Tagliatelle with Peas
By now, it seems like everyone who has a freezer has a bag of peas somewhere in there, and there’s no reason why they shouldn’t. Frozen peas are cheap, available year-round, and much easier to work with than shelling peas out of each individual pod. Even professional chefs use frozen peas as they are that convenient and easy to work with.
Once thawed, they are great to sprinkle into salads, soups, stews, or simply steamed then tossed with some butter and seasoning for one of the quickest, easiest side dishes in the world. And, of course, they are wonderful when sprinkled into pasta dishes.
Today, I’ll be sharing you an incredible pasta dish of tagliatelle with peas, pancetta, tomatoes, and a bit of onion for another super easy weeknight dinner.
Tagliatelle With Peas
Salt
3 tablespoons of olive oil
2 ounces of cubed pancetta
1 large onion, finely sliced
7 oz/1 1/2 cups of frozen peas, thawed
9 ounces of passata (pureed tomatoes)
1 pound of Tagliatelle pasta (I’m using a mix of fresh plain and spinach pasta, but I won’t judge you if you used dried)
Grated parmesan cheese, for topping
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
In a skillet, heat the olive oil and pancetta over medium-low heat for about 3 minutes, or until the pancetta has rendered some of it’s fat and has turned golden. Add the sliced onion, then continue to cook for about 7 minutes, or until the onion is very soft.
Add the peas, passata, and a pinch of salt, then stir to combine. Add 1 cup of water, then let the sauce simmer and reduce until it’s very thick, should take about 10 minutes.
While the sauce simmers, boil your pasta according to the directions on the package. Reserve about 1 cup of the pasta's cooking water, drain, then set aside as the sauce finishes cooking.
Add a bit of pasta water to the sauce if it seems a bit too thick, then toss in your pasta and let it simmer for about 30 seconds. Twirl the pasta and pile it onto a serving platter with the peas and tomatoes, then top with a generous grating of parmesan.
There aren’t enough good things I can say about this dish. The peas, the pancetta, the tomatoes, the onions, all of that come together for a harmonious blend of flavors that came together in less than 30 minutes! What more could you ask for from a weeknight dinner?
