The Best Creamy Bacon and Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta

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Okay, can we talk about carbs for a second? Specifically pasta. Because pasta is one of those foods I will never — not once — feel bad about eating. It is endlessly flexible, it’s comforting, it makes a Tuesday feel like an occasion, and when you have a good sauce situation going on, it genuinely rivals anything you’d order at a restaurant.

I’ll be honest with you: I am not a tomato person. Raw tomatoes are a hard no from me. But sun-dried tomatoes? Completely different story. Sun-dried tomatoes are concentrated, slightly sweet, and a little chewy, and they bring this depth to a dish that fresh tomatoes just can’t touch. Paired with smoky bacon and a cream sauce built on white wine and Parmesan? I mean. Come on.

This bacon and sun-dried tomato pasta came together because I wanted something that felt special without being complicated. It’s the kind of dinner I make when I want to feel like I did something, you know? It looks like a restaurant dish. It smells incredible while it’s cooking. And the cleanup is one pan plus a pot. That’s a win any night of the week.

What Makes This Bacon and Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta So Good

Every ingredient in this dish is earning its place — nothing is filler. Here’s what’s going on:

The bacon.

Not just any bacon — thick-cut, hickory-smoked bacon that you dice yourself. The smokiness is the backbone of the whole dish. When you cook it down and leave that tablespoon of bacon fat in the pan to build your sauce on, you’re layering flavor in a way that shortcuts just can’t replicate. Don’t skip the bacon fat.

The sun-dried tomatoes.

As someone who has a well-documented issue with raw tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes are my exception. They bring sweetness and a little chewiness that balances perfectly against the rich cream sauce and the salty bacon. They’re not overpowering — they’re balancing. That’s the job they’re doing here.

The sweet peas.

I know. I see your face. But hear me out — the peas are what cuts through the richness of the cream sauce and adds a little pop of color and freshness to each bite. They’re not the star of the show, but without them, this dish would feel heavier than it needs to. Give the peas a chance.

The white wine cream sauce.

This is where the magic happens. You’re building a sauce right in the pan where the bacon cooked, using shallot, garlic, butter, white wine, heavy cream, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. The wine gets reduced down by half before the cream goes in, which means the alcohol cooks off and you’re left with a complex, slightly tangy base that makes the cream sauce taste like it took way longer than it did.

Pappardelle.

Wide, flat, ribbon-like noodles that hold onto a cream sauce better than almost any other pasta shape. The sauce clings to every inch of those wide noodles instead of pooling at the bottom of the bowl. If you can’t find pappardelle, fettuccine or tagliatelle are great substitutes — just use 8 oz of whatever you have.

Cooking Tips for the Best Bacon Pasta

Don’t drain all the bacon fat.

This is the most important tip I can give you. After the bacon is done, pour off most of the fat but leave about a tablespoon in the pan. That leftover fat is pure flavor — it’s what your shallots and garlic are going to cook in, and it becomes part of the foundation of your sauce. If you wipe the pan clean and start fresh, you’re leaving the best part behind.

Reduce the wine before adding cream.

Don’t rush this step. Add the white wine and let it cook down by half — about 5 to 7 minutes — before you add the cream. This does two things: it cooks off the alcohol (so your sauce doesn’t taste boozy) and it concentrates the flavor of the wine so it actually contributes something to the dish. If you add the cream too soon, the sauce will taste flat.

Salt your pasta water generously.

Your pasta water should taste like the ocean — well-salted water is how you season the pasta itself, not just the sauce. Under-seasoned pasta is the most common reason a pasta dish tastes bland even when the sauce is great. A generous pinch of salt per quart of water is the move.

Save your pasta water — seriously.

Before you drain the pappardelle, scoop out about half a cup of that starchy pasta water and set it aside. Pasta water is liquid gold in a cream sauce situation. If your sauce gets too thick or you need to loosen it up when you toss everything together, a splash of pasta water will smooth it right out without thinning the flavor. It’s the restaurant trick that makes home pasta taste different.

Don’t overcook the pasta.

Cook your pappardelle just to al dente — there should still be a slight bite to it when you drain it. It’s going to finish cooking in the sauce for another few minutes, so if you cook it all the way through before that, it’ll be overdone by the time it hits the bowl. Al dente going in means perfectly cooked coming out.

Add the cheese off the heat.

Parmesan can seize up and get grainy if you add it to a sauce that’s too hot and still over direct heat. Once you’ve added the cream and it’s just barely simmering, pull the pan slightly off heat, add the Parmesan, and stir constantly until it’s fully melted and the sauce is smooth. This keeps the sauce silky instead of clumpy.

Easy Swaps and Variations

Once you’ve made this once, it’s easy to riff on. Here are a few directions you can take it:

• Make it with chicken. Sear some sliced chicken breast or thighs in the pan after the bacon comes out, before you build the sauce. Remove it, make the sauce, then add the chicken back in with everything else.
• Skip the peas. Not your thing? Swap in fresh baby spinach (stir it in at the end and let it wilt into the sauce), or just leave it out entirely.
• Use a different pasta. Fettuccine, tagliatelle, or even rigatoni all work well with a cream sauce. Use 8 oz of whatever you’ve got.
• Make it spicier. Double the red pepper flakes or add a pinch of Calabrian chili paste to the sauce for real heat.
• Add mushrooms. Sliced cremini or baby bella mushrooms sautéed with the shallots add an earthy depth that pairs really well with the bacon and sun-dried tomatoes.

What to Serve With This Pasta

This is a rich dish, so you don’t need a lot alongside it. A simple green salad with a light vinaigrette is the perfect contrast. A warm baguette or crusty bread for sauce-swiping is not optional in my house — it’s mandatory. And if you want to round it out as a full dinner party spread, a simple Caesar salad or roasted asparagus would make it feel like a complete restaurant-style meal.

How to Store and Reheat Leftovers

Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Cream sauces will thicken significantly in the fridge — that’s normal.

Reheating: Reheat in a skillet on low heat rather than the microwave for best results. Add a splash of cream, milk, or even water to loosen the sauce as it warms up and stir gently until everything comes back together. Microwave reheating works in a pinch but can make the sauce separate.

Freezing: Cream-based pasta sauces don’t freeze particularly well — the cream tends to separate when thawed. This one is best made fresh and enjoyed within a few days.

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