Fregola pasta with artichokes.
This traditional recipe from Sardinia for pasta with artichokes is made with the typical Sardinian ingredients; fregola (fregula), globe artichokes and Pecorino cheese. It’s an easy to make, simple and light recipe that can be eaten hot or cold. Perfect as a starter, side dish or weeknight meal.
Servings: 4
Calories: 457kcal
Equipment
- 1 deep frying pan
Ingredients
- 12.5 ounces fregola or orzo pasta
- 4-6 globe artichokes cleaned and sliced
- 2 pints vegetable broth
- 1 leek
- 1-2 garlic cloves peeled and chopped
- 1 handful fresh parsley washed and chopped
- 1.5 ounces Pecorino Romano freshly grated
- 1 lemon
- ½ teaspoon salt to taste
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. to taste
Instructions
Prepare the ingredients.
- Remove the hardest external leaves and cut off the tips of the artichokes. Then cut them in half and remove the internal beard, cut the artichokes into very thin slices, and soak them in water with lemon juice, to preserve the color.
- Wash the leek and cut it into thin slices, wash and chop the parsley and peel and chop the garlic.
Make the pasta with artichokes.
- Place a deep-frying pan or skillet on the heat with a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and, when it is hot, add the leek cut into slices, leaving it to sauté for a few minutes.
- Then add the drained artichoke slices. Let everything cook for about 10-15 minutes over a medium heat, then add the chopped garlic and parsley.
- Pour the fregola into the pan. mix everything together and let the fregola sauté a little.
- Pour a couple of ladles of vegetable broth into the pan, stir and let the pasta absorb the broth. Continue adding broth and stirring until the fregola is cooked. The same way you would make a risotto. It will take about 20-25 minutes. At the end of cooking, the fregola and artichokes should be soft and the dish a little soupy.
- Turn off the heat, stir a generous helping of pecorino into the fregola with artichokes, mix well and serve hot with a sprinkling of more fresh parsley and grated pecorino. Season with salt and pepper as required.
Notes
To make this recipe vegetarian use a vegetarian hard cheese instead of Pecorino or Parmigiano Reggiano.
Instead of fregola, you can use orzo pasta or Israeli couscous.
This recipe is also delicious served cold.
Nutrition
Calories: 457kcal | Carbohydrates: 87g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 11mg | Sodium: 1205mg | Potassium: 732mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1021IU | Vitamin C: 19mg | Calcium: 205mg | Iron: 3mg