Turn your roast beef leftovers into delicious flavorful pasta! This Creamy Prime Rib Pasta is so simple, and comes together in just 20 minutes!
Roasting a Prime Rib at the holidays is a treat, and we rarely have any leftovers. But if we do, I always make sure that nothing goes to waste. I repurpose the meat and make delicious Prime Rib Sandwiches or this creamy pasta. Both recipes are super quick and easy to make, and you are going to love them!
This pasta is made with leftover prime rib meat that is cut into bite-sized pieces, perfectly cooked pasta, mushrooms, and an easy and flavorful parmesan cream sauce. If you’re a fan of creamy pasta, you should also check out my Creamy Shrimp Pasta, and this luxurious Salmon Pasta dish.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Get Excited About Leftovers – As much as I love slices of prime rib roast, the leftovers on the next day are as exciting as the main thing! There are so many delicious things that you can use them for.
- Quick and Easy – Roasting a prime rib can be a little technical, but making this pasta is a breeze! The whole thing is done in 20 minutes from start to finish.
- Flavorful – There is so much flavor in this simple-to-throw-together mushroom cream sauce and the tender prime rib pieces.
Key Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make this easy pasta dish:
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
- Prime Rib: You saved some prime rib roast from last night and stored it in the fridge. Take it out of the fridge, and cut it into bite-size pieces removing any large pieces of fat.
- Pasta: You can use any short pasta in this recipe – I used penne. I like to use a ridged pasta shape so that the pasta will hold onto all of the delicious cajun cream sauce.
- Mushrooms: I’m using cremini mushrooms (these are called chestnut mushrooms in the UK) that I sliced and sauteed before making the sauce. You can also use button mushrooms here.
- Cajun: Pick this seasoning up from your local grocery store. Cajun seasoning is generally a blend of salt, pepper, chili powder, garlic, and other spices. It’s a bit smoky, a bit spicy, and a delicious all-purpose seasoning to cook with. Look for “Slap Ya Mama” cajun seasoning at your local store or online, or I’ve had great results with McCormick seasoning.
- Parmesan Cheese: Grate parmesan fresh from a block or wedge. It tastes so much better and melts easier in the cream sauce.
How To Make Prime Rib Pasta
- In a skillet over medium heat, melt the butter, and add olive oil. Add the sliced mushrooms, then season with salt, ground black pepper, and cook until tender (about 3-4 minutes).
- Add garlic, and cook for 30 seconds or until it’s fragrant. Add the heavy cream, parmesan, and cajun seasoning.
- Stir and cook until the parmesan melts then loosen the sauce with reserved pasta water and allow to simmer for a minute. Taste the sauce and see if more salt and pepper are needed.
- Toss the pasta with the sauce until it’s well coated. Add the prime rib to warm it up gently, garnish with freshly chopped parsley and serve.
Tip!
Be careful not to burn the garlic! Garlic cooks very quickly and only needs 30 seconds, so make sure that you have the heavy cream ready to go into the pan right after the 30 seconds end.
Recipe Tips
- Use any Leftover Roast Beef: I made this pasta using prime rib leftovers, but any roast beef leftovers work here.
- Prime rib is much easier to slice when it’s cold, so be sure to slice it after you take it out of the fridge.
- Reserve some of the pasta water before you drain the pasta! In case your sauce seems too thick, starchy pasta water is the perfect thing to adjust the consistency of the sauce if you have to.
Storing Tips
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat gently in a pan with a splash of water, or reheat in the microwave.
I hope that you love this leftover prime rib recipe as much as I did! Be sure to pin the recipe so you can always find it.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Creamy Prime Rib Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 oz (225g) uncooked pasta
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 7 oz (200g) cremini mushrooms sliced (chestnut mushrooms in the UK)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 clove garlic minced
- ½ cup heavy cream (double cream in the UK)
- ½ cup parmesan grated
- 1 teaspoon cajun seasoning or smoked paprika
- 1 pound (450g) cooked prime rib sliced into bite size pieces
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- In a medium-sized saucepan, boil water and salt it. Add your pasta, and cook according to the package instructions until al dente. When the pasta is cooked, reserve 1 cup of the pasta water and drain the pasta.
- In a skillet over medium heat, melt the butter, and add olive oil. Add the sliced mushrooms, then season with salt, pepper, and cook until tender (about 3-4 minutes).
- Add garlic, and cook for 30 seconds or until it's fragrant. Add the heavy cream, parmesan, and cajun seasoning.
- Stir and cook until the parmesan melts then loosen the sauce with reserved pasta water and allow to simmer for a minute. Taste the sauce and see if more salt and pepper are needed.
- Toss the pasta with the sauce until it's well coated. Add the prime rib to warm it up gently, garnish with freshly chopped parsley and serve.
Notes:
- Don’t forget to reserve about a cup of pasta cooking water, it’s quite starchy and great for loosening up the sauce. You will most probably need much less than a cup, but to stay on the safe side I always reserve 1 cup and drain the rest.
- Store in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 3 days.
- Reheat the pasta in a skillet over low-medium heat, and add a splash of water to loosen the sauce. Do the same if using the microwave. I don’t recommend freezing this creamy pasta.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
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