Simple Cilantro Pasta
This pasta recipe actually began as “Açorda à Alentejana” a Portuguese cilantro soup that is thickened with bread and egg. And although I'm a huge soup girl, my ingredients were just begging to be turned into an easy, zippy, light, and fresh pasta sauce. I'm not a big pasta eater, but this cilantro pasta has me craving it every day.
Equipment
- 1 small blender or food processor
- 1 large stock pot
Ingredients
- 2 & 1/2 cups cilantro last two inches of the stems removed
- 2 small serrano peppers or one large jalapeño
- 4 garlic cloves
- 3/4 cup olive oil plus more as needed
- 1 pound pasta of choice I love a long, twirly noodle for this
- 2 cups sugar snap peas end stems removed
- 1 lemon for juicing
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 6 egg yolks optional, for serving
Instructions
- Add the cilantro, peppers, garlic, and olive oil to a small blender or food processor. Season with about a 3/4 teaspoon of kosher salt, adding more to taste, it'll need a lot of salt. Process until you get a thick, chunky sauce.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it generously. Add the pasta and cook for 7-8 minutes, or until your particular pasta is al dente. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining.
- In a large, high-sided pan, add a drizzle of olive oil and the peas. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes or until the peas are cooked through. Add in the cilantro sauce and stir to combine.
- Add the pasta to the pan with a splash of pasta water. Stir vigorously to coat the pasta in the sauce.
- Squeeze the lemon juice over the pasta, stirring to combine. Taste and season with more lemon juice, salt and pepper as desired.
- To serve, portion the pasta into bowls and add an egg yolk to each one. Puncture and mix in the egg yolk for an extra richness, it's optional, but really delicious.