Summary of "How to Make Pasta and Peas: What Italians ACTUALLY Eat at Home"

How to Make Pasta and Peas

(from the video “How to Make Pasta and Peas: What Italians ACTUALLY Eat at Home”)

A simple, one-pot Italian weeknight pasta that gets its creaminess from blended peas and plenty of Pecorino Romano.

Ingredients

Olive oil — a generous amount
1 yellow onion, chopped fairly small
Frozen peas — 1 lb (one bag). Blend half later (see method)
Boiling water — about 4 cups to start (add more if needed)
Pasta — 1 lb (video uses “dillini”; any short pasta works)
- Recommended ratio: 1 lb pasta : 1 lb peas
- For a half batch: ½ lb pasta and ½ lb peas (blend half the peas)
Salt and pepper — to taste
Pecorino Romano — about 1½ cups

Equipment & prep

Large sauté pan or skillet (one-pot cooking)
Kettle or pot to bring water to a boil (have boiling water ready)
Immersion blender / hand mixer (used to blend half the peas)
Spoon / tongs and plates for serving
Prep: chop the onion; have boiling water ready before beginning

Step-by-step method

Heat a generous amount of olive oil in the pan over medium heat.
Sauté the chopped onion until translucent.
Add the frozen peas and sauté for a few minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Add boiling water (about 4 cups in the video). Let the peas simmer a few minutes to heat/cook through.
Remove and blend half the peas with an immersion blender or hand mixer until smooth.
Add the pasta to the pan and stir. Check the water level — leave it a bit low (you can always add more hot water but you can’t remove it).
Stir the blended pea puree back into the pan to distribute and brighten the color.
Simmer the pasta in the pan with the peas for about 10–15 minutes, stirring occasionally. It’ll take longer than boiling because it cooks in the pan liquid. Watch for most water to be absorbed but a small “lake of cream” remaining in the center — that’s the desired water-to-pasta ratio.
When the pasta is cooked and there’s just a little cooking liquid left, turn off the heat.
Immediately add the Pecorino Romano (≈1½ cups) and stir vigorously off the heat until the cheese emulsifies with the remaining liquid into a velvety sauce.
Serve right away — the pasta will continue to cook and firm up if it sits.

Two key “secrets” to the creaminess: - Blend half the peas to create a silky base. - Use lots of Pecorino Romano and add it off the heat so it emulsifies instead of clumping.

Timing & temperature cues

Sauté onions until translucent (visual cue; no exact minutes given).
Simmer peas a few minutes before blending.
Pasta simmers in the pan for ~10–15 minutes (longer than standard boiling).
Turn heat off before adding cheese so the cheese emulsifies properly.

Chef tips, tricks & common mistakes

Blend half the peas — this transforms the dish from “pasta with peas and cheese” into a creamy pasta.
Add Pecorino off the heat and stir vigorously so it emulsifies.
Start with a slightly low water level — you can always add more hot water, but you can’t remove it.
Look for the “little lake of cream” in the pan as the sign of correct water-to-pasta ratio.
Serve immediately — letting it sit will change the texture as the pasta continues to cook.
An immersion blender is convenient and easier to clean than a food processor.

Yield / Serving

Feeds approximately 4–6 people (one-pot, economical weeknight meal)

Variations & notes

To scale: halve all quantities (½ lb pasta, ½ lb peas) and still blend half the peas.
The presenter mentions using an immersion blender for similar tricks (e.g., blending beans for creamy bean pasta or blending tomatoes with cheese).
The video references a related “pasta with lentils” recipe.