Pasta e Ceci (Italian Chickpea Pasta) Recipe With Pancetta

Pasta e ceci, or chickpea pasta, is an Italian pasta dish made with canned or dried chickpeas, small pasta, and a light tomato sauce. Common small pasta shapes include macaroni, orzo, or ditalini pasta. Pasta e ceci is customizable to personal taste, and many recipes call for vegetables or protein to bulk up the dish. Pasta e ceci is similar to the Neopolitan dish pasta e fagioli (pasta and beans, traditionally white beans).

Use the tips below for hearty and umami-rich pasta with chickpeas, also known as pasta e ceci:

1. 1. Cook the one-pot meal in a Dutch oven. To build flavor in the dish, cook everything in the same pot, like a Dutch oven. Start with sautéing garlic, onions, and bacon or pancetta, then use the rendered fat and browned bits at the bottom of the pot to flavor the rest of the dish. Add liquid to the pot, then add the dried pasta to cook and naturally thicken the hearty soup.
2. 2. Use canned chickpeas. To make paste e ceci an easy weeknight dinner, use canned chickpeas instead of dried chickpeas. Dried chickpeas require a soaking process followed by simmering for a couple of hours. Canned chickpeas add just as much body to the pasta dish.
   
3. 3. Use dried pasta. It’s tempting to use fresh pasta for everything because of its chewy texture and quick cooking time. For pasta e ceci, dried pasta works best. The pasta cooks with everything else and ends up on the stovetop for longer than fresh pasta needs to, or should, cook.

Try any of the serving options below for the Italian pasta dish:

1. 1. Add vegetables to the pasta dish. Bulk up pasta e ceci with vegetables like zucchini, escarole, fresh tomatoes, and more. For fresher-tasting vegetables, add them at the end of the cooking process so they retain their color and texture. For fibrous greens, add them to the pot earlier in the process, so they have time to break down and tenderize.
2. 2. Serve pasta e ceci with a fresh salad. Pasta e ceci spends some time on the stove developing flavor. To freshen up the meal, serve the pasta dish with a fresh salad of bright, leafy greens and a tangy vinaigrette.
3. 3. Use paste e ceci as a base for protein. Chickpeas have protein, but overall the dish is heavy on starches. Meat-eaters may want to top pasta e ceci with grilled chicken, steak, or shrimp.