Shrimp Rigatoni in a Creamy Sauce
with Bell Pepper & Lemon
- Wheat
- Milk
- Shellfish
Are you the type of person who only goes to sporting events for that huge Italian sausage and pepper hoagie? We’re right there with you. This week, our chefs took the beloved dish from stadium fare to elegant weeknight dinner with a few delicious twists. First, they dropped the bready bun and replaced it with al dente rigatoni, along with an ultra-creamy sauce studded with crispy bits of pork sausage and sweet sautéed bell pepper. Psst—did we mention there’s Parmesan cheese in the sauce and sprinkled on top? Yeah, it’s safe to say this dish knocks it out of the park.
Ingredients
6 ounce
Rigatoni Pasta
(Contains: Wheat)
3 tablespoon
Sour Cream
(Contains: Milk)
2 tablespoon
Cream Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
1 unit
Lemon
10 ounce
Shrimp
(Contains: Shellfish)
3 tablespoon
Parmesan Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
1 unit
Tomato
1 teaspoon
Chili Flakes
2 unit
Scallions
1 unit
Bell Pepper
Not included in your delivery
teaspoon (tsp)
Salt
1 teaspoon (tsp)
Cooking Oil
1 tablespoon (tbsp)
Butter
(Contains: Milk)
teaspoon (tsp)
Black Pepper
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Wash and dry produce.
Halve, core, and thinly slice bell pepper into strips. Trim and thinly slice scallions, separating whites from greens. Dice tomato into ½-inch pieces. Zest and quarter lemon.
Remove sausage* from casing if necessary; discard casing.
Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper and scallion whites; cook, stirring, until slightly softened, 3-4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Add sausage to pan; cook, breaking up meat into pieces, until browned and cooked through, 4-6 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper. If you like things spicy, stir in a pinch of chili flakes and cook until fragrant, 15 seconds. TIP: If there’s excess grease in your pan, carefully pour it out.
Rinse shrimp* under cold water. Pat shrimp dry with paper towels; season with salt and pepper. Swap in shrimp (no need to break up into pieces!) for sausage; cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked through, 3-4 minutes.
Once water is boiling, add rigatoni to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, 9-11 minutes.
Reserve ½ cup pasta cooking water, then drain.
Add tomato to pan with sausage mixture and cook until softened, 1-2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium low.
Stir in cream cheese, sour cream, half the Parmesan (save the rest for serving), ¼ cup reserved pasta cooking water, and 1 TBSP butter until thoroughly combined. (For 4 servings, use ⅓ cup reserved pasta cooking water and 2 TBSP butter.)
Season with salt, pepper, and lemon zest to taste. Add drained rigatoni and toss to coat. TIP: If needed, stir in more reserved pasta cooking water a splash at a time until pasta is coated in a creamy sauce.
Divide pasta between bowls. Sprinkle with scallion greens, remaining Parmesan, and a pinch of chili flakes if desired. Serve with lemon wedges on the side.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many loved the creamy sauce, with some calling it "outstanding" and a "taste explosion" 🎉. The sweet yellow bell pepper was a hit.
- Ease of prep: Some found the shrimp option perfect and fresh, while others felt it didn't complement the rigatoni well.
- Suggestions: Consider using linguine or fettuccine instead of rigatoni for a better pasta-to-sauce ratio. Add a splash of half-and-half if sauce becomes dry.
- Portions: A few noted there was too much pasta, which diluted the other ingredients once mixed.
Reviews from our home cooks
One of the better pasta dishes. The shrimp was fresh and delicious and the sauce was outstanding. I really would like to have this again
We loved the sauce when preparing the meal, the sauce did get a bit dry in the end, I added just a touch of half and half to make it creamier.
Shrimp was the best choice, also the sauce was very tasty
Too much rigatoni. It diluted the rest of the food once mixed in.
Shrimp was perfect in this. First meal we tried. Loved it.
The tomatoes are a bit on the not ripe side. They could be a little bit riper.
Foodie husband thinks it should be a linguine or fettuccini. LOL
If I could give this 20 stars I would- this was awesome.
Flavors were great. I just think this could've been made without so much unnecessary fat
