Pasta and peas, known as pasta e piselli in Italian, is a beloved dish cherished by Italians worldwide! What sets this pasta and peas recipe apart is it’s incredible simplicity; with just a handful of inexpensive ingredients – ditalini pasta, peas, parmigiano-reggiano cheese, and onions – you can create this delicious and comforting meal!
The best part? It’s astonishingly quick, ready in just 20 minutes, making it the perfect meal for a busy weeknight!
If you’re a visual learner, or would like more tips, tricks and substitutions for this dish, you can find a recipe video within my Reddit profile!
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**INGREDIENTS**
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 14g (1 tbsp.) olive oil
• 175g (1 1/4 cup) peas
• 4g (1 tsp.) salt
• 500ml (2 cups) water
• 225g (8 oz) pasta (I use ditalini, but any small pasta will work!)
🥄 This recipe serves 2 people. Feel free to double the recipe if you’re serving 4 people! —–
**METHOD**
1. Finely chop one small onion. On medium heat, add 14g (1 tbsp.) olive oil to a large pan and add your onions. Let the onions cook for around 5 minutes, until they become translucent.
2. Add 175g (1 ¼ cup) peas. You can use fresh, frozen or canned peas. I’m using frozen Petit Pois peas for this recipe. Once your peas have started to cook/dethaw, add in 4g (1 tsp.) salt.
3. Lightly mash a quarter of your peas; this is an optional step, but I love the additional texture that this step brings!
4. Turn your heat up to high and add 500ml (2 cups) water and bring it up to a boil.
5. Add in 225g (8 oz) pasta. I’m using ditalini, but you can use tubetti or any other small pasta. It’s important to stir regularly, as you don’t want your pasta to stick to the bottom of your pan! Cook the pasta as per the directions on the packet – mine stated 7 minutes.
6. If your pasta isn’t quite done and you’re running out of water, add an extra 1 tbsp. at a time. If you have too much water, just let it boil away a little longer!
7. Right at the end, add 40g (1/3 cup) grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese and stir in. Serve in a bowl and top with a healthy grating of parmigiano-reggiano.
You can store this recipe in the fridge for up to 4 days. It’s delicious served cold, but you can also reheat it with a little extra olive oil and water! I hope you love this dish as much as I do, and if you have any questions regarding this recipe, feel free to drop your questions below! Have a great weekend!
Dani – Black Cat Kitchen
Old-Satisfaction-564
>ready in just 20 minutes
20 minutes? A lot less, using induction.
BTW my mom used broth instead of water to cook the ditalini for this dish and so do I.
WAHNFRIEDEN
I like Frank Prisonzano’s version with tomato and cream added. But this is Italian American
3 Comments
Pasta and peas, known as pasta e piselli in Italian, is a beloved dish cherished by Italians worldwide! What sets this pasta and peas recipe apart is it’s incredible simplicity; with just a handful of inexpensive ingredients – ditalini pasta, peas, parmigiano-reggiano cheese, and onions – you can create this delicious and comforting meal!
The best part? It’s astonishingly quick, ready in just 20 minutes, making it the perfect meal for a busy weeknight!
If you’re a visual learner, or would like more tips, tricks and substitutions for this dish, you can find a recipe video within my Reddit profile!
—–
**INGREDIENTS**
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 14g (1 tbsp.) olive oil
• 175g (1 1/4 cup) peas
• 4g (1 tsp.) salt
• 500ml (2 cups) water
• 225g (8 oz) pasta (I use ditalini, but any small pasta will work!)
• 40g (1/3 cup) parmigiano-reggiano cheese, grated
🥄 This recipe serves 2 people. Feel free to double the recipe if you’re serving 4 people!
—–
**METHOD**
1. Finely chop one small onion. On medium heat, add 14g (1 tbsp.) olive oil to a large pan and add your onions. Let the onions cook for around 5 minutes, until they become translucent.
2. Add 175g (1 ¼ cup) peas. You can use fresh, frozen or canned peas. I’m using frozen Petit Pois peas for this recipe. Once your peas have started to cook/dethaw, add in 4g (1 tsp.) salt.
3. Lightly mash a quarter of your peas; this is an optional step, but I love the additional texture that this step brings!
4. Turn your heat up to high and add 500ml (2 cups) water and bring it up to a boil.
5. Add in 225g (8 oz) pasta. I’m using ditalini, but you can use tubetti or any other small pasta. It’s important to stir regularly, as you don’t want your pasta to stick to the bottom of your pan! Cook the pasta as per the directions on the packet – mine stated 7 minutes.
6. If your pasta isn’t quite done and you’re running out of water, add an extra 1 tbsp. at a time. If you have too much water, just let it boil away a little longer!
7. Right at the end, add 40g (1/3 cup) grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese and stir in. Serve in a bowl and top with a healthy grating of parmigiano-reggiano.
You can store this recipe in the fridge for up to 4 days. It’s delicious served cold, but you can also reheat it with a little extra olive oil and water! I hope you love this dish as much as I do, and if you have any questions regarding this recipe, feel free to drop your questions below! Have a great weekend!
Dani – Black Cat Kitchen
>ready in just 20 minutes
20 minutes? A lot less, using induction.
BTW my mom used broth instead of water to cook the ditalini for this dish and so do I.
I like Frank Prisonzano’s version with tomato and cream added. But this is Italian American