Sicilian Pasta con le fave
Pasta con le fave is a traditional Sicilian Springtime recipe, consisting of a fava bean sauce stirred through pasta, and finished off with a pinch of chilli.
Ingredients
- extra virgin olive oil for sautéing and drizzling
- 500 grams broad beans shelled weight (about 800 grams in the pods)
- 1 medium onion very finely chopped
- 1 stick celery very finely chopped
- salt
- 300 grams Casarecce pasta (or any other short pasta of your choice)
- Chilli flakes to taste
Instructions
- Add the shelled fava beans to a pan of boiling water, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 25-30 mins. Drain them in a colander and set aside.
- Add the finely chopped onion, celery and a good pinch of salt, and then sauté until soft and translucent (about 5-8 minutes). Add the fava beans back to the pan, stirring to coat them in the oil.
- Now add enough water to the pan to cover the beans, and simmer gently for an hour. The fava beans will break down into a chunky, soup-like purée. Use the back of a wooden spoon to help break down the fava beans during this step. Stir every 15 minutes or so, and add more water if the beans become too dry.
- While the fava beans are cooking, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Taste the cooking water – it should be as salty as the sea! Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente, according to the package instructions. Drain the pasta and reserve a ladle or two of the cooking water.
- Add the cooked pasta to the pan with the fava beans, as well as a ladleful of the reserved pasta water, and stir well to combine.
- Serve with a drizzle of extra virgn olive oil and a sprinkling of chilli flakes.