Pasta e Fagioli, which means “pasta and beans,” is a traditional Italian soup. It is also called pasta fasul in the United States, which is obtained from its Neapolitan name, pasta e fasule. Like many other Italian favorites, including pizza and polenta, it started as a rustic dish composed of inexpensive ingredients.
Don’t you love a delicious and warm bean soup in the winter? This is an Italian variant that we think is very good. Use any dry white bean you have. I particularly love the white kidney beans, but any of them will do. I also like the little tubular pasta that isn’t much larger than the beans. It holds some of the thick liquid, and the size seems quite right. Also, have lots of additional parmesan cheese at the table for stirring in at the last minute. Add a salad and some crusty bread, and you’ve got a perfect winter supper.
Pasta e Fagioli Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- One fresh onion, washed and diced
- two carrots, washed and diced
- One tall stalk celery, diced
- Three garlic cloves, minced
- Two cups canned tomatoes
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups washed white beans, cooked
- 1 lb small pasta
- 1/2 cup of chopped parsley
- 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese, grated
- salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Procedure
Simmering the beans:
- Soak the beans, preferably overnight.
- Keep the beans at a simmer.
- Add 1 Tbsp of salt when beans are just tender. When they are seemingly tender enough to eat but still firm to really be enjoyable, add the salt.
- You can also simmer it using a pressure cooker. It saves time and effort. However, I am a firm supporter of slow simmering over a stove.
Pasta
- Sautee the carrots, onions, celery in olive oil until tender for around 12 minutes.
- Next, add garlic and sautee for a minute.
- Add fresh tomatoes and simmer for additional four minutes.
- Add pasta and cook until it seems enjoyable (al dente)
- Add simmered beans to the mix.
- Season with ground salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
- Add parsley and adjust your seasonings.
Serve with a generous portion of crusty bread and parmesan cheese.
Enjoy! Now You Know
