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Tender tortellini pasta filled with cheese or spinach is simmered along with Italian sausage in a rich and flavorful sauce to make this recipe for Sausage, Tortellini, and Spinach in a Creamy Tomato Sauce.
This tortellini recipe is so irresistible, the whole family was stealing bites straight out of the pan on the stove.
One pan meals are huge right now. No one likes to spend hours cleaning up the kitchen after spending time cooking dinner, right? This meal though? I would happily wash a whole lot of pots and pans to eat this sausage and tortellini skillet again.
Lucky for both of us, this deliciousness cooks up in a single skillet, making cleanup a breeze.
What Is Tortellini
Tortellini is a fun little pasta. Similar to ravioli, tortellini is typically filled with cheese, vegetables, or meat.
Most commonly found in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, it might also be found in the freezer, or sometimes with the dried pasta as well. (This particular recipe is written for the most commonly used refrigerated style of tortellini pasta.)
How To Cook Tortellini
Tortellini can be boiled like dried pasta, simmered with a sauce in a pan, or sautéed on the stove. Tortellini can even be baked.
My boys have been on quite a tortellini kick lately, requesting it almost every time I’m meal planning.
Sausage Tortellini
I made this Sausage Tortellini Skillet for a super-fast late-night dinner and Sean asked if it was already on the blog. I knew it wasn’t, but I didn’t realize that I didn’t have a single tortellini pasta recipe on the website.
How is that even possible? Keep an eye out for a few more of our favorites in the next few months. I started this blog years ago to save my family’s favorite recipes in one handy place, so these recipes all need to be here too!
Sausage Tortellini Recipe
- Cook and crumble the sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the sausage has almost browned, add the onion and garlic. Continue cooking for 2-3 minutes until the garlic is fragrant and the onion begins to soften.
- Add the tomatoes and the tortellini to the skillet. Stir and reduce heat once the sauce comes to a simmer. Cover with lid and simmer softly until the tortellini is tender about 8-10 minutes.
- Add the spinach and stir for 1-2 minutes until it wilts. Stir in the cream. Sprinkle each serving with cheese if desired.
Tortellini Recipes
For more great ways to enjoy tortellini, check out this recipe for Cheesy Tortellini with Bacon and Brussels Sprouts. This Fried Tortellini by Miss In The Kitchen is a terrific appetizer or a main dish option with this fantastic 5 Minute Marinara Sauce for dipping.
This Creamy Parmesan Tortellini with Chicken and Spinach is another one that’s always a hit with my family.
Here are a few more one skillet meals to help with your weeknight menu planning. Better-Than-Take-Out Fried Rice and Kielbasa Cabbage Potato Skillet are two of my favorite 20-Minute Meals.
Sausage Tortellini with Spinach
Ingredients
- 1 pound Hot or Mild Italian Sausage
- 1/2 medium onion, chopped small, about 2/3 cup
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3 (14) ounce cans crushed tomatoes
- 20 ounces refrigerated tortellini
- 4 ounces baby spinach, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese, shredded (optional)
Instructions
- Cook and crumble the sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the sausage has almost browned, add the onion and garlic. Continue cooking for 2-3 minutes until the garlic is fragrant and the onion begins to soften.
- Add the tomatoes and the tortellini to the skillet. Stir and reduce heat once the sauce comes to a simmer. Cover with lid and simmer softly until the tortellini is tender about 8-10 minutes.
- Add the spinach and stir for 1-2 minutes until it wilts. Stir in the cream. Sprinkle each serving with cheese if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
{originally published 1/10/18 – recipe notes and photos updated 10/1/21}
Looks delicious Mary and I like it being one pot
I had to come check this out – what a gorgeous skillet of perfect comfort food!
Made this last night and it was fantastic! The boyfriend loved it as well. Extremely flavorful, and most importantly – easy! I’m not the world’s best cook and this one was simple enough to follow and prepare. I used a chicken parm tortellini assortment. I’m a picky eater naturally and I’m not a big fan of spinach, but I could barely taste it in this dish which is a huge plus for me. Turned out excellent.
Are tortellini available gluten free? This sounds so good.
I’ve seen gluten-free dried tortellini but I don’t recall seeing the refrigerated ones that way. Dried will work in this recipe though.
Made it for the first time and the family loved it. Definitely a keeper! Definitely my kind of recipe – nice and simple with good results!
Just loved this recipe! Easy and delicious! Definitely a keeper.
The kind of soups I like.
Second time I made, with the same results, the skillet did not last lone great dish. Next time I may double ingredients so it will be around longer (any suggestions). Thanks
This meal was delicious, and so easy to make. I liked that it could be cooked in one large skillet, so cleanup was quick and easy too. I used a “5 Cheese” flavor of tortellini which were very tasty. This recipe is a winner! It is simple enough for a weeknight family meal, but also looks fancy enough for company if you add a nice salad. Thanks for sharing this!
I am thrilled that you enjoyed the recipe! (We actually had this for dinner just tonight. It’s a keeper!)
i made this tortellini for dinner tonight and it was a hit! everyone loved it! i added the spinach in with the tortellini when it was cooking, and it made the cooking time much shorter. also at the end i added about 1/4-1/2 cup of parmesan and mixed it in. it was delicious!!!! definitely a keeper!!! thank you so much!!!
I’m so glad you liked the tortellini, Janie!
Am I correct in reading we need *three* 14-ounce cans of crushed tomatoes? So 42 ounces? I’m making this tonight and just want to be sure because that sounds like a lot!
Yes, that is correct, Annie.
Just made this for the second time – it is delicious!!
I’m so happy you’re enjoying the recipe, Becky!
My family doesn’t like tomato chunks. Can I use the same amount of sauce they like instead of the crushed tomatoes?
That should work fine, Megan. (There really aren’t any chunks of tomato in crushed tomatoes though, just so you know.)
We’ve made this a ton of times and absolutely love it! Do you have any suggestions of how you would freeze this? I’m worried the tortellini will get mushy but would love to freeze a batch next time I make it.
Thanks!
I’m so happy to hear that you’re enjoying this recipe, Canon. I’ve never tried freezing this, as pasta tends to lose its chewy texture when frozen and become too soft when thawed.
Turned out amazing! Thank you so much.
I’m so glad you liked this dinner, Lisa!
This looks delicious. Am planning on making this tonight. I don’t see any mention of spices though. Any ideas?
Hi there! This particular dish absorbs its awesome flavors from the sausage. You can add some Italian spices to the sauce though, if you want a little more. Enjoy!
I am making this recipe tonight and I am so excited! My local store does not have refrigerated tortellini, only frozen. Should I boil them first and add them to the sauce and sausage?
You should be able to add them frozen and cook/warm them in the sauce, Caitlyn. Enjoy!
Do you think I could make this in a crockpot?
I think you could probably adjust for the crock-pot, but you’ll need to cook the sausage first. If you decide to try it, let me know how it works out.
What kind of cream do I purchase?
I buy heavy cream, Brenda.
What else can i substitute instead of the spinach.
You can skip it entirely, Erica, or try it with shredded kale or cabbage.