If you’re looking for a super cozy and hearty soup to get you through ’til spring, you’ve got to try this Pasta e Fagioli for dinner tonight. I was lucky enough to eat Pasta e Fagioli for the first time in Italy, and it was so good—I wanted to lick the bowl clean after finishing the last spoonful! I’ve tweaked my own version over the years, combining techniques from both traditional Italian versions and Americanized ones, finally arriving at a soup that is easy to prepare, insanely nostalgic, and ridiculously comforting.
What is Pasta e Fagioli?
Pasta e Fagioli (pronounced “paa·stuh ee faa·jow·lee”), simply means, “pasta and beans” in Italian. More often, though, the dish is referred to as, “Pasta Fagioli” (without the e), or “Pasta Fazool” in Italian-American slang. This lesser-known Italian staple is a hearty soup that feels indulgent thanks to a whisper of bacon and a handful of pasta — but since the soup is mostly vegetables and beans, it’s a dinner worthy of a second helping without a second thought.
Ingredients for Pasta e Fagioli
Here’s what you’ll need to make this incredibly hearty soup:
- Cannellini beans (But any white bean will work!)
- Small-shaped pasta (most often ditalini or acini di pepe)
- Tomato broth enhanced with smoky pork
- Fresh herbs (typically rosemary or thyme)
- Aromatic vegetables (onions, carrots, and celery)
- Parmesan cheese and fresh Italian parsley
Budget Tips
I made some modifications to traditional versions of Pasta e Fagioli over the years in order to suit my tastes—and now, to make it more budget-friendly.
- Most recipes use pancetta as the pork element. Since it’s harder to find in most U.S. grocery stores and tends to be more pricey, we opted for bacon.
- We used grated parmesan, the most cost-conscious option, but reaching for shredded parmesan—or the real thing! —will take this soup to the next level.
- While rosemary is the most common herb used in this type of soup, I think it’s a really overwhelming flavor even in small amounts. I prefer to use oregano since I always have it on hand.
Weeknight shortcuts
Pasta e Fagioli is a pretty straightforward recipe as it is, but here are a few shortcuts you can take to make it come together in 30 minutes :
- Skip the herbs, spices, oil, and crushed tomatoes, and grab a jar of pre-made marinara or another tomato-based pasta sauce. (Since most store-bought sauces are sold in 24-25 oz. jars, you can make up the remaining 3-4oz of liquid called for in the recipe with an equal amount of water or broth.)
- Use a Mirepoix-Style frozen vegetable blend to cut down on prep time.
How to serve pasta e fagioli
Pasta e Fagioli is best topped with lots of chopped parsley, fresh-cracked black pepper, and Parmesan cheese. Round out the meal with a Simple Side Salad and, most importantly, some bread to help soak up every drop! It doesn’t matter what kind — anything from some super-simple Homemade Garlic Bread, a from-scratch bread recipe like our No-Knead Focaccia, Ciabatta, or Easy Soda Bread to a store-bought loaf — just make sure to serve it with bread!
Pasta e Fagioli
Servings 6 1.5 cupsIngredients
- 4 oz. bacon, sliced ($1.20)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.13)
- 1 onion, finely diced ($0.37)
- 2 carrots, finely diced ($0.29)
- 3 stalks celery, finely diced ($0.32)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced ($0.32)
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes ($0.04)
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano ($0.08)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp pepper ($0.02)
- 1 15oz. can cannelinni beans ($0.89)
- 1 28oz. can crushed tomatoes ($1.69)
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 2 cups vegetable broth* ($0.24)
- 1 cup ditalini (uncooked)** ($0.39)
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese ($0.36)
- 1/4 cup Flat-leaf Italian parsley, roughly chopped ($0.35)
Instructions
- Chop the bacon into smaller pieces and place them in a large pot with 1 Tbsp of olive oil. Fry on medium heat until the bacon is brown and crispy (around 10 minutes).
- While the bacon is frying, finely dice the onion, carrots, and celery; and mince the garlic.
- Remove half of the cooked bacon from the pot with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving behind the rest of the meat and any rendered fat in the pot.
- Add the finely diced onions, carrots, celery, minced garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt and pepper to the pot. Saute the vegetables on medium-high heat until they are softened (around 6 minutes).
- Add the white beans, canned tomatoes (with juices), water, and vegetable broth to the pot. Stir everything to combine, then bring the soup up to a boil. Once boiling, let it cook for another 5 minutes or until the vegetables have softened.
- Add the pasta to the soup and cook, uncovered, according to the package directions, stirring frequently to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
- Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the grated Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley. If the broth has reduced too much (the pasta will absorb a lot of the flavorful broth as it cooks), add another ½ cup of water, taste it, and adjust the seasonings again if needed.
- Serve Pasta e Fagioli in bowls topped with the reserved bacon, chopped parsley, grated parmesa cheese, fresh-cracked black pepper, , and a side of warm, crusty bread.
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Notes
Nutrition
How to Make Pasta E Fagioli – Step by Step Photos
Slice 4 ounces of bacon (1/4 of a regular-size package) into smaller pieces and place in a large pot or dutch oven along with 1 Tablespoon of olive oil. Fry the bacon on medium heat until it is brown and crispy (around 10 minutes). While the bacon is frying, finely diced 1 onion, 2 carrots, and 3 celery stalks; and mince 4 cloves of garlic.
Remove half of the cooked bacon from the pot with a slotted spoon and set aside for serving. Leave behind the rest of the meat and any extra fat in the pot. Add the diced onions, carrots, celery, minced garlic, 1/2 teaspoon oregano, 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt and pepper to the pot. Saute the vegetables on medium-high heat until they are softened (around 6 minutes).
Add a 15 oz. can of white beans (drained and rinsed), a 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes (with juices), 1 1/2 cups of water, and 2 cups of vegetable broth to the pot. Stir everything to combine, increasing the heat (if needed) to bring the soup up to a boil.
Once boiling, let the soup cook for another 5 minutes until the vegetables have softened and the broth has cooked enough to lose the “canned” taste from the tomatoes.
Add 1 cup of small-shaped pasta (ditalini) to the soup and cook, uncovered, according to the package directions (approx. 7 minutes), stirring frequently to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
Skip this step if you plan to keep leftovers or freeze this soup for later. Instead, cook the pasta in a separate pot according to package directions.
Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the grated parmesan cheese and chopped parsley. If the broth has reduced too much (the pasta will absorb a lot of the flavorful broth as it cooks), add another ½ cup of water, taste it, and adjust the seasonings again if needed.
Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the grated parmesan cheese and chopped parsley.
If the broth has reduced too much (the pasta will absorb a lot of the flavorful broth as it cooks), add another ½ cup of water, taste it, and adjust the seasonings again if needed.
Serve the soup in bowls topped with more chopped parsley, grated parmesan, fresh-cracked black pepper, reserved bacon pieces, and a side of warm, crusty bread. Buon appetito!
For the celery, is it three whole stalks of celery or three sticks from a stalk? 3 stalks compared to the amount of other vegetables seemed like a lot so I want to make sure before buying ingredients LOL
The nomenclature around celery anatomy is highly debated 😂. When we list one celery stalk in a recipe it means one rib of celery. So for this you’ll be using three ribs or “sticks” from what’s actually called the stalk.
Great recipe! I followed the instructions exactly and it came out excellent — super creamy and flavorful. Next time I might do half parm half nutritional yeast, to mix it up a little bit!
Great recipe. Would recommend cooking pasta until nearly done separately and adding at the end.