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Creamy, cheesy, oh so easy, this Healthy One Pot Pasta is the ultimate cozy comfort food. It's soft and saucy with great flavors from garlic, cheese, and sautéed veggies. I make this meal nearly every week as part of my meal prep because it's so delicious and simple. And when I say "one pot," I truly mean only one pot required for this pasta!
Everything is made in the one pot and you don't even have to strain the pasta. Now that's convenient for anyone who hates doing dishes as much as I do!
Ingredients for this One Pot Pasta Recipe
These ingredients are simple and convenient, a combination of pantry and fridge products that you may already have! And if you don't, that's okay because this dish is super versatile. Simply make subs for what you do have and go for it!
Ground Chicken or Turkey - I personally love using the brand Mighty Spark Food because they have a seasoned Bruschetta Chicken that is SO good. It knocks the flavor out of the park and it a house favorite here. You can also omit the meat entirely or sub it for an alternative like roasted tofu or tempeh.
Pasta - Any pasta will work here but I love to use Barilla or Banza because they have all kinds of shapes and blends for reasonable prices. I usually use the chickpea pasta if possible.
Pasta Sauce - As long as the jar is 16 oz, use any blend and brand available. I prefer a sauce with great garlic & olive oil flavor but will typically go for whatever is on sale at the store!
Spinach - I love adding a bit of greens to my meals and spinach is so easy to add in. Just give it a quick rinse then toss it in and let wilt. You could also sub for any greens you have in the fridge.
Tomatoes - Either fresh or canned will work for this one pot pasta recipe.
Red Onion - Adds a bit of bite and elevates the flavor of the dish.
Filtered Water - Adds moisture to the meal and helps cook the pasta.
Crumbled Feta - An optional add on but gives such great cheesy, salty flavor. You could sub for any type of cheese, whether regular or dairy free.
Italian Seasoning - Also optional but adds great flavor that pairs so well with the sauce and pasta combination.
How to make this Creamy One Pot Pasta
- Add the 2 tbsp olive oil to a large (4 or 6 quart) sauce pot and turn on the stove to medium/high heat.
- Add a package of ground meat and the minced garlic to the pot once oil is heated.
- While the meat starts to saute, dice the onion, tomatoes, and spinach; add all ingredients to the sauce pot after dicing.
- The meat should cook for 6-10 minutes, until all the crumbles are evenly colored and not pink.
- Once the meat is cooked, pour in one jar of the pasta sauce of your choice. Then fill the almost emptied pasta jar up with ½ cup cold filtered water. Cap the jar and swish it around, allowing all of the sauce to be removed from the sides of the jar. Pour the liquid into the sauce pot.
- Pour a box of noodles into the sauce pot. Using a spatula, stir the dry noodles into the meat sauce mixture.
- Turn the heat down to medium and cover the sauce pot.
- Set a timer for 10-12 minutes, stirring 2-3 times throughout.
- Once the noodles look and taste thoroughly cooked, add in ½ cup of crumbled feta and mix well.
- Serve immediately with fresh basil, additional feta, or plain.
- Store up in the fridge for 5 days.
Healthy One Pot Pasta Subs
As I mentioned before, this healthy one pot pasta dish can be made in 101 different ways depending on what you have available. Whether you're using up pantry ingredients, buying products on sale, or making it as a 'clean out the fridge' meal, make this dish your own!
- To make this extra creamy, try adding a dollop of plain/greek yogurt + a pinch more salt!
- For some crunch, try adding roasted or slivered almonds or maybe even breadcrumbs (?!) on top. Either would add great texture to the creaminess of the pasta.
- Make this a macro friendly meal by using lean ground meat, chickpea pasta, and maybe adding in some extra greens.
- Use a jar sauce of your choice or if you're feeling a bit fancy, make homemade! Sometimes I like to make a special dinner of this by making the sauce homemade. It can be a fun kitchen experiment too.
- Keep this vegan/dairy free by omitting the meat and swapping the crumbled feta for a dairy free cheese alternative.
- Try different vegetables for different textures in this pasta dish. Some favorites of mine are mushrooms, red pepper slices, roasted cauliflower, or chopped broccoli.
Healthy One Pot Pasta
Equipment
- 6 quart sauce pan
- Cutting Board
- Knife
- Meat Chopper
Ingredients
- 16 oz ground chicken or turkey*
- 8 oz dry pasta**, 1 box
- 16 oz pasta sauce, flavor of your choice
- ½ cup spinach, chopped
- ½ cup tomatoes, fresh or canned
- ½ cup red onion
- ½ cup filtered water
- ½ cup crumbled feta
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons italian seasoning, optional
- 1 tsp minced garlic, optional
Instructions
- Add the 2 tbsp olive oil to a large (4 or 6 quart) sauce pot and turn on the stove to medium/high heat.
- Add a package of ground meat and the minced garlic to the pot once oil is heated.
- While the meat starts to saute, dice the onion, tomatoes, and spinach; add all ingredients to the sauce pot after dicing.
- The meat should cook for 6-10 minutes, until all the crumbles are evenly colored and not pink.
- Once the meat is cooked, pour in one jar of the pasta sauce of your choice. Then fill the almost emptied pasta jar up with ½ cup cold filtered water. Cap the jar and swish it around, allowing all of the sauce to be removed from the sides of the jar. Pour the liquid into the sauce pot.
- Pour a box of noodles into the sauce pot. Using a spatula, stir the dry noodles into the meat sauce mixture.
- Turn the heat down to medium and cover the sauce pot.
- Set a timer for 10-12 minutes, stirring 2-3 times throughout.
- Once the noodles look and taste thoroughly cooked, add in ½ cup of crumbled feta and mix well.
- Serve immediately with fresh basil, additional feta, or plain.
- Store up in the fridge for 5 days.
Notes
- I personally love using the brand Mighty Spark Food because they have a seasoned Bruschetta Chicken that is SO good. You can also omit the meat entirely or sub it for an alternative like roasted tofu or tempeh.
- Use any pasta available or for a macro friendly meal, use a chickpea pasta.
- To make this vegan/dairy free, swap tofu or tempeh for meat then omit the cheese or use a vegan alternative.
- You can also swap goat cheese, parmesan, or another cheese that melts well for the feta.
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, something that you think it might need, or just say hi!
This recipe is amazing!!!! Some of my friends and I got to see apaigeofpositvity make this dish on a little college Zoom cooking show a few weeks back. I haven’t been the best with meal prep at school but this made it so easy. I literally have made it 3 or 4 times since the class because of how yummy and easy this recipe is. I am going to make it for my family now that I’m at home! Thank you for this recipe it tastes delicious and I love how versatile it is!
I'll be the first to admit, I am not a pasta girl. However, my mom made this one night for dinner and WOW! So flavorful and pretty cool that you do not have to drain the pasta! We used the mighty spark meat and it was a game changer- will definitely be petitioning my mother to make this again.
Made this tonight for my fam and it was a HUGE hit for everyone (including my two kids who are 5 & 7 - I was bracing for the worst but they loved it!). Will definitely be making again!
SO happy to hear it was kiddo approved - Thanks Michelle 🙂
This was SO easy to make and honestly delicious. I was nervous how it would turn out at first but definitely trusted in the process and it didn’t disappoint! I added feta and parmesan for the cheese and it was the perfect combination. Will definitely be making this again.
Thanks for trying!! I love how you added parmesan too - I think goat cheese would also be delicious!
This was so so so good!!!! The entire fam loved it!!
Makes me so happy to hear!! Thanks Adele - xo!
Absolutely UNREAL!! Made this recipe, and added Kale, Mushrooms, Carrots & Celery for some added veggies and it’s seriously so good. Protein ratio is great and my whole fam loved it! Couldn’t recommend more
I love the variety of vegetables you added in!!! Amazing - thanks for sharing, Brooke 🙂
Can't believe how easily this came together, and in one pot no less!! (hallelujah!!) So delicious, this is for sure going to be become a weeknight staple.
The is by far one of my favorite recipes for winter time!! So much comfort in one pot! LOVE all of your awesome recipes!!
SO good and easy to make!! It’s so creamy and my new go-to pasta dish
Only one word needed... YUM! I rarely ever cook dinner for myself, but this has changed me! So easy yet so yummy. The perfect bite and makes for a great re-heat! 10/10 would recommend!!
Stop reading and get cooking! You will not be disappointed. This one pot pasta is too easy and only one pot to clean. Say less!!!!! Making this pasta on repeat and with the simple recipe that makes swapping ingredients trouble-free I can make so many versions that I never get sick of. Thank you, Courtney!!
Couldn't agree more! Part of my weekly meal prep.
I am OBSESSED with this recipe! I made it a couple weeks ago with just what I had on hand and it was so easy, creamy and heavenly. My boyfriend and I were obsessed. And now I’m making it again this week while in a cut thanks to all of your recommendations on different pasta types, etc. to make it work for what you want/need. I love that I can eat this whenever and that it requires minimal dishwashing at the end. 10/10 🙂
Loved it! So easy and tastes great!
So delicious!!! It made my kitchen smell amazing. It was all so easy to make and I felt so good eating it. Such an amazing comfort food.
I love the comfort it offers!!
I really like that this meal is easy to make with food you probably already have. It’s also yummy and tastes like it requires more effort than it does! I also appreciate that this has a lot of the same ingredients as the Ranch Feta Turkey Burgers also on this blog!! I highly recommend planning both into your weekly meal plans!! Thank you for these great recipes Paige!!
This is the best recipe for any college student. I can pre cut the veggies then just throw it all in a pot and take a shower while I wait for it to cook. This recipe is a weekly staple now and I just use my leftover veggies. Sometimes I use mushrooms and zucchini, but tonight I used red pepper and peas in addition to the veggies in the recipe.
MY NEW FAVORITE RECIPE !! So so sooo easy. So delicious! Loved using the healthy macro friendly options!
I mean.... OK!!! This recipe is bursting with flavor & only one pan?!! say.no.more. Absolutely, delicious & such a crowd favorite. Made this for a bachelor night with my girlfriends & EVERYONE approved (no doubts!) could not recommend more.
This is such a GREAT recipe for weekly meal preps!! Its quick and easy, and SO FLAVORFUL!! I love to sub ground turkey for Italian style turkey sausage and add Parmesan instead of feta! I also love to use this as a basic base for a bunch of different one pot pastas!
We loved this recipe!! It was extremely easy to follow and was DELICIOUS!! My fiancé said it was “the best pasta dish I’ve ever made”!!! You won’t regret making this!
I make this recipe all the time when I am meal prepping at school! My roommates can attest to this being a tasty pasta dish that is quick to make!
I make this dish probably once a week and love how fancy it feels while only taking 20 min!! I don’t eat red meat so love that ground turkey is included! Everyone I have shown this to has also loved it!
DELICIOUS! And so easy. This is our go to meal for when we want to indulge in some pasta, but also want to be macro-friendly. Love that you only need one pot. Genius!
Also this was the meal I was cooking when my husband arrived home and surprised me with a kitten, so if you’ve been wanting a pet, this meal may be your good luck charm!
YUM!!! Such a great recipe! My husband I both loved it and had to negotiate who could take the leftovers to work the next day. (I cooked, I won) It's a great worknight meal. One pot with minimal clean up, and you feel like you are really indulging! Definitely a keeper for our family!
LOVE to hear that - thanks for the kind review Carolyn!