This morning, I ate a couple rashers of bacon with a mashed half avocado on toast with a sunny side up egg. Evan smelled the bacon, and remarked that he liked the small, and could he please have some for lunch? Sure, I replied, and my mind began to wander to the packet of fresh shelled peas in the fridge from Trader Joe’s. I recall having read about an Italian pasta dish with pancetta and red onion, but I can’t for the life of me remember what it’s called. Nor, frankly, do I have the time and inclination to research it, at the moment.
No matter, as this pasta dish is intended to showcase whatever you’ve got. If you don’t have any bacon, or you don’t dine on swine, replace the chazzer with tempeh bacon, or dried porcini mushrooms you’ve soaked in hot water for twenty minutes, or sliced shiitake or button mushrooms, or nothing at all. If you don’t have a red onion, use a yellow, or white, or vidalia onion. Or use a shallot. If you want to fill out the protein content of this dish, poach a couple of eggs and serve one atop each serving of pasta. Or a tin of sardines or kippers on the side. If you prefer to go vegan, replace the grated cheese with nutritional yeast, and add in a little more olive oil.
I rather like the parsley in this dish. It adds an herbal dimension that pleases the palate. It might not, however, please your seven year old, in which case, leave it out, or serve it on the side, or tell your kid to pick out the offending bits themselves. Whatever works. I didn’t have any white wine on hand, so I didn’t use any, but I think a hint of astringency wouldn’t be out of place.
The best part is you can work while the water boils, and the rest of the dish cooks up fairly quickly. There’s enough to serve two for lunch and dinner, with something on the side.
spaghetti with bacon and peas
7oz spaghetti (or linguine, or fettuccine) olive oil 4 rashers bacon, coarsely chopped into large bite-size pieces 1/2 red onion, or any onion, thinly sliced 3oz shelled peas, fresh or frozen splash of white wine (optional) 1-2 handfuls grated pecorino or parmigiano 1 handful parsley, coarsely chopped salt and pepper to taste
- Cook spaghetti per package directions, minus two minutes. Drain pasta, retaining a cup of the cooking liquid.
- Place the pasta pot on medium heat. Add in a few fatty pieces of bacon, and add a little olive oil. Sauté the bacon, and let it render its fat until it begins to brown.
- Sauté the onions in the fat, stirring frequently until it softens and begins to turn golden. Add in the rest of the bacon and continue sautéing.
- When the bacon has cooked for a few minutes, add in the peas and stir.
- When the peas turn bright green, add in the spaghetti and toss thoroughly with all the ingredients. Pour in a little of the reserved pasta water, just to loosen it a bit.
- Add in the grated cheese and thoroughly toss. Add in another splash or two of reserved pasta water to loosen the spaghetti and add a little creaminess. Alternatively, add in a splash of white wine instead of the reserved water, and cook off the alcohol for a minute or two.
- Add the parsley and ground black pepper, toss the pasta, and turn off the heat.
- Plate and serve.
