Snap peas, called taccole or piselli mangiatutto in Italian, are one of spring’s most delightful vegetables. Sweet, crisp and toothsome, they are very easy to cook. And, best of all, they don’t need that tedious shelling needed that fresh peas do.
The specimens you’re likely to find in Italy (at least in Rome, where I lived) were different than the snap peas you’ll find Stateside. Flatter, with thinner skins, they’re more like snow peas but larger. No matter. This simple recipe will work very nicely with our rounder, plumper snap peas, which, truth be told, I actually like better.
To make taccole con pancetta e pomodoro, all you need to do is create a savory flavor base of pancetta, shallots and tomato, then throw in your peas and let them sauté until they’re done to your liking. In less than 30 minutes, you’ll have a tasty side dish that can accomplish just about any main course you can imagine.
Ingredients
Serves 4-6 as a side dish
- 500g (1 lb) snap peas
- 50-75g (2-3 oz) pancetta, cut into cubes or lardons
- 150g (5 oz) cherry tomatoes, halved, or Campari tomatoes, cut into dice
- 2-3 shallots or fresh spring onion, finely minced
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Olive oil
Directions
In a skillet large enough to hold all the snap peas, sauté the pancetta over a moderate flame until its fat is well rendered and is beginning to brown nicely. Add the shallots or fresh onions and let it sauté as well, until translucent.
Add the tomatoes to the skillet and let them sauté until they just begin to melt, then add in the snap pea and give them a good turn so they are well covered with the pancetta and tomato.
Sauté the snap peas, turning frequently, until they are done to your liking, as little as 5 minutes if they like them crisp tender and up to 15 if you prefer them “well done”. There should be a small amount of sauce clinging to them. You may need add water along the way if things dry out too much.
Serve up your snap peas right away.
Notes on taccole con pancetta e pomodoro
The cooking times you’ll find in recipes for taccole can vary enormously. More traditional recipes can call for up to 20 minutes of cooking, which results in a quite a soft veg. As I’ve mentioned before, “crisp tender” vegetables, not raw or quite fully cooked either, aren’t really in the Italian culinary tradition. Italian generally prefer their vegetables fully cooked. I like that style of cooking most of the time, at least when I’m eating Italian. But I make an exception for snap peas. I find they are at their best when they have just a bit of crunch left, just slightly past the crisp-tender stage. Overcook them and, like peas, they lose their wonderful sweetness.
The good thing is, snap peas are more forgiving than regular peas, which can turn from magic to mush in the wink of an eye. That also means that taccole take well to making ahead. Just cook them ever so slightly underdone to your taste, then reheat gently when you’re ready to serve them up.
Taccole con pancetta e pomodoro
Ingredients
- 500g (1 lb) snap peas
- 50-75g (2-3 oz) 50-75g pancetta
- 150g (5 oz) cherry tomatoes cut in half
- 2 or 3 shallots or fresh spring onion finely minced
- Salt and pepper to taste
- olive oil
Instructions
- In a skillet large enough to hold all the snap peas, sauté the pancetta over a moderate flame until its fat is well rendered and it is beginning to brown nicely. Add the shallots or fresh onions and let it sauté as well, until translucent.
- Add the tomatoes to the skillet and let them sauté until they just begin to melt, then add in the snap pea and give them a good turn so they are well covered with the pancetta and tomato.
- Sauté the snap peas, turning frequently, until they are done to your liking, as little as 5 minutes if they like them crisp tender and up to 15 if you prefer them "well done". There should be a small amount of sauce clinging to them. You may need add water along the way if things dry out too much.
- Serve right away.
Notes
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22 Comments on “Taccole con pancetta e pomodoro”
Well that’s an Italian word I’d never heard of – taccole. I love that snap beans but never thought of them in Italian food preparation. The pancetta certainly brings Italy to mind though.
Indeed it does, Linda. Thanks for stopping by!
I’m all into Italian cuisine lately, particularly when it comes to uncommon and authentic delicacies! I’m glad I discovered your blog 🙂
Have a nice day
TheFood-Trotter
Thanks, man! Going to go check out your blog very soon. Looks awesome. Frank
So springtime fresh! I love it!
Thanks!
Frank, we should start seeing fresh Italian sugar snap peas on our grocery home delivery site very soon. Then the Swedish ones will come shortly after, so this dish will hit our table more than once…
Sounds like a plan, Ron! Enjoy!
The timing on this recipe is perfect, Frank! We’ve been on a serious snap pea kick lately. Truthfully, we’ve been on an all sorts of veggies kick lately, but I keep an eye out for snap peas when I can find ’em. We used to make a somewhat similar recipe to this one, but it’s been ages. I think it’s time to make that one again!
Always a good time to enjoy snap peas, ammirite? 😉
Even though I dislike regular peas, I LOVE these! Added pancetta makes them irresistable, though! What a great side dish! 🙂
Thanks! 🙂
This is similar to a green bean recipe I love that also has Kalamata olives! Which wouldn’t be a terrible addition, but I love the simplicity os this snap pea recipe.
Sounds nice, Mimi. 🙂
Snap peas are wonderful — sweet and crunchy, and your preparation looks great. What a perfect contorno!
Thanks, David!
This looks so good! I’m looking forward to giving this one a try!
Thanks, Kath. Hope you like it!
I have not seen snap peas such as yours in any Australian market. Am extremely fond of our snow peas tho’ and oft prepare them in a similar manner. Living in a country where the Asian influences are so strong naturally purist ways such as yours disappear when one reaches for a bottle of soy or ketjap or hoi sin or similar to get the extra flavour to which one is used. Oddly, in my case, I’ll almost always choose any kind of pods and am actually not so fond of the actual peas . . .
Well, I like both but snap peas are so easy… Thanks for your comment!
My kind of dish. Fresh peas are wonderful, and this is a terrific way to use them. I like the tomato (and who can say no to pancetta?). I prepare green beans in almost this exact same way (typically use bacon, though). But haven’t done peas. Need to try that. When the farmers markets open again and I can get fresh local peas. 🙁 Really nice recipe — thanks.
Yep, I sometimes make green beans like this as well. Should’ve mentioned that in the notes! Thanks so much for stopping by, John!