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A white plate with the creamy pasta with pepperoni on top
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Pepperoni Pasta

Pepperoni pasta is a pressure cooker pasta dish (with an oven alternative!) that brings together tomato sauce, beef broth, garlic, herbs, cream cheese, mozzarella, and pepperoni for a comforting, pizza-inspired meal. It’s quick, flavorful, and family-friendly.
Course Dinner
Cuisine American, Italian
Keyword pepperoni pasta, pepperoni pasta bake
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 11 minutes
Servings 8 servings
Calories 385kcal
Author Elaine Benoit

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 1 pound pasta (casarecce)
  • 2 cups beef broth
  • 40 ounces marinara sauce (1 1/2 jars)
  • 1 teaspoon basil (dried)
  • 1 teaspoon oregano (dried)
  • 1/2 teaspoon thyme (dried)
  • 1/2 teaspoon marjoram (dried)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
  • 4 cloves garlic (minced) or (4 teaspoons garlic paste)
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 4 ounces cream cheese (half a block)
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella (divided, approximately, I use two handfuls.)
  • handful thin sliced pepperoni

Instructions

  • Place the pasta, broth, marinara, herbs, garlic, salt, and pepper in the pressure cooker.
    1 pound pasta, 2 cups beef broth, 40 ounces marinara sauce, 1 teaspoon basil, 1 teaspoon oregano, 1/2 teaspoon thyme, 1/2 teaspoon marjoram, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, 4 cloves garlic
  • Seal the pressure cooker and make sure the venting knob is in the sealed position. Set the pressure to high and the timer to 6 minutes.
  • Once the pressure cooker beeps that it's done cooking, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes. Carefully turn the venting knob to the vent position, and once the floating valve or pin drops, it is safe to open the lid.
  • Cut or tear the cream cheese in smaller pieces and add it on top of the pasta along with one handful of mozzarella cheese. Stir until combined.
    4 ounces cream cheese, 2 cups shredded mozzarella
  • If you are using the Ninja Foodi, add another handful of mozzarella on the stirred pasta, and top it with as many pieces of pepperoni as you like.
    Close the crisping lid, select the air fryer button, set the temperature to 390℉ and the timer for 5 minutes.
    handful thin sliced pepperoni
  • If you are using just a pressure cooker, but still need to crisp up the pepperoni, place as many slices as you like on a medium jelly roll pan or large skillet. Move the rack in your oven to the broil position (top slot). Set to broil - (low temperature - not high), and place the pepperoni in the oven. Stand there since they will crisp up quickly. It takes 2 - 4 minutes. You will know they are done when the edges of the pepperoni curls up.
  • Serve, smile, and enjoy.

Notes

Oven version

  1. Boil enough salted water for 1 pound of pasta on high heat.
  2. Add pasta and cook until al dente (see the instructions on your pasta box.
  3. Set aside 1/2 cup of pasta water, but drain the pasta in a colander.
  4. Add the pasta back to the pan with the cut-up cream cheese and pasta water.
  5. Stir until the cream cheese has melted. 
  6. Set the oven to 350 F. Also, get out a medium/large casserole dish. (I like the rectangle casserole dishes.
  7. Spoon a little marinara into the bottom of the dish, layer half of the pasta in it, and add half of the marinara, half of the mozzarella cheese, and some pepperoni slices.
  8. Add the rest of the pasta, marinara, cheese, and as many pepperoni slices as you want.
  9. Bake for 25 minutes, until hot and bubbling.
  10. Eat, smile, and enjoy.

Helpful tips

  • I'm using casarecce pasta since it's our favorite at the moment. But you can substitute other kinds of pasta like penne, rotini, or rigatoni will hold onto the creamy, cheesy sauce beautifully. Avoid long noodles for this one—they don’t catch the sauce as well.
  • Thin slices crisp up nicely, but if you want a bit in every bite, try chopping the pepperoni into small pieces and mixing it in. I didn't do that this time with the recipe because the mixed-in pepperoni will not crisp up. You will be adding a bunch of whole slices for the top before baking (if using the oven version) for a “pizza-like” finish.
  • I'm using shredded mozzarella, I state to use 2 cups, but I just measure by the handful.
  • If you want to make this vegetarian, you can use vegetable broth, and vegetarian pepperoni, and stir in some baby spinach before crisping up the pepperoni.
  • Add crushed red pepper flakes or a dash of hot sauce to the sauce mixture if you want a little kick.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cup | Calories: 385kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 36mg | Sodium: 1264mg | Potassium: 631mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1005IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 198mg | Iron: 2mg