Want spaghetti but don’t have the energy to boil water, drain pasta, and make a from-scratch sauce? Us either!
Try our simplified take on spaghetti made in 1 pot with plenty of veggies, perfectly al dente spaghetti noodles, and hearty marinara sauce. Top with vegan parmesan cheese and fresh basil for the ultimate 30-minute weeknight meal! Perfect for making ahead and enjoying throughout the week. Let us show you how it’s done!
How to Make 1-Pot Vegan Spaghetti
This 10-ingredient recipe starts with a hearty dose of veggies as the base. We included garlic and onion for plenty of flavor, bell pepper for natural sweetness, and mushrooms for heartiness (and health perks). An optional handful of greens can also be added later in the cooking process for even more color and nutrition.
Adding salt, dried oregano, and red pepper flakes infuses the veggies with flavor. But it also provides a boost to store-bought marinara to keep this easy and weeknight-friendly without sacrificing flavor!
Next, noodles and water are added to the sauce. Breaking the noodles in half allows them to fully submerge in the liquid without having to add too much water (which would dilute the flavor). A few stirs prevents the noodles from sticking together and encourages them to cook evenly.
The result is a big pot of deliciousness packed with fiber, vitamin C, iron, vitamin A precursors, and more!
We hope you LOVE this 1-pot vegan spaghetti! It’s:
Saucy
Savory
Comforting
Versatile
Quick & easy
& SO delicious!
It’s perfect for weeknight meals and reheats well as leftovers. And while hearty enough for a standalone meal, it would also be delicious served with vegan meatballs, roasted vegetables, a simple side salad, or our Roasted Root Vegetable Panzanella, Vegan Caesar Salad, or Grilled Corn & Zucchini Salad with Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette.
More Easy Pasta Recipes
- Creamy Mushroom and Asparagus Pasta (GF)
- Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Pasta (GF)
- Spicy Red Pasta with Lentils
- Creamy Vegan White Pasta with Summer Vegetables
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
Easy 1-Pot Vegan Spaghetti (30 minutes!)
Ingredients
PASTA
- 1 Tbsp olive oil (if oil-free, sub broth or water and add more as needed to prevent sticking)
- 1 cup diced onion
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 ½ cups cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced (or sub white button mushrooms // ~8 ounces as original recipe is written)
- 1 medium yellow or red bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 tsp sea salt (plus more to taste — keep in mind that your marinara will be salted)
- 1 tsp dried oregano (or Italian seasoning blend)
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (reduce for less heat // increase for more heat)
- 2 (24-oz.) jars favorite marinara (we like Rao’s and Organico Bello brands)
- 1 ½ cups water
- 12 oz. dry gluten-free spaghetti (we like Jovial brand or Barillo // sub any pasta shape you like here)
- 1 big handful spinach or other green of choice (optional)
FOR SERVING optional
- 1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh basil
- Vegan parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Heat a large pot (with a lid) over medium heat. Once hot, add the oil and wait 30 seconds. Then add the onion and sauté 4-5 minutes or until lightly browned and translucent, stirring occasionally. Turn down heat as needed if browning too quickly.
- Add garlic, mushrooms, bell pepper, and salt and stir. Sauté, stirring frequently, until softened and slightly caramelized ~5-7 minutes.
- Add the oregano and red pepper flakes and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add the marinara and water and bring to a simmer. Break the pasta in half (disregard if using a smaller pasta shape) and add to the pot. Stir to break up any clumps.
- Add optional greens at this time if desired. Then cover the pot, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 13 minutes, stirring twice.
- Turn off the heat and let the pot stand, covered, for 2 minutes. Stir again to break up any remaining clumps of pasta (clumping should be minimal at this point). Uncover, taste, and adjust the seasonings as needed with more salt for overall flavor, oregano for herbal flavor, or red pepper flakes for heat.
- Serve with fresh basil and vegan parmesan on top (optional). Store cooled leftovers in the refrigerator up to 2-3 days and reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop until hot, adding more water as needed to thin. Not freezer friendly.
Sandra says
This was very tasty. The sauce was wonderful. My spaghetti did end up with some clumps. I thought I had them all but found them when serving. My husband is a good sport about eating gluten free pasta with me thank goodness. Made your vegan garlic bread spread as well. My husband said it would have reeeeeally been good with some butter and on bread that was full of gluten, but he still enjoyed it. ;-)
Thanks for all your recipes!
Ha, it sounds like your husband knows the good stuff :) We’re so glad you enjoyed this one. Thank you for your kind words and lovely review, Sandra! xo
Sandra says
Going to try this for one of our “meatless” nights tomorrow, but I’m wondering about the cooking time. I usually cook sauce a lot longer than this. Is it okay to cook it longer, or does it need to be the shorter amount of time because the pasta is cooked with the sauce? I have the jovial spaghetti pasta to use. Thanks so much for the info!
Hi Sandra, you’re exactly right – the shorter amount of time is so the pasta doesn’t get overcooked. We hope you enjoy it!
Flor says
Very tasty and simple to make recipe!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Flor! Thank you for the lovely review! xo
Louise says
Amazing dish!! I made this for 24 people (split half gluten free, half regular) and it was so good!! Part of the gluten free did clump a little but it was no big deal. I added the spinach and a bit of sugar to it for a bit of sweetness as well. Ive never cooked spaghetti like this but everyone loved it!!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Louise! Thanks so much for sharing! xo
Shannon says
My husband and I started our first attempt with a plant based diet this week and I made this for us for dinner tonight. It was absolutely delicious! I made it just as written except for regular spaghetti (that’s what I had on hand) and it exceeded all our expectations! Easy recipe and really fresh. Recipes like these are so motivating in starting this journey. Will add this to our new developing rotation! Thank you!
Danielle says
Love a 1-pot meal! Simple and absolutely delicious!
Yay! So glad you enjoyed it, Danielle. Thank you for sharing! xo
Alison Gerber says
I made this tonight and used gluten free brown rice/quinoa pasta. The flavors were great but the pasta was a bit chewy. Is that typical for gluten free pasta? What variation of gluten free pasta do you recommend? Thank you!
Hi Alison! The one we used was Jovial brown rice spaghetti. Which brand did you use? They vary from brand to brand quite a lot.
Mehgan says
YUM! I’m a lazy cook, but I love food that is healthy, filling, and flavorful. This was amazing. I added some homemade vegan meatballs from another recipe.
So lovely! Thanks for sharing, Meghan!!
Michal says
Made this today for lunch, it really did take 30 mins! It looked just like an expensive pasta from a restaurant!
My only issue is that the pasta wasn’t fully cooked, and some pasta clumped up and didn’t cook so I had to throw those bits out. Maybe a low and broader pot would work better? Or less pasta
I had fun making this one- thanks!
Michal says
I used the whole foods brand GF spaghetti pasta – it said it’s a mix of corn and rice.
Hi Michal, thanks for sharing your experience! We’d suggest stirring a few more times in the cooking process, cooking longer, and/or using another shape of pasta.
Rachel says
Love this recipe! I used chickpea pasta and it tasted so much better cooked this way in the sauce. Very flavorful and satisfying and knowing it was all going in one pot encouraged me to go ahead and cook when it was already late and I wasn’t feeling it. I would love more versions of this! Like a vegan creamy sauce one pot pasta, etc. Thank you for a great staple recipe!
We’re so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Rachel! Thanks so much for sharing! We’ll add it to the ideas list.
Tanya says
It took a little longer to cook than in the directions, but it was totally worth it because cooking the pasta directly in the sauce like that was a total game changer. Probably the best home cooked spaghetti I’ve ever had, and the boyfriend agreed. Thank you for this lovely recipe!
We’re so glad you both enjoyed it, Tanya! Thanks so much for sharing your experience! xo
sylvia says
Oh yum… so very good! Easy, and ONE POT…. Yeah!! Thank you!
Whoop! We’re so glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing, Sylvia!
Emely says
Flavors were great but I made the mistake of using chickpea spaghetti (Banza) which can’t really handle the simmering process for so long- it turned chewy/clumpy. Will make again with traditional pasta.
Aw, bummer on the chickpea noodles. Perhaps they would work if added later?
Janet Miller says
If I want to use a full 16 oz. package of spaghetti, how much more water should I add??? Thanks!
It should work with 2 cups water total, but let us know how it goes as we haven’t tested it that way!
Melissa says
Thank you for this recipe. I also added diced zucchini and carrot for extra veg. I would probably pre-cook the spaghetti next time as I found it took a lot longer than the 13 minutes and I had to keep adding extra water as it kept sticking to the base on the pan. Really tasty dish and looking forward to making again, thank you!
Thanks for sharing your experience, Melissa! We wonder what type of spaghetti noodles were you using? It may have needed more stirring at the very beginning to prevent it from settling to the bottom of the pan.
Hayley says
Thank you Minimalist Baker for my wonderful new staple meal! Super easy/intuitive with lots of flavor and nice heat from the pepper flakes. I used bucatini and threw in some celery I had–I think this recipe could be the hero of any fridge clean out. Made my night, thanks again!
Smart! Thanks so much for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications, Hayley! xo
Melissa says
Thank you for your reply! I was using organic wheat spaghetti but it was the actual sauce that was sticking to the pan. I’m guessing the spaghetti took longer as it wasn’t gluten free. The whole family loved it, my 9 year old son even wanted to take it to school for his lunch today!
Ah, okay! Thanks for sharing!
Susan Burke says
Delicious! I wanted to make this one-pot spaghetti method to see if it was a viable “camping dinner” option, & it surpassed all expectations for flavor & ease! I followed your delicious recipe exactly, and the pasta turned out great (not gummy nor lumpy.) For camping, I’ll use dried onions & dried garlic, to make it even easier — can’t wait to make it “off the grid” next week! Thank you!
Amazing! Thanks for sharing, Susan!
Tara Turner says
This was great! Easy to make and my 4 & 6 year old didn’t have any complaints. I only had one jar of sauce so I used a can of crushed tomatoes instead… I upt the Italian seasonings a bit… Really fantastic! Will make again!
Yay! We’re so glad you and your family enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing, Tara!
Vicky says
Love the idea of less dishes and less steps ! Specially nowadays that I’m always rushing with a baby and a toddler. Do you think this would work well with garbanzo bean spaghetti?
I think so. We like the brand Banza (we’ve tried their shells but not their spaghetti)! Let us know if you try.
Ana says
This was phenomenal OMG!!!!!!!! Flavor 10/10, EASY 10/10, filling 10/10! I looove this recipe – it will definitely be a staple! The bell peppers and the mushrooms add such a nice touch! Don’t skip out on the vegan parm – it’s soooo good! I don’t know why I hadn’t attempted it before, but just did and it was the easiest thing ever and absolutely incredible! Thank you MB!!
Whoop! We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Ana! Thanks so much for the lovely review! xo
Micah says
Omg zucchini – so obvious lol
Thank you!! Will make this soon!
Jess says
Wondering if the water amount would need to be altered if a glutinous pasta was going to be used instead?
The same amount is fine!
Micah says
Love this one-pot dish! What would you suggest as a hearty veg replacement for mushrooms (I also can’t do eggplant😭). I will def add some greens!
Hi Micah, we’d suggest more onion and/or finely chopped carrot or sliced zucchini. Let us know if you try it!
June says
Mind if I ask what kind of pot you’re using in photo? I need to get a new one. I have a LeCreuset but it’s starting to chip and I don’t think it’s safe.
Hi June! We really like this one. The company makes it in other colors and white is often sold out, FYI.
June says
This looks like a great idea. Who wouldn’t want to use just one pot for a good meal? Thanks for posting it.
Katie says
Do you have any recommendations for substitutes on the mushrooms? Not a mushroom gal.. (zucchini half-slices?)
That would work! Or finely chopped carrot and/or more onion.
Kristi says
Has anyone tried this with gluten – free pasta? Eg. brown rice spaghetti? How would that affect the recipe?
Hi Kristi, yes, we tested with gluten-free brown rice spaghetti and it works well.
Lilja says
This made me giggle. I mean, it doesn’t take longer to make pasta and sauce separately really 😂 Having said that I’ll still make it because who doesn’t love one pot recipes! Also the pictures made me crave pasta.
Always on a mission to make less dishes ;) Let us know if you try it!
Susan says
Have you ever made your own marinara sauce for this recipe? If so do you have a recipe link? I try to never purchase premade products as there are certain allergies in our household.
Hi Susan, we haven’t used our homemade marinara in this recipe, but you can find it here!