When you’re in a hurry to get dinner on the table and want something quick, healthy and nourishing Pasta with Peas and Potatoes is the dish that the whole family will enjoy!
I’m so excited to share with you this recipe for pasta with peas and potatoes. This is a classic Italian pasta dish and the perfect example of peasant food, simple and made with few ingredients that you probably have on hand. The result is a satisfying, comforting dish and I’m pleased to say the whole family enjoyed it!
Definitely not a fancy dish nor is it complicated, so why the excitement? That’s because I can finally eat peas! From birth until just a few years ago I was allergic to green peas as well as several legumes. Just the aroma of peas cooking was enough to make me feel ill. Therefore peas were banned at my parents house.
Until I accidentally tasted some at a restaurant a few years ago. And I noticed I had no reaction! So (after consultation with an allergist) I embarked on a mission to eat all the wonderful dishes with peas, chickpeas and lentils that I had to avoid all my life. Much to my children’s dismay, I’m sure!
I recently called my mother to ask her for her recipe for pasta and peas since I obviously never saw her make it at her house!
You’ll notice that unlike the typical pasta e piselli recipe, this one has potatoes in it. I see this is quite typical of my mom’s soups with legumes such as her White Bean and Potato Soup. I won’t object to potatoes! They add a wonderful creamy texture to the soup. And it’s even better reheated the following day when it has further thickened!
The best part about this recipe is that it takes only half an hour to make with just a few ingredients that most of us have in our pantries and freezer all the time. So let’s get to the recipe! You’ll find the complete detailed and printable recipe at the end of this post.
Ingredient list:
- Onion
- Potato
- Green peas: frozen green peas are ideal in this recipe. They are picked and preserved at the height of freshness and quite frankly I prefer the texture compared to canned peas. Of course, if you’re making this during the summer and have access to fresh garden peas definitely use those!
- Pasta: any small pasta such as small shells, ditali, orzo or my personal favorite, tubettini will do. In a pinch, you can also break spaghetti into small pieces as my mom often does.
- Olive oil
- Grated Parmigiano cheese for serving
Step by Step Instructions
Begin by sauteing a finely diced onion in a bit of olive oil until golden. Then, stir in a peeled, cubed potato. Add a pinch of salt, stir and cook, covered on low heat for 5 minutes.
Uncover and add frozen peas. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Pour in 5 cups of water, salt and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes.
Uncover and add small pasta of your choice. I love tubettini in my pasta with peas and potatoes. Cook until al dente. Remove from heat and drizzle lightly with olive oil before serving.
Serve with plenty of grated Parmigiano cheese at the table.
Tips and suggestions:
This is a very basic, simple recipe however you can modify it in so many ways!
- For extra flavor, brown some cubed pancetta along with the diced onion in the first step of the recipe.
- If you want to add more color, add 1 cup of tomato passata (tomato purée) after you have sauted the onions in step 1.
- Substitute fresh garden peas for frozen ones if you have access to them during the summer.
- Add any small pasta of your choice: shells, tubettini, ditali, elbow macaroni, or orzo to name a few.
- If you prefer a soupier version, add an extra cup of water.
- This soup is delicious reheated the following day as the texture becomes creamier and thickens. Keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.
If you’ve tried this recipe and enjoyed it, please let me know by rating it in the recipe card below. Feel free to Pin it for later! Buon appetito!
Here are a few other favorite comforting and easy soup recipes!
- Broccoli and Potato Soup with Pasta
- Sicilian Cucuzza with Pasta
- Creamy Chickpeas with Pasta
- Swiss Chard and White Bean Stew
- White Bean and Potato Soup
- Pasta with Potatoes (pasta e patate)
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil divided
- small onion diced
- 1 large potato peeled and cubed
- 2 cups frozen peas
- 5 cups water
- 225 grams small pasta (1/2 pound)
- salt and pepper to taste
- grated Parmigiano cheese for serving
Instructions
- Heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a large sauce pan and sauté the onion until golden, about 2 minutes.
- Stir in the peeled, cubed potato. Add a pinch of salt, stir and cook, covered on low heat for 5 minutes.
- Uncover and add frozen peas. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Pour in 5 cups of water, salt and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes.
- Uncover and add small pasta of your choice. Cook until al dente. Adjust seasoning if necessary. Remove from heat and drizzle lightly with olive oil before serving.
- Serve with plenty of grated Parmigiano cheese at the table.
Notes
- For extra flavor, brown some cubed pancetta along with the diced onion in the first step of the recipe.
- If you want to add more color, add 1 cup of tomato passata (tomato purée) after you have sauted the onions in step 1.
- Substitute fresh garden peas for frozen ones if you have access to them during the summer.
- Add small pasta of your choice: small shells
- If you prefer a soupier version, add an extra cup of water.
- This soup is delicious reheated the following day as the texture becomes creamier and thicker. Keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
I love this recipe. It was so easy to put together. I made the small shells separately because my granddaughter wanted pasta with butter.
It only took twenty minutes to make. My family said “Save this recipe, it’s a winner “
Thank you!
Rori
Hello Rori, so glad to hear you enjoyed this soup. Indeed it is so easy but sometimes the simplest dishes are the best. Thanks for sharing!
I just made this today and it came out perfect. Thank you.
Hi Enza, so goad you enjoyed it!
This will definitely go on the Friday Lenten menu list. I ate something similar last year with ricotta…it was so good I didn’t want to eat il secondo! Do you have another recipe or can I just stir in the ricotta ?
Hi Kathryn, I agree this is quite filling and after a large bowl of it you don’t really need a secondo! I like your idea of adding ricotta to it. I would simply stir ricotta into once it is ready to give it an extra creamy texture. It is what we do when we make our pasta with ricotta, which you’ll also find on my blog. Thanks for your comment!
Yum! This dish (minus the potato) was a childhood favorite. And it’s still a fixture on our table today, It hasn’t lot its charm in all these years. I’ll have to try it with potato some time.
Hi Frank, I definitely can’t say it was a childhood favorite since I was allergic to peas back then. However, I’m so glad I can now eat this. It will definitely become a fixture in my house now. Thanks!
My grandma, mom and aunts made it with canned peas and uses the fluid from the can with the water. One of my favorite Friday Lent dinners. Thank you.
Hi Mary, there are so many variations to this recipe! I know that many use canned peas but I am partial to the frozen ones. I so agree, it’s a perfect lenten dinner! Thank you for your comment!
Yes, I also use canned peas with their liquid, so much flavor. I prefer canned peas to fresh. I always used small shells. I’ve even eaten leftovers right out of the fridge. A good side dish for chicken cutlets. Oh, I’m getting hungry now. Thank you Nadia for your scrumptious recipes. My dad was from Sannicandro and my grandmother made Ricotta Calzone every Easter – large pans of it. They’re all gone now and only the memories remain. I will definitely try your recipe, sounds like it would taste like hers. She also made a savory one with onions, but of course being a kid, I stayed away from it.
Thank you Angela for your lovely comment! My husband’s side of the family is from Sannicandro as well and of course that’s how I learned about this lovely calzone recipe that I love. And I do enjoy the one with the onions as well, so tasty! All the best to you for the new year!
Sounds good. Will give it a try. Thanks !