10 easy pasta recipes you can make right now

There are few meals easier or cheaper to throw together than pantry pastas. Keep a few pounds of assorted pasta shapes and a handful of your favorite ingredients in the kitchen, and you can get a tasty dinner on the table without a trip to the grocery store.

Pantry pastas are easy to customize for your personal inventory and preferences. Start with one key ingredient like tomatoes or canned beans. Then add complementary flavor boosters like ground spices, fermented foods or cheeses. You’ll find 10 recipe ideas below, but don’t let them limit your creativity.

Each of the pasta recipes below start with one key ingredient: tomatoes, cheese, beans, a jar of briny foods or a cured meat. There are two options for each, one classic recipe and one variation. The twists are intended to be idea starters, so feel free to play with the foods you already have in your pantry to make your own recipe.

Tomato sauce is the classic pantry pasta topper. With a can of tomatoes and an aromatic ingredient or two, you’re well on your way to dinner. Marcella Hazan’s tomato sauce, made with just tomatoes, onion and butter, is internet famous. Here, we’re adding a Parmesan rind for additional umami and then, in the variation, using the sauce to prepare Assassin’s Spaghetti, a spicy, flavor-packed dish made with a risottolike technique for reducing the sauce.

Classic: Pasta with Marcella Hazan-inspired Sauce

Use an immersion blender to puree 1 (28-ounce) can of tomatoes in a Dutch oven. Add half a peeled onion, 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, 1 Parmesan rind and a few generous pinches of salt. Bring to a rapid simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the onion is soft and the sauce is flavorful, about 1 hour. Season to taste with salt. Discard the onion half and Parmesan rind. About 20 minutes before the sauce is finished, boil 1 pound pasta in salted water until al dente. Add the drained pasta to the sauce in the Dutch oven, stir well to combine, and serve topped with the cheese of your choice.

When the Hazan-inspired sauce is finished, heat 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil and 1 to 2 tablespoons chili crisp in a large, deep skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add 8 ounces dried spaghetti and turn to coat in the oil. Ladle in about 1 1/2 cups sauce and 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring frequently, until the sauce has been fully absorbed and the pasta starts to fry in the oil. Add another cup of sauce and cup of water and repeat the cooking process. Continue to repeat one to two more times until the pasta is tender and browned. Serve drizzled with remaining tomato sauce and additional chili crisp.

Per serving, based on 2: 1,006 calories (percent of calories from fat, 47), 21 grams protein, 114 grams carbohydrates, 19 grams total sugars, 9 grams fiber, 54 grams total fat (18 grams saturated), 64 milligrams cholesterol, 1,961 milligrams sodium.

Classic roux-based macaroni and cheese offers the perfect canvas for pantry pasta riffs. Stir in spices or flavorful pastes to the butter-flour mixture, then add your favorite mix-ins to the cooked pasta. For a spicy and deeply savory take, add white miso to the roux and chopped cabbage kimchi before serving.

Boil 1 pound short pasta, such as shells or macaroni, in salted water until al dente. Meanwhile, melt 4 tablespoons unsalted butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. When the butter is foamy, whisk in 1/4 cup all-purpose flour. Continue to whisk until the mixture turns very foamy, lightens in color and no longer tastes like flour, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in 4 cups milk. Continue to cook, whisking frequently, until the sauce thickens slightly and comes to a simmer, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Gradually whisk in 1 pound grated melty cheese, such as medium cheddar, Monterey Jack, Gruyere or a combination, until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the drained pasta and serve.

While making the Stovetop Macaroni and Cheese recipe, add 2 tablespoons miso paste to the melted butter, whisking to combine, before adding the flour. Add 1 cup drained and chopped kimchi along with the pasta to the finished cheese sauce.

Canned beans add vegetarian protein, fiber and heft to pantry pastas; stewlike Italian Pasta e Ceci is a classic example. Even without extra additions, it’s far more flavorful than the sum of its parts. But if you want to amplify dinner, take inspiration from Moroccan tagine for a spice-heavy variation.

Heat 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil over medium heat. When the oil starts to shimmer, add 4 cloves minced garlic and cook, stirring, until softened and aromatic. Add 1/4 cup tomato paste and continue to cook, stirring, until the paste starts to stick to the bottom of the pot and caramelize, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the beans and liquid from 2 (14-ounce) cans of chickpeas and 2 1/2 cups water. Season to taste with salt and pepper, increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, add 8 ounces short pasta, such as orecchiette. Continue to boil until the pasta is very tender. If the stew gets so thick that the pasta starts to stick to the bottom of the pot, decrease the heat to medium-high and add additional water, 1/4 cup at a time, to loosen. Remove from the heat and serve topped with grated Parmesan or pecorino cheese.

Per serving, based on 4: 615 calories (percent of calories from fat, 29), 22 grams protein, 89 grams carbohydrates, 10 grams total sugars, 15 grams fiber, 20 grams total fat (2 grams saturated), no cholesterol, 996 milligrams sodium.

While making the classic Pasta e Ceci recipe, after the garlic has softened, add 1 teaspoon ground coriander, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger and 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Cook until aromatic, about 30 seconds, then add the tomato paste. Add half a finely chopped preserved lemon along with the beans. Serve with crumbled feta.

Per serving, based on 4: 622 calories (percent of calories from fat, 29), 22 grams protein, 91 grams carbohydrates, 11 grams total sugars, 15 grams fiber, 20 grams total fat (2 grams saturated), no cholesterol, 998 milligrams sodium.

Salty and briny foods, like anchovies, capers and olives, offer the most bang for your buck when it comes to flavorful pantry ingredients. In addition to salinity, they bring layers of umami to any sauce. The classic briny sauce is pasta puttanesca, which also packs in tomatoes, garlic and red pepper flakes. For a twist, build a sauce around the flavors in a muffuletta sandwich, with pickled vegetables instead of the anchovies and provolone cheese for a melty topping.

Boil 1 pound long pasta, such as spaghetti or linguine, in salted water until just shy of al dente. Save 1/2 cup pasta cooking water before draining. While the pasta cooks, heat 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil in a large deep skillet over medium heat. When the oil is shimmering, add 1/2 cup drained capers, 1/2 cup chopped kalamata olives, 8 finely chopped garlic cloves, the drained anchovies from 1 (2-ounce) tin and 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring frequently, until the anchovies have broken up and dissolved into the oil, about 5 minutes. Add 1 (14-ounce) can crushed tomatoes. Stir well to combine, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a rapid simmer. Add the pasta and 1/4 cup of the reserved cooking water. Cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce emulsifies and coats the pasta, 2 to 4 minutes. (If needed, stir in extra cooking water, 1 tablespoon at a time, to loosen the sauce.) Remove from the heat. Stir in a handful of chopped fresh parsley if you have it and serve topped with grated pecorino and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

Make the classic Pasta Puttanesca recipe, but change up the ingredients you add to the shimmering olive oil: add 1/2 cup finely chopped oil-packed olives, 1/2 cup finely chopped giardiniera, 1/2 cup finely chopped roasted red peppers, 1/4 cup finely chopped peperoncini peppers, 4 finely chopped garlic cloves and 1 tablespoon finely chopped capers. Use just 1 cup of canned crushed tomatoes, reserving the remainder for another use. Add the pasta and pasta water as written above. Once the sauce is emulsified, remove from the heat and top with 1/2 cup diced provolone cheese slices. Cover and let the cheese melt in the residual heat, then serve topped with chopped fresh parsley if you have it.

Like anchovies, cured meats offer tons of flavor. Plus, unopened, they last for two weeks in the fridge or months in the freezer. Italian guanciale is the classic flavor base for carbonara, but it’s also common to see bacon in variations on the recipe. For an unexpected twist, add sauerkraut and caraway seeds to create a German-inspired meal with the same richness as carbonara.

Boil 8 ounces long pasta, such as spaghetti or bucatini, in salted water until al dente. Save 1/4 cup pasta cooking water before draining. While the pasta is cooking, cook 1/2 cup diced guanciale in a large skillet over medium heat until much of its fat has rendered and the meat has turned brown, about 10 minutes. While the guanciale cooks, whisk together 1 large egg, 3 egg yolks and 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese in a large bowl until thoroughly combined. When the bacon is cooked, add the cooked pasta to the skillet and toss well to coat the pasta in the bacon fat. Transfer the pasta to the bowl with the egg mixture, add the reserved pasta water and stir to temper the eggs. Return the entire pasta mixture to the skillet. Turn the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring constantly with tongs, until the sauce begins to thicken and coat the pasta, 1 to 2 minutes. Keep a careful eye on any hot spots to prevent the eggs from scrambling. Immediately transfer to a large serving bowl with additional Parmesan cheese on the side.

Substitute 2 diced slices of bacon for the guanciale in the classic Pasta Carbonara recipe. Add 1/2 cup drained sauerkraut and 1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds to the skillet once the bacon has browned. Serve the pasta topped with additional sauerkraut and lots of freshly ground black pepper.