Piselli alla romana (Roman-Style Peas)

FrankRome and Lazio, sides/contorno19 Comments

Now piselli alla romana may be the shortest post I ever write, as this tasty and elegant side dish is about as simple as a recipe can get, short of boiling water.

Ingredients

Serves 4-6 as a side dish

  • 1 large bag  (approx. 450g/16 oz) of frozen peas, or the equivalent in fresh, shelled peas
  • 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 2-3 slices of prosciutto, sliced into thin strips
  • Salt and pepper
  • Olive oil

Directions

Make a soffritto by sweating some finely chopped onion in olive oil until translucent. Add the prosciutto, cut across the grain into thin strips, and continue cooking just until the prosciutto has lost its ‘raw’ look.

Then add peas—frozen peas will do nicely—and stir. Allow the peas to cook and absorb the flavors of the soffritto. If using frozen peas, this will take no longer than five minutes, otherwise let the peas simmer until tender, about 15-2o minutes. Season to taste and serve!

Notes 

Two fine variations on piselli alla romana are piselli al guanciale and piselli alla pancetta, which use guanciale or pancetta instead of the prosciutto. They are more ‘down home’ but every bit as delicious.

Print Recipe

Piselli alla romana (Roman-Style Peas)

Total Time15 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 large bag approx. 450g/16 oz of frozen peas, or the equivalent in fresh, shelled peas
  • 1/2 medium onion finely chopped
  • 2-3 slices of prosciutto sliced into thin strips
  • Salt and pepper
  • Olive oil

Instructions

  • Make a soffritto by sweating some finely chopped onion in olive oil until translucent. Add the prosciutto, cut across the grain into thin strips, and continue cooking just until the prosciutto has lost its 'raw' look.
  • Then add peas—frozen peas will do nicely—and stir. Allow the peas to cook and absorb the flavors of the soffritto. If using frozen peas, this will take no longer than five minutes, otherwise let the peas simmer until tender, about 15-2o minutes. Season to taste and serve!

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19 Comments on “Piselli alla romana (Roman-Style Peas)”

  2. Reply

    Really loved this. Went very nice with Saltimbocca alla romana (Roman-Style Veal Scallops). Thanks

  4. Reply

    Mom used to have this as a sidedish so many times…that I confess to not having made it once at my home. Maybe its time I take this and put my own little twist on it.
    Thanks for reminding me of the simplicity of this dish ;o)
    Flavourful wishes, Claudia

  5. Reply

    This is a “go-to” holiday dish at my home. Everyone looks forward to it. I usually saute shallots for it, sometimes baby onions, but the sauteed prosciutto really make it come alive.

  10. Reply

    Really love every bit of your blog. I guess that might be due to the following…
    -I am Italian
    -I studied culinary arts in Rome
    -I find your posts to be really really nice and accurate in terms of Italian culinary traditions.

    Need I say more? 😉

We'd love to hear your questions and thoughts! And if you tried the recipe, we'd love to hear how it went!