Spicy pumpkin sauce on pasta? Yes please! This creamy shrimp pumpkin rigatoni takes less than 30 minutes and has so much flavor from the sauce! The perfect cozy dish for that quick, weeknight dinner and looks too good on the plate!
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Delicious, shrimp pumpkin rigatoni with notes of hot sauce, cream, and pumpkin! Totally perfect for Fall!
Level up those pumpkin recipes with this aromatic blend of spices over rigatoni! Seriously the perfect dish for those cozy nights where you want something satisfying and filling.
I’ll also share some time-saving tips on how I can get this TO-DIE for shrimp pumpkin recipe on the table under 30 minutes!
This post will go over everything you need to know to create this shrimp pumpkin rigatoni.
Recipe difficulty: Beginner level toss and simmer!
For this spicy, fire-roasted easy pumpkin pasta sauce there is a mix of spices and flavors for the BEST smell in the kitchen! Combined with the pumpkin puree, this sauce thickens beautifully and becomes extra creamy! Minimal chopping needed!
Sam’s Pro Tips for this Shrimp Pumpkin Rigatoni
Best Time Saving Tips
We love quick and easy, so I’m all about minimal chopping and tossing into the pot!
Here are the TOP 3 ingredients you should have in order to have this shrimp and pumpkin recipe on your plate quickly:
- Get the Trader Joe’s Fire Roasted Red Peppers for the best blend of spices!
- Forget peeling and mincing the garlic, the Trader Joe’s Minced Garlic does this for you!
- Buy your shrimp ALREADY peeled, deveined, WITH the TAIL OFF! I forgot to buy with the tail off, and totally wish I did!
The Top Ingredients
Used in my Fire Roasted Tomato Bisque Recipe Perfect for Cozy Weather, the Trader Joe’s Fire Roasted Red Peppers gives that “wow” factor in my roasted pumpkin pasta sauce.
It doesn’t have to be this brand, but having the roasted peppers adds to the heat level and is a huge time save for the amount of flavor it gives to the rigatoni.
Another time save is getting the Trader Joe’s Minced Garlic, which I have used in a TON of my recipes! So easy to just toss right into the pan, without all that peeling!
Use a Food Processor
Now I’m all about saving time and effort, and an easy trick is to use a food processor!
Like The Ultimate Filipino Spaghetti Sauce Recipe, using a food processor leads to a BETTER consistency in this pumpkin puree pasta.
When adding the onion, garlic, and even the roasted peppers, I like to run it in the food processor until a finely chopped consistency is reached. Not mushy, finely chopped!
If you don’t have a food processor, no worries, just plan to manually finely chop the ingredients.
Cook Your Pasta with Salt and Oil
Like my Best Shrimp Scampi Recipe with Pasta, I like to cook my pumpkin rigatoni with salt and oil!
I know this is a hit or miss topic as there are varying opinions, but I find that the salt helps flavor the pasta and the olive oil prevents my noodles from sticking!
Super helpful if you forget to occasionally stir the pasta as it cooks (Totally guilty of this!)
Key Ingredients – Shrimp Pumpkin Rigatoni
Below are some key ingredients for this recipe:
- Rigatoni: The obvious ingredient! Definitely looks restaurant quality when plated. Make sure to add salt as it helps flavor the pasta and the olive oil prevents the noodles from sticking when boiling the pasta.
- Shrimp: Buy your shrimp ALREADY peeled, deveined, WITH the TAIL OFF! I forgot to get my shrimp with the tail off, and it’s just extra work to remove!
Sauce
- Pumpkin puree: The ultimate fall shrimp pumpkin pasta with pumpkin puree. ¾ cup is used, giving you extra in the can to repurpose for other delicious recipes.
- Heavy cream: To get the creamiest roasted pumpkin pasta sauce, adding heavy cream to simmer in the sauce will help. Don’t worry, the pumpkin puree will thicken the sauce beautifully!
- Hot sauce: You can use any hot sauce you like, but I like to use the Tapatio hot sauce as I cook the shrimp. It’s not too spicy and can easily be adjusted depending on preference. You can even mix Tapatio with vinegar, check out our Filipino Style Spam Garlic Fried Rice Anyone Will Love for this mixture!
Seasoning and Spices
- Onion: Onion and garlic is like the basics for mostly ALL my recipes! It’s great to have this in the pantry at the bare minimum.
- Garlic: 3 cloves is needed for the best flavor! Remember the Trader Joe’s Minced Garlic is a huge time-saver!
- Fire Roasted Red Peppers: The Trader Joe’s Fire Roasted Red Peppers creates the best pumpkin prawn pasta ever and is another time save! When blended with the other ingredients, it makes this sauce extra flavorful and full of that roasted flavor.
- Parsley: We used a 1/3 cup of chopped parsley for a great, fresh flavor. You can use dried parsley flakes if that’s what you have on hand and works just as great!
- Chili flakes: For some extra spice, 1 teaspoon of chili flakes is used in this shrimp and pumpkin recipe. You can tone this down, but with all the spice in the sauce, this gives the right balance.
- Shredded parmesan cheese: Parmesan cheese is a fave like in our Creamy Pappardelle with Italian Sausage and Roasted Tomatoes. Make sure to get the real stuff not from the can!
More Variations to this Shrimp Pumpkin Rigatoni
There are a few ways you can variate this shrimp pumpkin rigatoni. Here’s how:
- Change the cheese blend. If you would like to use a different blend of cheese in this creamy shrimp pumpkin rigatoni, try mixing parmesan cheese with Manchego or even Gruyere for a rich cheese layer to simmer in the sauce.
- Other favorite Fall recipes? For a great, cozy meal that is super satisfying our Beefy Filipino Style Lasagna That is Extremely Saucy is a winner paired with our 15-Minute Mini Pecan Sticky Buns to Drool Over for a quick dessert! Don’t forget our Saucy Oven-Baked Buffalo Cheese Fries with Ranch for an amazing side dish everyone will love!
- What can I pair with this dish? This shrimp pumpkin recipe is a solid main dish and sure to be a family favorite! Make sure to save room for dessert with our Rich and Creamy Mango Cheesecake Instant Pot Recipe or Fluffy Bread Machine Ube Bread Rolls with a Sugared Cream Cheese Frosting to finish the meal off the right way!
Looking for some awesome printables that are totally FREE? Our favorite! Check out our FREE LIBRARY for our Grocery Checklist or our Instant Pot Cooking Times Chart printables to help you on your cooking journey!
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Spicy Shrimp Pumpkin Rigatoni Perfect for Fall
Ingredients
- 8 ounces rigatoni
- 1 pound shrimp peeled, deveined, and tail off
- 7.75 ounces Trader Joe's Fire Roasted Red Peppers drained and diced
- ½ onion diced
- 3 garlic cloves peeled and minced
- ¾ cup pumpkin puree
- 1½ cups heavy cream
- ¼ cup hot sauce
- ⅓ cup parsley chopped
- 1 teaspoon red chili flakes plus more for seasoning
- shredded parmesan cheese to taste
- salt and pepper to taste
- olive oil
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to directions. Before the water starts to boil, add about a tablespoon of salt and olive oil into the water. Stir the pasta to prevent sticking and drain when ready.
- Using a food processor, finely chop the onion, garlic cloves, and Trader Joe's Fire Roasted Red Peppers (recommended approach). In a large sauté pan over medium heat, add olive oil. Add the chopped onion, garlic, and red pepper to the pan. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 3-4 minutes until just softened.
- Add the shrimp and sauté in the pan for 5-6 minutes. Once the shrimp is slightly cooked, add the pumpkin puree, heavy cream, hot sauce and red chili flakes. Stir to combine. Bring the sauce to a boil. Once the sauce starts to boil, lower to medium-low heat and simmer covered for 5-7 minutes. See note below.
- Add the chopped parsley and shredded parmesan cheese to taste. Stir until the parmesan cheese melts. Season with additional red chili flakes if needed. When serving, spoon the shrimp pumpkin sauce on top of the cooked rigatoni. Top with additional parmesan cheese and chopped parsley. Enjoy!
Notes
- In this shrimp pumpkin rigatoni recipe, I used frozen shrimp. If using fresh shrimp, you can sauté for less than the 5-6 minutes as fresh shrimp cooks quicky. Be sure to have the shrimp peeled, deveined, AND with the tail-off.
- For a quicker time save option, we love using the Trader Joe’s Minced Garlic. No need to peel or mince the garlic!
- Using a food processor leads to a BETTER consistency in this pumpkin puree pasta. When adding the onion, garlic, and even the roasted peppers, I like to run it in the food processor until a finely chopped consistency is reached. Not mushy, finely chopped!
- See Sam’s Pro Tips for this Shrimp Pumpkin Rigatoni for further detail.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does this shrimp pumpkin pasta last in the refrigerator?
Consume this shrimp pasta within 2-3 days for optimal flavor.
What is the rule of thumb in regard to substituting fresh herbs for dried herbs?
Dry herbs are more potent compared to fresh herbs. A good rule of thumb is to use 3x the amount of fresh herbs compared to dried herbs. For example, 1 tablespoon of fresh parsley is equivalent to one teaspoon of dried parsley.
This post was all about how to create this shrimp pumpkin rigatoni.
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