This sun-dried tomato pesto pasta is rich, comforting and filled with that umami-rich sweet and savoury flavour that only sun-dried tomatoes can bring. The homemade red pesto clings to penne or rigatoni perfectly and is topped off with more toasted nuts, parmesan and basil.
Best of all, it’s a delicious, family-friendly dinner that takes barely any effort. You can make the tomato pesto ahead, and keep it in the fridge or freezer then toss it through hot pasta for a quick midweek meal.
❤️ What makes this so good?
- Oil packed sun-dried tomatoes maximise flavour: They’re rich and intense and the oil provides added flavour.
- Pasta water makes the sauce silky, not oily: A splash of starchy pasta cooking water helps the pesto coat the pasta beautifully.
- Toasted pine nuts add buttery depth: Toasting them first brings out their buttery, nutty flavour.
- It’s make-ahead friendly: The pesto can be made in advance and even frozen, for a seriously quick dinner.
- Easy to customise: Feel like a creamy pasta? Add a little cream. Cheesy pasta? Add mini mozzarella balls. More veg? Easily add mushrooms or spinach.
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Key ingredients and substitutions
There are just a handful of ingredients in this tomato pesto pasta.
- Sun-dried tomatoes: Use oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes. Their softer texture makes them easier to blend, and the oil will add flavour. You can use dry packed sun dried tomatoes but it’s best to rehydrate them in boiled water for around 20 minutes.
- Parmesan cheese: Since the tomatoes are already umami-rich, there isn’t too much parmesan in this. Just enough to add some flavour and a little creaminess to the pesto. It’s best to make this using cheese grated from the block yourself. You could substitute pecorino.
- Pine nuts: These are a classic in Italian pesto and their buttery, nutty flavour is great in the pesto rosso (red pesto). If you don’t like them, feel free to swap them with almonds, cashews or even walnuts.
- Pasta: I like a short pasta here, like the mezze rigatoni shown above. You can use pasta shells, rigatoni, fusilli, penne, casarecce, orecchiette or anything with grooves/tubes.
- Basil: Fresh basil adds a freshness to the final dish. You can swap it for parsley if you prefer.
- Olive oil: You’ll want a light-flavoured olive oil so that it doesn’t detract from the tomato flavour. You can use all olive oil or top up the sun-dried tomato oil with it.
Can I use shop-bought pesto? You can definitely use shop-bought red pesto (or green pesto for that matter) but I do encourage you to try making yours from scratch. It’s so delicious.
How to make sun-dried tomato pesto pasta
⬇️ Jump to the recipe for full ingredients and instructions.
1. Toast the nuts
Whether you’re using pine nuts like I do or something like almonds, you’ll get the best flavour if you toast them first. The least hands-on approach is to scatter them onto a baking tray and toast them in the oven until golden brown. This just takes 8-10 minutes. You can also cook them in a dry pan over medium heat, tossing regularly until golden all over.
2. Cook the pasta
Get a large saucepan half-filled with water on to boil. Once it’s boiling at a good dose of salt (you want it to taste like sea water) then add the pasta and cook it according to the instructions on the packet.
How much salt to add to pasta water: One teaspoon of salt per litre/quart of water is a good rule of thumb. You won’t be eating all that salt, but it will season the pasta, and a little of that seasoned starchy water is always great for adding to your pasta sauce to make it silkier.
3. Red pesto ingredients
Add the sun-dried tomato pesto ingredients to a food processor, reserving the oil.
4. Blend and add oil
Blend the ingredients until fine, then start drizzling in the oil until it’s all added. You can adjust the consistency of the pesto by adding more or less oil.
5. Finished
The tomato pesto is now ready to use. You can use it immediately or jar it up and store it in the fridge for later in the week. You can also freeze it for another time.
6. Add it to cooked pasta
Drain the pasta, reserving a little of the pasta water, then add it back to the pan with the tomato pesto. Give it a good mix adding pasta water as needed to help it fully coat the pasta.
This sundried tomato pesto pasta is rich, savoury, slightly sweet, a little cheesy and bold.
Tips and tricks
- Save the pasta water: When you make any pasta dish, always place your strainer over a cup to catch some of the pasta water when you drain it. That water is seasoned and starchy and it can help to loosen sauces and make them silkier and hold to the pasta better.
- Bronze cut pasta: Bronze cut pasta has a rougher exterior allowing it to hold pasta sauces better.
Storage and make ahead
Fridge
The sun-dried tomato pesto can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 weeks. If you have leftover pesto, store it in a jar with a thin layer of oil over the top to prevent air getting in.
The sun-dried tomato pasta leftovers can be stored in the fridge and eaten within 3-4 days. To reheat, add a little water or a dash of cream, give it a mix and reheat in a pan over medium heat or in the microwave.
You can also serve this as a pasta salad. Add a little more olive oil to loosen the pasta once cold.
Freezer
The red pesto can be made ahead and frozen for up to 3 months. Freeze in ice cube trays, then once solid, pop them into a container or ziplock bag to store them in the freezer.
Variatons
- Make it creamy: Once the pasta is fully coated in the pesto, add ½ a cup of cream and mix it through continuing to cook until it’s heated through.
- Mozzarella: Add some gorgeous soft cheesiness by adding a good handful of baby mozzarella balls and allowing them to melt as you mix it over the heat.
- More vegetables: You can add cherry tomatoes, cooked mushrooms, baby spinach, roasted zucchini or capsicum, peas or kale to up the veg content.
- Add a protein: Grilled chicken, prawns, salmon, crispy pancetta, white beans or chickpeas are a great way to increase the protein content.
FAQs
Yes, you can. Sauteed mushrooms, roasted capsicum or zucchini, fresh baby spinach or cherry tomatoes are lovely with this
While best served fresh, it will keep quite well in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat gently with a splash of water.
Yes, it works nicely as a pasta salad. Loosen it with a little olive oil and add fresh basil before serving.
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Ingredients
THE TOMATO PESTO
- 1 cup oil packed sun-dried tomatoes sliced – notes 1. (200g / 7oz / or around 300g/10½oz including the oil)
- 2 cloves garlic roughly chopped
- ⅓ cup pine nuts or other nuts notes 3 (50g / 1 ¾oz)
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese finely grated lightly packed (20g / ¾oz)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾-1 cup sun dried tomato oil / light flavoured olive oil notes 2
THE PASTA
- 400 g penne or rigatoni pasta
- 1 tablespoon toasted pine nuts extra
- ½ cup fresh basil leaves torn or finely chopped
- Extra parmesan for serving
For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided
Equipment
- Large saucepan
Instructions
- Put a large saucepan half-filled with water on the stove top over high heat and bring to a boil. Salt it well.
- TOAST THE PINE NUTS:Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
- Place the pine nuts onto a baking tray and bake in the oven for 5-10 minutes until golden and smelling nutty.
- Tip: You can also toast them in a dry frying pan over medium heat, tossing regularly until golden.
- Transfer pine nuts to a plate or bowl to stop them cooking.
- COOK THE PASTA:Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to the packet instructions.
- TO MAKE THE TOMATO PESTO:Make sure you've measured the tomatoes without the oil but reserve the oil for the pesto. If your tomatoes did not come in oil see notes.
- Place the tomatoes, garlic, pine nuts, parmesan and salt into a food processor and blend until finely chopped.
- With the processor on low, drizzle in ¾ cup of oil until all incorporated. You can add another ¼ cup of oil to adjust the consistency without making it too oily.Tip: Thickness can be adjusted by blending slightly longer or adding a dash of water. If adding to pasta, using a little of the pasta water to help distribute it through the pasta.
- Drain the pasta, through a strainer over a cup so that you can save some pasta water.
- Add the pasta back to the pan along with the tomato pesto and a dash of pasta water. Stir well until the sauce is fully heated through, adding pasta water as needed to loosen and help the sauce to coat the pasta.
- At this point you can further customise by adding ½ cup of cream or a good handul of baby mozzarella balls.
- Serve immediately with basil, extra pine nuts and extra parmesan.
- Please take a moment to leave a comment & rating. It's appreciated and so helpful.
Notes
- Sun-dried tomatoes: It’s best to use sun-dried tomatoes in oil – they’re softer, and the oil can be used in the pesto, adding even more amazing flavour. If you can only get dry-packed or air-packed sun dried tomatoes, soften them first to make it easier to blend them, by soaking them in boiling water for 20 minutes. Drain and dry thoroughly before adding to the food processor.
- Oil quantity: You want a minimum of ¾ cup of oil (or up to 1 cup, to your preference). Use the oil that came with the sun dried tomatoes and top that up using a light flavoured olive oil.
- Nuts: Feel free to use other nuts like walnuts, almonds, cashews or macadamias.
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