Pasta e Piselli (Pasta with Peas)

5 from 42 votes

Pasta e Piselli (Pasta with Peas)

Pasta e Piselli (pasta with peas) is a delicious, one-pot meal that has been loved by Italians and Italian Americans for generations. Made with just a few ingredients, this simple pasta dish, with its creamy texture and sweet peas, is sure to bring smiles to your dinner table.

Prep Time5

Cook Time25

Total Time30

Course: pasta course, Side Dish

Cuisine: Italian, Italian - American

Servings:

Calories: 432kcal

Author: Chef Dennis Littley

Ingredients

1 lb ditalini -or other small shape pasta
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 large sweet onion finely diced
1 clove garlic finely diced
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes -to taste
4 cups water -more as needed
1 teaspoon salt -to taste
¼ black pepper -to taste
14-16 oz baby peas -frozen or fresh
1 cup Pecorino Romano cheese -grated (or parmesan cheese)

Instructions

Add the olive oil and chopped onions to a large pan over medium-high heat.
Cook the onions until soft (4 – 5 minutes). Don’t let the onions brown.
Add the chopped garlic and red pepper flakes to the onions and continue to cook for 1 minute.Add the water, salt, and baby peas to the onion mixture and bring to a boil ( used frozen peas).
Once boiling, remove some of the peas and mash them with a large spoon or fork.
Add the pasta and mashed peas to the pot and reduce the heat to medium heat. Let the pasta cook per instructions on the package for aldente. Stir the mixture often to keep it from sticking.
If the pasta isn’t fully cooked, add more water until the pasta is cooked to the desired doneness. When the pasta has reached al dente, remove the pot from the stove and mix in the cheese and chopped parsley.
Taste and season the pasta with peas to taste with salt and black pepper. If the pasta seems dry, add a little water to loosen it up.
Serve the pasta with additional grated cheese, black pepper, and crusty bread.

Notes

Traditionally ditalini is used to make this pasta with peas, but other small pasta shapes, such as small shells, farfalle, pennette, elbow macaroni, and orzo, can also be used for Pasta e Piselli.

If you’re not a fan of peas or simply want to add additional vegetables to the dish, asparagus, spinach, grape tomatoes, broccoli, broccolini, and red peppers would make nice additions. Any of the vegetables you add should be cut into small pieces to keep the style and look of this dish the same.

*Chicken broth or vegetable broth can be used instead of water for a more flavorful dish, or you can use half water and half broth. Just make sure to cut back on the salt if you use broth.

Nutrition