Sweet, salty, and incredibly satisfying, pasta with pancetta and peas is bursting with flavor and super easy to prepare. Combining the sweetness of shallots and a tangy hint of citrus, the rich cream sauce contrasts perfectly with the crispy pancetta and shredded Parmigiano Reggiano generously sprinkled over the top. This dish really has it all. A tad indulgent? Perhaps. But it's also an irresistible heap of deliciousness.

Pasta with pancetta and peas in a shallow white bowl in front of a chunk of Parmigiano Reggiano resting on a microplane grater and a small plate of cooked pancetta bits.

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Ingredients for Pasta with Pancetta and Peas
Instructions for Pasta with Pancetta and Peas
Variations
Equipment
Storage
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📖 Recipe

Ingredients for Pasta with Pancetta and Peas

dried pasta of your choice (preferably penne, rigatoni, or orecchiette)
pancetta
unsalted butter
shallots
chicken broth
heavy whipping cream
lemon
orange
cayenne pepper
frozen peas
fresh mint
Parmigiano Reggiano

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions for Pasta with Pancetta and Peas

Gathering the Ingredients

A small glass bowl containing ribbons of fresh mint next to a zested orange and a zested lemon sitting on a microplane grater.

Begin by chopping the mint into small ribbons and zesting the lemon and orange.

Chopped raw pancetta on a white plate, a zested lemon, and three glass bowls containing chopped shallots, ribbons of fresh mint, and citrus zest.

Then squeeze the lemon juice, finely chop the shallots, and cut the pancetta into small pieces.

Water being poured from a glass measuring cup into a small steel saucepan sitting on the stove.

If using Better than Bouillon, prepare the chicken broth and set it aside.

Preparing the Sauce

Chopped raw pancetta sitting in a shallow red braiser.

Place the pancetta in a cold pan and turn the heat to medium. Sauté until crisp.

Crispy bits of cooked pancetta on a small white plate with a slotted wooden spoon resting on the side.

Remove with a slotted spoon, leaving the rendered fat in the pan. Set the cooked pancetta aside.

Chopped shallots being tipped from a glass bowl into pancetta drippings in a shallow red braiser.

Add the butter to the rendered pancetta fat remaining in the pan. Once it has melted, add the chopped shallots and sauté until softened, about 3 minutes.

Pale yellow chicken stock being poured from a small steel saucepan into cooked shallots in a shallow red braiser.

Add the chicken broth and simmer, stirring up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan, about 5 minutes or until reduced by about half.

Heavy whipping cream being poured from a glass measuring cup into chicken stock and shallot mixture in a shallow red braiser.

Add the heavy whipping cream, lemon zest, orange zest, and cayenne pepper.

Pale yellow mixture of cream, chicken stock, and chopped shallots simmering in a shallow red braiser with a slotted wooden spoon resting on the side.

Simmer for about 5 minutes or until the sauce has noticeably thickened.

Dried penne pasta being tipped from a brown and red paper bag into a boiling steel pot of water.

In the meantime, begin cooking the dried pasta in accordance with the package instructions. When it has been cooked al dente, reserve about a cup of the pasta cooking water before draining the pasta.

Peas being tipped from a glass bowl into cream sauce simmering in a shallow red braiser with a slotted wooden spoon resting on the side.

Once the sauce has thickened, add the peas (no need to thaw them first) and simmer for about 3 minutes or until heated through.

Ribbons of fresh mint being tipped from a small glass bowl into cream sauce with peas simmering in a shallow red braiser.

Then stir in the mint and lemon juice.

Cream sauce with flecks of mint and peas being stirred with a slotted wooden spoon while simmering in a shallow red braiser.

Check the sauce for seasoning, and add a bit of salt and pepper if desired.

Assembling and Serving the Pasta with Pancetta and Peas

Cooked penne pasta being tipped from a colander into cream sauce in a shallow red braiser sitting on the stove.

Add the cooked pasta to the sauce, keeping the pan over low heat.

Pasta with pancetta and peas in a shallow red braiser with a slotted wooden spoon.

Then stir until the pasta is thoroughly coated and begins to soak up some of the sauce, about 5 minutes. If the pasta starts to look dry, add some of the pasta cooking water and stir until the sauce has reached the consistency you prefer.

Garnish with freshly shredded Parmigiano Reggiano and a generous scattering of the crispy pancetta bits. Serve immediately.

Hint: You can use any sort of pasta that you prefer here, but choosing a shape that has some nooks and crannies (like penne, rigatoni, or orechiette) will help to trap all those sweet and salty bits of sautéed shallot and crispy pancetta.

Variations

Here are a few easy ways to improvise on pasta with pancetta and peas...

Can't find any pancetta? Bacon works fine here, too.
Not a fan of mint? Basil or flat leaf parsley would also be lovely in this pasta. (That said, I highly recommend giving the mint a go...it may seem like a strange choice to some, but it really works here.)
Don't like it hot? - While the cayenne adds a bit of heat that plays well against the richness of this dish, you can certainly omit it if you prefer.

Equipment

It's best to choose a deep sided pan for this dish, like the Le Creuset 3.5 quart signature braiser pictured in the recipe photos above, since it allows you to cook the sauce and assemble the pasta all in the same pan...no muss, no fuss. Any deep sided large skillet (at least 12 inch) would also do the trick nicely.

Storage

Pasta with pancetta and peas can be kept in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days. If you anticipate having leftovers, it's a good idea to stash away the remaining pasta cooking water in the refrigerator as well. Then you can simply reheat the pasta on the stove over gentle heat, stirring in a splash or two of the pasta cooking water to help reconstitute the sauce.

Looking for more easy and indulgent pasta recipes? Try these:

📖 Recipe

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Pasta with Pancetta and Peas

Course Dinner

Cuisine American, Italian

Keyword easy, indulgent, pasta, rich

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 35

Total Time 45

Servings 6 servings

Ingredients

1 pound dried pasta (preferably penne, rigatoni, or orecchiette)
4 ounces pancetta cut into small pieces
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 large shallots finely chopped
1 cup chicken broth
1½ cup heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon lemon zest
2 teaspoons orange zest
⅕ teaspoon cayenne
10 ounces frozen peas
2 tablespoon fresh mint chopped finely into ribbons
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Parmigiano Reggiano shredded

Instructions

Place the pancetta in a cold pan and turn the heat to medium. Sauté until crisp and then remove with a slotted spoon, leaving the rendered fat in the pan. Set the cooked pancetta aside.
Add the butter to the pan. Once it has melted, add the chopped shallots and sauté until softened, about 3 minutes.
Add the chicken broth and simmer, stirring up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan, about 5 minutes or until reduced by about half.
Add the heavy whipping cream, lemon zest, orange zest, and cayenne pepper. Simmer for about 5 minutes or until the sauce has noticeably thickened.
In the meantime, begin cooking the dried pasta in accordance with the package instructions. When it has been cooked al dente, reserve about a cup of the pasta cooking water before draining the pasta.
Once the sauce has thickened, add the peas (no need to thaw them first) and simmer for about 3 minutes or until heated through. Then stir in the mint and lemon juice. Check the sauce for seasoning, and add a bit of salt and pepper if desired.
Add the cooked pasta to the sauce, keeping the pan over low heat. Stir until the pasta is thoroughly coated and begins to soak up some of the sauce, about 5 minutes. If the pasta starts to look dry, add some of the pasta cooking water and stir until the sauce has reached the consistency you prefer.
Garnish with freshly shredded Parmigiano Reggiano and a generous scattering of the crispy pancetta bits. Serve immediately.