When we tried Robin Robertson’s Slow-Cooked Ziti Casserole, we found ourselves inspired to make our own slow cooker pasta casserole. We lightened up the dish, and we added a little red wine for sophistication. Of course, throwing everything into a slow cooker makes this simple pasta dish even easier!
How To Make This Recipe
To bring out all of those traditional Italian flavors, we bring on those aromatics and fresh herbs. In lieu of fatty ground beef or sausage, we prefer using Italian-style seitan or sliced cremini mushrooms in this dish. When we opt to use cremini mushrooms, we also like to add 1/4 teaspoon of Italian seasoning into our slow cooker along with the dried basil. To keep our glycemic index down, we also love swapping in chickpea-based pasta shells when we can.
Prepare Sauce
We start heating our olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. When we’re using our Instant Pot as our slow cooker, we just use the “Saute” setting on low for this step to keep things easy. We sauté our onions and seitan (or cremini mushrooms) until the onions are translucent. Next, we add our minced garlic and cook for just 30 seconds more to release that fragrance.
Next, we pour our seitan (or mushroom) mixture into our slow cooker. When we’re using our Instant Pot, we just cancel “Saute” at this point. Then, we add our crushed tomatoes, dried basil, water, and red wine. We season with salt and black pepper to taste. Finally, we set our slow cooker to cook for 4 hours on low and walk away for roughly 3.5 hours.
We’ve noticed that our Instant Pot tends to run hotter than a standard slow cooker. When we’re using an Instant Pot in lieu of a standard slow cooker, less time is typically needed every step of the process. We recommend checking in on your Instant Pot about 2 hours in just to see how things are going.
Add Pasta Shells
About a half hour before the sauce is finished cooking, we add our “almost” al dente pasta shells and stir. Once the pasta is added to the pot, we continue cooking the remaining duration. We find this dish to appear a bit soupy when we add our pasta. The sauce thickens a bit after the shells are added.
As a reminder, the Instant Pot tends to run hotter than a typical slow cooker. If you’re using an Instant Pot here, only 10 minutes or so may be required to finish that pasta. You don’t want a mushy mess of pasta on your hands.
Ready To Serve
Once the slow cooking process is complete, we mix in our fresh parsley and soy parmesan. Then, we scoop a hearty portion of pasta into serving bowls alongside a slice of crusty bread to mop up the sauce. We garnish our slow cooker pasta casserole with fresh black pepper, soy parmesan and a little fresh parsley.
More pasta dishes:
Recipe Card for Slow Cooker Pasta Casserole
Here’s the recipe card for Slow Cooker Pasta Casserole. Print, share or save!
Slow Cooker Pasta Casserole
Equipment
- Large skillet or instant pot
- Slow cooker or instant pot
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin
- 1 large yellow onion minced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes
- 1 package Italian-style seitan or cremini mushrooms and 1/4 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 cup water
- 1/4 cup red wine or more to taste
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 8 ounces pasta shells cooked "almost" al dente
- 1-2 tbsp fresh Italian parsley chopped
- 1/3 cup vegan parmesan cheese
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Using a large pan or your instant pot, sauté the onions and seitan in the olive oil over medium heat for 5 minutes (or until onions are translucent). If the seitan starts to stick, you may need to add a bit of water while sautéing. Next, add the minced garlic and cook for more 30 seconds until fragrant. Pour the seitan mixture into your slow cooker, or cancel the saute setting on your Instant Pot.
- Add crushed tomatoes, basil, water and red wine into your slow cooker or Instant Pot. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Finally, set your slow cooker to cook for 4 hours on low and walk away for roughly 3.5 hours
- About 30 minutes before the sauce is finished cooking, add your pasta shells and stir. Once the pasta is added to the pot, continue cooking for 30 minutes. Note: Don’t be alarmed if the dish seems a bit soupy when you add your pasta. This sauce will thicken a bit after the shells are added.
- Once the slow cooking process is complete, mix in your fresh parsley and soy parmesan.
- Scoop a hearty portion of pasta into bowls and serve with a slice of fresh Italian bread. Garnish your slow shells with fresh black pepper, soy parmesan and/or a little fresh parsley to taste. Enjoy!
