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Pasta alla Vodka

Rigatoni in a creamy tomato sauce with garlic, butter, and a splash of vodka. The recipe that went viral on TikTok in 2020 and never really left.

Total Cost $7.61
Per Serving $1.90
Prep 10 min
Cook 25 min
Servings 4
  • vegetarian
  • pasta
  • low-cost
  • fast
  • italian

Ingredients

  • 400 g rigatoni or penne $0.88
  • 1 can (796 mL) crushed tomatoes $2.00
  • 125 mL heavy cream $1.25
  • 2 tbsp butter $0.38
  • 1 medium onion, finely diced $1.23
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced $0.32
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste $0.19
  • 0.5 tsp chili flakes $0.03
  • 2 tbsp (optional) vodka $0.25
  • 30 g parmesan, finely grated $0.90
  • 2 tbsp olive oil $0.13
  • to taste salt and black pepper $0.05
  • Recipe total$7.61

Instructions

  1. Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Cook pasta until al dente. Reserve 500 mL pasta water before draining.
  2. Heat olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
  3. Add onion. Cook 6–7 minutes until soft and translucent.
  4. Add garlic and chili flakes. Cook 1 minute.
  5. Add tomato paste. Stir and cook 2 minutes until darkened.
  6. Add vodka if using. Stir and let it bubble for 1 minute to cook off the alcohol.
  7. Add crushed tomatoes. Stir and simmer 10 minutes.
  8. Reduce heat to low. Stir in the heavy cream. Simmer gently 3–4 minutes — do not boil.
  9. Add the drained pasta to the skillet. Toss to coat, adding pasta water a splash at a time until the sauce is silky and loose.
  10. Remove from heat. Stir in parmesan.
  11. Serve immediately.

Nutrition per Serving

Estimated values per serving.

543 Calories
17g Protein
77g Carbs
19g Fat
5g Fiber
380mg Sodium
~15% DV Iron~10% DV Calcium

Gluten-Free

This recipe can be made gluten-free with substitutions.

  • Replace rigatoni or penne with certified GF pasta (adds approximately $1.50–$2.00 to the total)

All other ingredients are naturally gluten-free.

Budget Notes

  • The vodka is optional. It adds a subtle sharpness and helps the sauce emulsify, but the dish works fine without it. If you have a cheap bottle around, use two tablespoons.
  • Heavy cream is the expensive ingredient here. A 473 mL carton is about $4.99 — you use about a quarter of it. Use it for other recipes that week or it goes to waste.
  • This reheats decently with a splash of water or milk to loosen the sauce.
  • If you skip the parmesan, the recipe drops to about $6.71 total.