This pasta e piselli with pancetta is the perfect springtime pasta dish. Al dente pasta gets a bright makeover with fresh, sweet peas, salty pancetta, and the easiest sauce you could imagine - just like my quick and easy lemon bucatini. Paired with some airy focaccia, you have an easy and light weeknight meal!
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👩🏽🍳Why This Recipe Works
No complicated ingredients: This recipe uses easy, pantry and fridge staples. No trips to the speciality store for this pasta!
It is a light pasta recipe: The sauce is perfectly creamy, without any cream. You get the silkiness that we all know and love, without the heaviness. If you are interested in other light, spring-inspired meals, this spring lemon and asparagus risotto is a must!
It is ready in under 20 minutes: You do not need to cook or simmer the sauce for a long time. In the time that the pasta cooks, the pancetta will crisp up and be ready to finish the sauce.
🥘Ingredients
- Farfalle pasta: I like to use farfalle pasta for this recipe, as it is not only a short pasta, but it has lots of ridges to hold the creamy sauce.
- Pancetta: Pancetta is a salt-cured pork product. It is different from bacon as it cured and unsmoked, where bacon is cured and smoked. Pancetta is a good choice for this pasta as it adds salt, but not an overwhelming smokey flavour. If you like the flavor of pancetta in pasta, you'll want to try my roasted garlic and chicken farfalle.
- Sweet peas: You can use fresh sweet peas or frozen, depending on what you have on hand and what is in season.
- Parmesan cheese: The parmesan cheese is one of the main elements of the sauce for this pasta. For this reason, I recommend using good quality, freshly grated parmesan.
A full list of ingredients with measurements is located on the recipe card, below.
📖Substitutions
- Farfalle: Feel free to use any short pasta you prefer. I recommend using a short pasta as a substitute, as it works well with the simplicity of the sauce.
- Pancetta: Feel free to use bacon of guanciale in place of pancetta.
- Parmesan cheese: Substitute with pecorino romano instead of parmesan cheese.
🔪Variations
- Citrus: Add a squeeze of lemon to the pasta, to add a bright, citrus flavour.
- Asparagus: Add some asparagus to the pasta for an extra vegetable layer.
- Spicy: Toast some red chilli flakes to the pancetta and garlic to add some spice to the sauce.
⏲️ Step-by-Step Instructions
Prep Work Before Cooking
Collecting all your ingredients - This will make cooking so much easier. Gather all the spices you will need, and keep them nearby.
Boiling the water - Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once the water has come to a boil, salt liberally.
Boil the farfalle pasta in the boiling, salted water. Boil until al dente, as per package instructions. This should take 12-15 minutes. Reserve ¼ cup of pasta water before draining.
While the pasta is cooking, add the pancetta to a cold pan. Turn the heat on to medium heat, and let the pancetta crisp up and the fat render. Once most of the fat has started to render from the pancetta, add in the smashed garlic cloves and let them flavour the pancetta fat. [photo 1]
Remove the garlic cloves after 2-3 minutes. Add the drained pasta, and coat well with the pancetta fat. Season with salt and pepper. Turn the heat to low. [photo 2]
Add in the pasta water, and sprinkle in the parmesan cheese. Mix vigorously to emulsify the parmesan cheese with the pasta water and pancetta fat. Turn the heat off. Add the green peas, and fold into the pasta. [photos 3 & 4]
💭Expert Tip
Taste before you season the pasta. Pancetta and parmesan are equally salty ingredients. The pasta water will also add some additional salt to the sauce. This is why I recommend seasoning the pasta at the end, to avoid ruining the pasta.
🍽 Make Ahead & Storage
Because of how this sauce is made, this pasta is best eaten fresh. Once put in the fridge, the pasta will congeal and will not heat up to be as silky as it is when fresh.
⭐ Recipe FAQs
Traditionally, pasta e piselli does not have cream in it. If you are a fan of silky sauces (like my lemon caper sauce) then you can absolutely add in a splash of heavy cream to finish!
Pancetta is a cured pork product, while bacon is smoked. Both pancetta and bacon need to be cooked before eating. You may find that bacon is both salty and smokey, while pancetta is generally more salty.
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Pasta e Piselli (Peas) with Pancetta
Ingredients
- 4 oz Farfalle pasta
- 3 oz Italian pancetta diced
- 2 cloves Garlic smashed
- ¼ cup Starchy pasta water
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese grated
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup Green peas
Instructions
- Boil water: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once the water has come to a boil, salt liberally.
- Cook pasta: Boil the farfalle pasta in the boiling, salted water. Boil until al dente, as per package instructions. This should take 12-15 minutes. Reserve ¼ cup of pasta water before draining.4 oz Farfalle pasta
- Render pancetta: While the pasta is cooking, add the pancetta to a cold pan. Turn the heat on to medium heat, and let the pancetta crisp up and the fat render. Once most of the fat has started to render from the pancetta, add in the smashed garlic cloves and let them flavour the pancetta fat.3 oz Italian pancetta, 2 cloves Garlic
- Add pasta: Remove the garlic cloves after 2-3 minutes. Add the drained pasta, and coat well with the pancetta fat. Season with salt and pepper. Turn the heat to low.4 oz Farfalle pasta, Salt and pepper to taste
- Finish sauce: Add in the pasta water, and sprinkle in the parmesan cheese. Mix vigorously to emulsify the parmesan cheese with the pasta water and pancetta fat. Turn the heat off. Add the green peas, and fold into the pasta.¼ cup Starchy pasta water, ½ cup Parmesan cheese, 1 cup Green peas
Notes
- Taste before you season the pasta. Pancetta and parmesan are equally salty ingredients. The pasta water will also add some additional salt to the sauce. This is why I recommend seasoning the pasta at the end, to avoid ruining the pasta.
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