Double Down on Tomato Flavor in This Rich and Creamy Vodka Sauce (2024)

Why It Works

Using a hefty dose of tomato paste gives the sauce the deeply sweet base notes it needs, while a small can of tomatoes adds a brighter layer of flavor.
Very gently cooking the onions and garlic in butter makes them very sweet and mild, without any harsh onion flavor remaining in the final sauce.
Adding the vodka to the sauce when there are only a handful of minutes left of cooking time ensures the sauce is neither overly boozy nor absent of the flavor-enhancing effects of the vodka.

A staple of Italian-American red-sauce restaurants across the United States since the 1980s, vodka sauce has a history as opaque as its densely creamy orange hue. Was it a famous Italian actor who invented it? A '70s restaurant in Bologna? A Columbia University student? Or did it come from Russia? Meh, as much as I love delving into the history of famous dishes, I can live with this mystery remaining unsolved.

Double Down on Tomato Flavor in This Rich and Creamy Vodka Sauce (1)

The Importance of Vodka in Penne alla Vodka

What's cool about vodka sauce isn't who came up with it, but rather how delicious it is. And yes, the vodka really does matter here. We know, because we've done the tests before. Several years ago, Kenji delved into the matter of whether vodka sauce really needed the vodka, and the answer was an unequivocal yes (though the sauce is delicious without it, too).

In a series of blind tastings, Kenji found that the hit of neutral booze enhanced the fruity aroma of the sauce while bringing a background heat and sharpness that balanced out the richness of the sauce.

He also zeroed in on what he found to be the ideal amount of vodka—about one-quarter cup per quart of sauce, simmered for about seven minutes before serving. My testing aligned with his, and so that's what this recipe calls for (to get the timing right, the vodka is added about a minute before the pasta is combined with the sauce, and then it's all cooked together for another few minutes; by the time cheese is stirred in and the pasta is finished, you'll be pretty close to the seven-minute mark).

That said, personal tastes vary, so if you want a boozier sauce, you can always add a little splash of vodka right before serving to bring the alcohol to the forefront.

The Winning Combination of Tomatoes

What else makes this sauce great? Well, if you look at enough vodka sauce recipes out there, you'll find that some of them use a very large volume of tomato paste as the only tomato element in the sauce, while others go for canned tomatoes (sometimes with a couple tablespoons of tomato paste added for depth).

I tested both methods and liked aspects of each. A tomato paste–heavy vodka sauce has wonderful fruity depth that, to me, gives the sauce part of its signature flavor. But even a full tube of paste combined with a whole lot of cream can't quite make enough sauce for four servings, and leaves the onion flavor too dominant. Canned tomatoes, on the other hand, provide a brighter, fruitier tomato character, but none of that tomato paste depth; a couple tablespoons of paste aren't enough to compensate for that.

My solution: Use both an entire tube (or can) or tomato paste, plus a small can of whole peeled tomatoes. Combined, they yield a sauce that's nuanced and layered, with richness, depth, and brightness. It's a winner.

As for the pasta? Most recipes call for penne, and it's an option here, but at Serious Eats we love this sauce even more with rigatoni.

April 2020

Recipe Details

Penne alla Vodka Recipe

Cook65 mins

Active40 mins

Total65 mins

Serves4 servings

Ingredients

3 tablespoons (45g) unsalted butter
1 medium (8-ounce; 225g) yellow onion, diced
3 medium cloves garlic, thinly sliced
Pinch red pepper flakes
See Also
Pink Sauce Pasta
Kosher salt
One 4 1/2-ounce (130g) tube concentrated tomato paste or 6-ounce (170g) can tomato paste
One 14 1/2-ounce (411g) can whole peeled tomatoes
1 cup (240ml) heavy cream
1 pound (450g) short tubular pasta, such as rigatoni or penne
1/4 cup (60ml) vodka, plus more if desired
2 ounces (55g) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving

Directions

In a large (3- or 4-quart) saucepan or small Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, and red pepper flakes, season lightly with salt, and cook, stirring frequently, until onions are very soft but not browned, about 15 minutes; lower heat if needed to prevent browning.
Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, until tomato paste is fragrant and thick, about 3 minutes. Stir in canned tomatoes with their liquid. Bring to a simmer, then cook, stirring often and crushing the whole tomatoes roughly with a spoon, until sauce has thickened slightly, about 10 minutes.
Add cream, and stir to incorporate. Transfer sauce to a blender, and blend until very smooth (you may be able to make an immersion blender work, but in our tests the sauce level was too low to safely avoid splattering). Wipe out pot, then return blended sauce to it. Season lightly with salt.
In a medium pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta until just shy of al dente, about 3 minutes less than the package directs. About 1 minute before you transfer pasta to sauce, add vodka to tomato sauce and bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat.
Using a spider skimmer or slotted spoon, transfer pasta directly to sauce pot along with 1/2 cup (120ml) pasta water (alternatively, reserve 2 cups pasta water, then drain pasta in a colander, then add to sauce with 1/2 cup of the reserved water). Increase heat to high, and cook, stirring constantly, until pasta is well coated in sauce and reaches the al dente stage, about 3 minutes. If sauce thickens too much before pasta is ready, add more pasta water in 1/4 cup (60ml) increments as needed. [Shown here with one serving size.]
Remove from heat and stir in cheese until thoroughly incorporated into a smooth and creamy sauce. Taste for salt, and season with more if needed. If you can't detect the vodka at all, you can add a few drops more and stir it in before serving; exactly how boozy you want the sauce is a question of taste, but be careful because a heavy hand will ruin the dish. Spoon pasta and sauce onto warmed serving plates and top with additional grated cheese. Serve immediately.

Special Equipment

3-quart saucier or saucepan or 5-quart Dutch oven, blender, spider skimmer or slotted spoon or colander

Make-Ahead and Storage

The vodka sauce can be made ahead through Step 3 (blending). Keep refrigerated in an airtight container up to 5 days. To use, reheat sauce in a pot, then resume recipe instructions with Step 4.

The Serious Eats Guide to Vodka
Chicken and Penne in Vodka Cream Sauce Recipe
Penne With Hot-as-You-Dare Arrabbiata Sauce Recipe

Pastas
Italian-American
Stovetop Pasta
Creamy Pastas
Tomato Sauces

Double Down on Tomato Flavor in This Rich and Creamy Vodka Sauce (2024)

FAQs

What does tomato vodka cream sauce taste like? ›

What Does Vodka Sauce Taste Like? Despite the name, Forest Park diners won't taste any alcohol harshness or get a buzz with our vodka sauce. During the cooking process, the alcohol evaporates, leaving behind a hint of tanginess that enhances the brightness of the tomatoes and peppers.

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What does vodka do to tomato sauce? ›

In a vodka sauce, the vodka helps maintain a cohesive texture, allowing the creaminess to meld with the tomato base. And sure, you could use wine to the same effect, but in a sauce as rich as vodka sauce, it's better to use a small amount of alcohol that will impart as little of its own flavor as possible.

Read On ›

What's the difference between vodka sauce and regular tomato sauce? ›

Vodka sauce is a mouth-watering tomato-based sauce that features the use of heavy cream, living somewhere between an Alfredo sauce and tomato-based sauce. Vodka sauce recipes will vary, but the most common ingredients include tomatoes, heavy cream, parmesan cheese, fresh herbs, and a splash of vodka.

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Does vodka sauce make you drunk? ›

No, you can't get drunk off vodka sauce

As the sauce simmers, some of the alcohol in the spirit evaporates, according to Popsugar. The longer the sauce cooks, the more alcohol will burn off. A well-cooked vodka sauce is safe for even children to eat — that's how negligible the alcohol content ends up being.

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Is vodka sauce healthier than marinara? ›

Since vodka sauce is made with cream (which is high in fat), it can help you reap more of the tomatoes' health benefits. But that's not the only reason for including cream. Many marinara sauces contain added sugar to helps balance the tomatoes' acidity.

Is creamy vodka sauce good? ›

I'm a chef and I love vodka sauce's luxurious blend of tomato, heavy cream, and, yes, vodka. Put simply, the vodka helps the tomato and heavy cream bind or emulsify. In other words, it keeps the ingredients all evenly incorporated into each other — and adds a kick to the sauce.

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Is vodka sauce unhealthy? ›

"Bertolli Vodka Sauce is one of the worst sauces because of the high fat and sodium content," says Jessie Carpenter, MA, MS, RD, LD, owner of Nutrition Prescription LLC. At 610 milligrams of sodium, just half a cup of sauce has 25% of the recommended DV.

Learn More Now ›

Is vodka sauce just alfredo and marinara? ›

Is vodka sauce a mix of marinara sauce and alfredo? No. Alfredo sauce mixed with marinara sauce is known as pink sauce. While pink sauce and vodka sauce are both types of tomato sauce, they are not the same thing.

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Do you really need vodka for vodka sauce? ›

Is it absolutely necessary? No, but vodka sauce just wouldn't be, well, vodka sauce without it. To get a vodka sauce with a 2% ABV before simmering, you'll need to add 5% of the volume of the sauce in 80-proof vodka.

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Can kids eat vodka sauce? ›

The general consensus was that a vodka pasta sauce should be safe for children, if cooked thoroughly. "Traditional vodka sauce uses such a small amount of alcohol that it should evaporate out during cooking," Dr. Rachel Prete, pediatrician with Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, told POPSUGAR.

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Can an alcoholic eat pasta with vodka sauce? ›

The science is unmistakable: alcohol is still present in food after preparation and cooking. Even after long periods of heating, trace amounts of alcohol remain, which could adversely affect a recovering alcoholic.

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Will vodka sauce show up on a breathalyzer? ›

While the amounts of alcohol in these foods, drinks, or medications are not enough to impair your driving, the alcohol content can be high enough to cause a test failure. These can include: Rum cake. Pasta with vodka sauce.

How would you describe vodka sauce? ›

If you're a fan of Italian food, you've likely come across vodka sauce at some point. This sauce is a staple of Italian American cuisine and is known for its rich and creamy flavor and signature red-pink or rust-colored hue.

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What is vodka sauce similar to? ›

Traditional vodka sauce is a little heavier than a traditional tomato sauce, but lighter than an alfredo sauce, it is similar to a Blush Sauce with a couple of differences.