Vegan puttanesca sauce with olives and capers is an easy pasta sauce with a distinctive umami flavor that takes 25 minutes to cook.
If you love our spaghetti arrabbiata, pink sauce pasta, or chickpea sauce with penne, pasta puttanesca is right up your alley. It’s a sauce with attitude and quick enough for a weeknight meal.
Table of Contents
Why You'll Love This Recipe
Puttanesca is a classic tomato sauce with a touch of the sea. Capers take on that role for this vegan version. And we’ll provide other options if you want to ramp up that flavor profile.
Easily make yummy pasta recipes like spaghetti alla puttanesca or penne puttanesca by varying the type of pasta.
This vegan puttanesca recipe is made with simple ingredients with easy prep. Simmer it while you cook pasta, and you've got dinner extraordinaire for the whole family.
Ingredients, Notes, and Substitutions
Tomatoes. Use good quality tomatoes packed in juice when making a tomato-based sauce. If you use Italian tomatoes, check if there are added herbs. I’ve also made this sauce with chopped, fresh tomatoes (5 cups), including cherry tomatoes.
Olives. Kalamata olives are smoky, rich, and fruity. They are not as sharp as green olives but not as mellow as black olives, although both could be used as substitutes. Avoid any 'stuffed' olives, as this will disrupt the flavor.
Capers. Tangy with a briny flavor that, in my opinion, has a slight sea flavor. We use capers in vegan tuna salad or tuna casserole for this reason. Consider a pinch of nori flakes and kelp powder, or grind a bit of a nori sheet for added fish flavor.
Fresh basil. Substitute 2 teaspoons of dried basil, added with the oregano.
Garlic. Fresh garlic cloves have the best flavor, but if that’s not possible, use 1 teaspoon of garlic powder.
Pasta. Traditional puttanesca sauce is often served with spaghetti or penne. Still, you can use your favorite pasta, including gluten-free varieties like brown rice or chickpea pasta. Or consider zucchini noodles for extra veggie nutrients.
Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the complete list of ingredients with measurements plus recipe instructions.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Heat a pot over medium-high heat. Cook onions for 3-4 minutes to soften, then mix in the garlic, oregano, and chili flakes.
Step 2: Add the olives, capers, and lemon juice. Stir to let the juices deglaze the pot.
Step 3: Stir in the tomatoes, basil, and parsley.
Step 4: Adjust the heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and simmer the sauce for 20-25 minutes.
Pro Tips
Break up whole tomatoes before adding them to the sauce. Squeeze them directly over the cooking pot. Use the back of a wooden spoon to crush canned cherry tomatoes.
Cook the pasta al dente, which is tender, not mushy, when you bite through it.
Serving Suggestions
Mix pasta directly with the sauce and garnish with extra fresh basil, more olives, or vegan parmesan cheese. Alternatively, serve a base of paste with sauce over the top. Your call.
For a change, consider puttanesca sauce over baked potatoes or rice. It makes an excellent sauce for a bowl with greens like arugula or spinach.
Puttanesca pizza anyone? Yes, it's a 'thing,' I recommend a sweet potato pizza base with puttanesca and a little vegan mozzarella.
What to Serve with Puttanesca Sauce
Although we love this savory, full-flavored sauce with pasta, it also makes a delicious pizza sauce! Try it with gluten-free quinoa pizza crust for a crunchy base, or whole wheat sweet potato base.
Frequently Asked Questions
Store leftover sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for 5 days. Reheat it on the stove on low heat. Freeze it for 3 months.
Simmering over low heat naturally reduces tomato-based sauces. So, before adding tomato paste or other thickening agents, let the sauce cook a little longer. The sauce also thickens as it cools. If all else fails, remove a little of the sauce, puree it and mix it back into the pot.
Sauces cling to unrinsed pasta, so don't rinse it when making warm pasta dishes. This is one reason we use pasta water when making pesto pasta. For pasta salads, especially vegan salads using cashew or nut-based dressings, rinsing helps keep them from ceasing and drying out the salad.
Capers, also included in pasta puttanesca sauce, are the best olives substitute. Artichoke hearts, miso paste, mushroom powder, nutritional yeast, or dark soy sauce (or tamari) can also replace the umami flavor of olives.
Popular Vegan Sauces
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👩🏻🍳 Recipe
Vegan Puttanesca Sauce
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Ingredients
- 1 medium onion - chopped
- 28 ounces diced tomatoes - 1 large can
- 15 leaves fresh basil - ¼ cup chopped
- ¼ cup fresh parsley - chopped
- 2 teaspoons oregano
- 3 tablespoons capers - chopped
- ½ cup Kalamata olives - chopped
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 5 cloves garlic - minced or pressed
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat a large saucepan over medium heat and add the onions. Cook the onions for 3-4 minutes until they are soft and translucent. Add a tablespoon of water if they start to stick.
- Add the garlic, oregano, and chili flakes. Stir for 30 seconds, then add the olives, capers, and lemon juice. Stir for another 30 seconds to let the olives help deglaze the pot.
- Stir in the tomatoes, parsley, and basil, and bring the ingredients to a slow simmer. Cover the pan and simmer for 20 -25 minutes until the sauce has reduced.
Video
Notes
- The longer you simmer puttanesca sauce, the more it thickens and reduces.
- Substitute 2 teaspoons of dried basil for fresh. Add it with the oregano.
- Refrigerate leftover sauce for 5 days or freeze for 3 months.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimation only.
Aloe Vera Recipes
Yommu Tomatoes recipe !
I love them. Thanks a lot for the share you just made my day !
Your best TribeMate
Rebecca Van Der Grool
Aloe Sport Global
Denise
Many thanks! I sincerely hope you enjoy this great sauce.
Tia
I will NEVER purchase or make any other pasta gravy again. I made this today , it has to be the best sauce . I added 1 chopped zucchini, 1 medium chopped carrots, and 2 large elephant cloves of garlic chopped. I put all ingredients into my 10 cup food processor, pulsed a few times and into a large pan and cooked for about 1 hr, stirring several times. This is me forever saucer. I’m Italian, but never made this. You have got to make this.
Denise
Excellent news! This sauce is one of our favorites.
Alexandra
My husband said: "Top Five". He always tweaks and corrects seasonings, but he said it was perfectly.
Denise
Wow! You've made my day! Thanks so much for commenting, it is much appreciated. 🙂