Pasta with Peas and Pancetta is an easy Italian recipe, perfect for a quick weeknight meal. The sweet green peas and onions are a great complement to the salty pancetta and parmesan cheese.
Table of contents
About the Recipe
Pasta with Pancetta and Peas is one of my favorite, quick and easy, comfort meals. I grew up eating a lot of pasta and peas. It was one of my nonna's go to pantry meals. The pancetta brings a salty element to contrast the sweet peas with the bonus of a bit more protein. You could even use American bacon in place of pancetta. All you'll need are 6 ingredients and 30 minutes to pull this meal off!
If you're as much of a pea lover as I am, I urge you to check out my Pasta with Ricotta and Peas and Gnocchi with Mushrooms, Peas and Favas. I love to prepare these recipes in the spring when I can get my hands on some good, fresh peas. Some of my other spring time favorites include Ramp Pasta, Fava Bean Ravioli and Pasta with Mushrooms and Prosciutto.
For more simple Italian pasta recipes like this, sign up for my Free Pasta Cookbook!
Ingredient Notes
- Pasta- I usually use ditalini pasta (preferably ditali rigati), however, you can also use shells, pipe or pipette rigate, orecchiette or farfalle.
- Extra virgin olive oil- For a richer tasting dish, consider substituting half of the olive oil for butter.
- Pancetta- I prefer a good quality pancetta from a specialty store, but the pre-cut version I used here is completely acceptable. If you can't find pancetta, substitute with slab bacon or thick cut bacon.
- Onion- I used 1 small onion in the recipe depicted rather than half of a medium onion. Any white or yellow onion would work, as well as, spring onions or shallots.
- Peas- When in season, I like to use fresh, shelled green peas, rather than frozen peas.
- Cheese- You can substitute parmigiano reggiano cheese for pecorino romano or domestic parmesan, of course.
Recipe Steps
Bring a pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Season generously with salt and prepare the sauce while the pasta cooks. First, brown the pancetta in olive oil in a large pan (1). Transfer the pancetta to a bowl, reserving the oil in the pan. Add additional olive oil to the pan and sauté the onions until softened and translucent (2).
Next, add the peas and some pasta water to the pan with the onions. Simmer until the peas are cooked through (3). Return the pancetta to the pan, add the cooked pasta, 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a few more tablespoons of pasta water, as needed. Simmer to thicken the sauce, turn off the heat and stir in the grated cheese (4).
Tips and FAQs
- For a brothier version, add more pasta water or some chicken or vegetable broth.
- For a vegetarian version, simply omit the pancetta and add an extra tablespoon or two of olive oil or butter to compensate for reduced fat content.
- For a red sauce version, add leftover marinara sauce or tomato passata. Cook the raw tomato passata with the sautéed onions for about 20 minutes before adding the peas.
Yes, bacon is a great substitute for pancetta. Just keep in mind, this will add a smokey flavor to the dish.
When preparing pasta and peas, you can boil the peas with the pasta during the last 1-2 minutes of cooking. To avoid over-cooking the peas, I suggest cooking the peas in the pan used to prepare the sauce separate from the pasta.
Short pasta shapes work best, especially if they're tubular. Ditalini, shells, pipe or pipette rigate are great choices. Some pasta shapes that work well that are easier to find are orecchiette, farfalle or penne. You can even use long pastas, such as linguine and fettucine.
The pasta will keep for 3-5 days in the fridge. I like to save extra pasta water to reheat the pasta on the stove top or in the microwave. You can also use a couple tablespoons of regular water.
Easy Pasta and Peas with Pancetta - Italian Weeknight Dinner
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 3 servings
Description
Pasta with Peas and Pancetta is an easy Italian recipe, perfect for a weeknight meal. All you'll need are 6 basic ingredients!
Ingredients
8oz (230g) ditalini pasta (preferably ditali rigati), or pasta of choice
4 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, divided
4oz (115g) pancetta, cut into ¼ inch cubes
½ medium onion, diced
1 cup (125g) frozen green peas
¼ cup (20g) finely grated parmigiano reggiano cheese
Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Fill a large pot with water to cook the pasta in. Cover pot and turn heat to high.
- Meanwhile, heat a large pan over medium-low to medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and pancetta to the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 7-10 minutes or until the fat renders and the pancetta is golden brown. Transfer pancetta to a bowl, reserving the fat in the pan.
- When water in pot comes to a boil, season with a generous amount of salt (about 1-2 tablespoons of Kosher salt per quart of water). Add pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until 1-2 minutes short of al dente, Drain pasta, reserving about 1-2 cups of pasta water for the sauce.
- While the pasta cooks, add 2 more tablespoons of olive oil to the pan along with the chopped onion. Season with salt and pepper. Cook 3-5 minutes until soft and translucent. Add peas and ¼ cup of pasta cooking water. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2-3 minutes until the peas are tender.
- Add the cooked pasta, pancetta and remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the pan with the peas. Toss to combine. Add an additional ¼ cup of pasta cooking water, or more as needed, to create a sauce. Bring to a simmer and cook for a couple minutes, until the sauce is thickened with some extra liquid remaining. Remove from heat and stir in the grated cheese. Add additional salt and pepper, to taste, as needed. Thin sauce with additional pasta water if needed. Serve topped with grated cheese and cracked black pepper. Enjoy.
Notes
Short pasta shapes work best, especially if they're tubular. Ditalini, shells, pipe or pipette rigate are great choices. Some pasta shapes that work well that are easier to find are orecchiette, farfalle or penne. You can even use long pastas, such as linguine and fettucine.
For a richer tasting dish, consider substituting half of the olive oil for butter.
If you can't find pancetta, substitute with slab bacon or thick cut bacon.
I used 1 small onion in the recipe depicted rather than ½ medium onion. Any white or yellow onion would work, as well as, spring onions or shallots.
When in season, I like to use fresh, shelled green peas, rather than frozen peas.
Pecorino romano cheese also works well in this recipe.
Double or triple this recipe to serve more people.
The pasta will keep for 3-5 days in the fridge. I like to save extra pasta water to reheat the pasta on the stove top or in the microwave. You can also use a couple tablespoons of regular water.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Saute, Boil
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ⅓ of pasta
- Calories: 675
- Sugar: 6g
- Sodium: 800mg
- Fat: 37g
- Saturated Fat: 9g
- Unsaturated Fat: 28g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 66g
- Fiber: 5g
- Protein: 20g
- Cholesterol: 30mg
Romain says
Lovely spring recipe. Can’t wait for peas to arrive.
Sabrina Russo says
Thanks! Me either 🙂