great dinner. I used yellow onions, red pepper, mushrooms sauteed with pancetta, red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, oregano, dried basil. Added the garlic for a few minutes, sautéed the tomato paste, added chianti, and better than bouillon beef base Let simmer, while cooking pasta, added the pasta aldente and the pasta water as needed, let simmer, add the freshly grated parm and you have an amazing dinner. Not trying to take away from the original post.
Anon
Does it matter what type of tomatoes to use? What do you recommend?
Emmeline Kemperyd
Hi, I'd say the better quality tomatoes the better the sauce, if you can get them sun ripened just off the vine that will be the absolute best. However, I often make it with super boring tomatoes in Sweden during the winter and it's still tasty! /Emmeline
L.
I've never rated or commented on a recipe before but this is so good I have to tell the world, haha. I did the basil-for-parsley and red-onion-for-shallot substitutions, pinot grigio for the wine, shredded parmesan on top. My one issue is it took more like 40-50 min start to finish, well worth it though.
Emmeline Kemperyd
That sounds delicious! Happy you enjoyed it. Where there any particular steps you found to take a lot of time? /Emmeline