When an Italian thinks about Winter, s/he is probably imaging these things: cosy views from the windows, lana merino scarves, warm espresso and cornetto, and pasta e fagioli.
If you too love a warm meal come Winter, join me as I make a speedier version of this traditional Italian recipe. I will make sure to also share interesting notes and variations on this popular Italian favourite.
What to expect: take a spoonful of pasta; you’ll likely to notice the chunky ditalini pasta first, accompanied by the creamy sauce that was formed during the simmering and in same pot pasta cooking. But don’t fret, there’ll be plenty of borlotti beans in your spoon to munch on.
What part of Italy does pasta fagioli come from?
What is pasta fagioli soup made of?
Pasta e fagioli includes the basic Italian soffritto made with Italian extra virgin olive oil like Belmorso or Novello, along with bacon, and borlotti beans, vegetable stock, optional passata, and small pasta.
Does pasta fagioli contain meat?
Easy Pasta e Fagioli Recipe
Italian Pasta e Fagioli Recipe
Equipment
- 1 chopping knife
- 1 chopping board
- 1 very large pot
- 1 silicone spoon
- 1 grater
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion
- 1 medium carrot
- 1 stalk celery
- Belmorso Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 75 gr bacon cubed
- 400 gr borlotti beans
- 2 lt water
- 2 cubes vegetable stock
- 500 gr ditalini pasta
- 200 ml passata optional
- pecorino cheese for grating or parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Wash, peel and chop your veggies. You can cut them into small rough pieces for the soffritto.
- Next, add them to your large pot and drizzle the extra virgin olive oil. Let them sauté for a few minutes.
- Add the bacon, mix and leave to sauté with the veggies.
- Now, add the borlotti beans. This is the bit we are speeding, by using canned borlotti beans. The traditional recipe involves using dry beans. If you do that, keep in mind that you'll likely need to double the time and nearly triple the water.
- Let the borlotti sauté briefly with the rest of the ingredients. Then proceed to adding half your water, mixed with the vegetable stock cubes.
- Leave to simmer for 20 minutes, and then add the remaining stock.
- After 40 minutes have passed, provided you are using the canned beans, you can throw your pasta to cook. You should still have enough water, but if you don't add more at this point, let it boil and then throw the pasta to cook in the same pot.
- After 8 to 10 minutes your pasta should be cooked aldente. You can taste and season accordingly.
- Take off the heat, serve with some grated pecorino or parmesan cheese and a drizzle of Novello Extra Virgin Olive Oil. If you don't have our Novello, you can use Belmorso EVOO, or an other high quality Italian extra virgin olive oil.
Notes
Can you make pasta e fagioli without tomatoes?
Yes you can. I grew up eating this pasta without any tomatoes in it. So whether you skip the passata and replace it with slices of fresh tomatoes, or omit the tomatoes all together, you are not going to ruin the final result, I promise.
What is the difference between minestrone soup and pasta fagioli?
While the base is the same, aka the soffritto, minestrone includes many more vegetables but not necessarily beans. While you can put beans in minestrone, the beans are not the main ingredient, and they are often replaced with peas.
