This light and zesty chicken Sausage Zucchini Pasta is summer in a bowl. I love how easy it is to make – quick for a busy weeknight, but flavorful enough to make on repeat.
A Easy Summer Pasta Dish
This chicken sausage zucchini pasta is one of those throw-it-together meals that tastes way fancier than it should. It’s bright from fresh lemon, cozy from the buttery white wine sauce, and made extra satisfying with golden sautéed onions and tender zucchini.
The ditalini soaks up all the flavor, and the chicken sausage makes it hearty without weighing it down – perfect for a summer pasta.
It’s exactly what you’re looking for, for a quick weeknight dinner, but honestly good enough to serve company with a crisp glass of white wine. Plus, it’s made mostly from fridge and pantry staples—I only had to grab some fresh zucchini and a lemon to bring it all together.
It’s zucchini season! I’ve been leaning into all of my zucchini recipes on the blog. Also try my Turkey Zucchini Boats, Zucchini Enchiladas or Summer Zucchini Corn Chowder!
Recipe Ingredients
- Ditalini Noodles – These are super short tubular shape noodles; however, you can use any pasta shape for this recipe.
- Zucchinis – Use green zucchini from your own garden! Or you can also sub in yellow squash. Use whatever you can find freshest!
- Chicken Sausages – I love these Chicken Sausages from Meijer.
- Sauce – The light, creamy sauce is made with white wine, butter, parmesan, pasta water and a bit of lemon juice to freshen it up.
- Fresh Basil – For topping!
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
Substitutions and Variations
- Sub the savory chicken sausage with hot italian sausage or pork sausages. If you’re not a sausage fan, grilled chicken is a great option, too.
- Add summer corn to this! It’s so flavorful and a nice pairing with the zucchini. Red bell pepper or fresh tomatoes would go well, also.
- Dial up the heat – add some crushed red pepper flakes or spicy balsamic glaze to take this dish up a notch!
How to Make This Recipe
1. Start by cooking the pasta according to box instructions minus 1-2 minutes so it is al dente in a large pot of salted water. When ready to strain, be sure to reserve at least ½ cup of pasta water for later. I like to save it all for that ‘just incase’ moment.
2. Heat a large skillet to medium heat and add oil. Once warm, add diced white onion and pinch of salt. Sauté for 5-7 minutes or until onions become translucent.
3. Slice the sausages into coins and the zucchini half moons to the skillet. Allow chopped zucchini to soften and stir occasionally.
4. Once sausages have caramelized and zucchini is fork tender, deglaze the pan with white wine, scrapping the brown bits from the bottom of the pan (adds flavor!)
5. Turn the heat to low and add the cooked noodles, grated parmesan cheese, and butter.
6. Stir together, adding the lemon juice and salt. Slowly add in pasta water to create a light, warm lemony pasta sauce for the noodles.
7. Garnish with fresh cracked pepper, fresh basil, and more parmesan if desired. Serve warm!
PRO TIPS
- Don’t rinse the pasta! The starch on the surface when it comes out of the boiling water helps sauces cling better, creating a more flavorful, cohesive dish.
Recipe FAQs
Store your Zucchini Sausage Pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To reheat, add a splash of water or broth and warm it on the stovetop or in the microwave until heated through.
Cook it over medium heat and stir occasionally, stopping when it’s just fork-tender so it retains some bite.
No, this isn’t a ‘lemony’ dish per se. The lemon adds brightness without making it sour, especially balanced with the butter and parmesan.
“Al dente” is an Italian phrase meaning “to the tooth.” In cooking, it refers to pasta that is cooked to a firm, slightly resistant texture, rather than being soft and mushy. It is important to cooked pasta al dente in this pasta dish since they get reheated in the skillet again.
Serving suggestions
Love this easy skillet dinner? You might also enjoy my Cheeseburger Skillet—it’s hearty, flavorful, and comes together just as quickly. Or try my low carb Ground Turkey Skillet for a Tex-Mex twist with all your favorite toppings.
More Recipes You’ll Love
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Chicken Sausage Zucchini Pasta
Equipment
- Sauce pot
- large skillet
- knife & cutting board
- measuring cups / spoons
- Rubber Spatula
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry ditalini
- 2 medium zucchinis, sliced into half moons
- 1 white onion, finely diced
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- 4 chicken sausages, 10 oz – fully cooked
- 1/3 cup White wine
- 2 tbsp Butter
- 1/4 cup Pasta water
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 2 Lemons, juiced
- Pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp basil chopped
Instructions
- Start by cooking the pasta according to box instructions minus 1-2 minutes so it is al dente in a large pot of salted water. When ready to strain, be sure to reserve at least ½ cup of pasta water for later.
- Heat a large skillet to medium heat and add oil. Once warm, add diced white onion and pinch of salt. Saute for 5-7 minutes or until onions become translucent.
- Slice the sausages into coins and the zucchini half moons to the skillet. Allow chopped zucchini to soften and stir occasionally.
- Once sausages have caramelized and zucchini is fork tender, deglaze the pan with white wine, scrapping the brown bits from the bottom of the pan (adds flavor!)
- Turn the heat to low and add the cooked noodles, grated parmesan cheese, and butter.
- Stir together, adding the lemon juice and salt. Slowly stir in 1/4 pasta water to create a light, warm lemony pasta sauce for the noodles. Add more pasta water as needed.
- Garnish with fresh cracked pepper, fresh basil, and more parmesan if desired. Serve warm!
Nutrition
Video
Notes
Looking for this in MyFitnessPal?
If you’re using MyFitnessPal, search ‘A Paige Of Positivity’ and find Chicken Sausage Zucchini Pasta calories and nutrition facts. Disclaimer: for most accurate macronutrients and caloric breakdown, it is recommended that you input each ingredient into your MyFitnessPal food diary.
I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below. It’s my passion to create dishes that can be shared with others. Tell me something you loved or just say hi!
I added summer corn to this dish and it was excellent! Easy weeknight dinner recipe idea.
Super great homey meal that’s healthy and makes me feel good
I also added fresh sweetcorn to this and it was fantastic.
zucchini overload this time of year!
So easy to make and so delicious! Quickly added this to the recipes for regular rotation list! Used rigatoni because that’s what we had on hand and thought it worked well! Can’t wait to make this again.