I’m totally a sucker for one-pot meals. I mean, fewer dishes? Less fuss and muss (whatever “muss” is)? I’m in. So when I saw one-pot pasta floating around Pinterest awhile back, I was intrigued. I made Martha Stewart’s version pretty much immediately, and I loved it. And, because I’m a food blogger and this is what I do, I tweaked and fiddled. This One-Pot Pasta Primavera is one of my favorite outcomes so far.
I love the concept of one-pot pasta. Essentially, you put all the ingredients into the pot, including the uncooked pasta and water (or broth). And then you cook, tossing constantly, for several minutes, until most of the liquid has cooked off and the pasta and accompanying veggies are tender, perfect, and saucy.
This One-Pot Pasta Primavera is perfect for spring. With tender asparagus tips, broccoli florets, and a smattering of peas, it’s got lots of green to go around. Onions, mushrooms, garlic, and parsley add a little more oomph and flavor. True to classic Pasta Primavera form, we make it a tad creamy by ending with a bit of cream (just a splash!) and a sprinkle of grated Parmesan.
A few tips for one-pot pasta success:
- Use a heavy, roomy pot. There will be lots of stirring and tossing.
- If you have them, use long-handled tongs. Short handles keep you a little too close to the heat. Ouch!
- Select a dried pasta that has a cooking time of between 9-11 minutes. Otherwise, you may end up with under-cooked pasta, or worse, mushy mush.
- Once it starts boiling, be sure to toss and stir constantly! Otherwise the pasta will start sticking, and clean-up might make you sad.
This post was originally published on March 17, 2014.
Ingredients
- 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- 8 ounces linguine uncooked
- 1 small onion halved and sliced thin
- 1 pound broccoli crowns cut into large florets (about 2 cups)
- 1 1/2 pounds asparagus ends snapped off and cut into 2-inch pieces
- 4 ounces sliced white button mushrooms about 1 cup
- 4 large cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes less for milder heat; more to increase heat
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3/4 cup frozen peas
- 1 small handful fresh parsley chopped (about 1/2 cup chopped)
- 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
- Additional salt and pepper to taste
- Additional Parmesan cheese for serving if desired
Instructions
- Add the broth, linguine, onion, broccoli, asparagus, mushrooms, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to a large pot set over high heat. Drizzle the olive oil over the top.
- As soon as it comes to a boil, set the timer for 7 minutes and start tossing constantly with long-handled tongs.
- Continue boiling and tossing. As soon as the 7 minutes is up, add the peas, parsley, heavy whipping cream, Parmesan, and lemon zest and continue cooking, tossing constantly, for 1-2 more minutes, until the pasta and veggies appear tender. Remove from heat.
- Note that much of the liquid will have evaporated, but not all. And that's okay! Let the pasta sit for a couple of minutes to cool; the sauce will continue to thicken during that time. Taste and add additional salt and pepper if desired. Garnish with additional Parmesan cheese.
189 Comments
Hannah
March 17, 2015 at 7:06 pmMade this tonight and it is delicious!! Grocery store didn’t have parsley so I just made it without! Nice and green for St. Paddy’s Day! Yummy!
Kate
March 19, 2015 at 8:11 amTasty but the veggies were waaaay over cooked & mushy. I’ll probably cook them separately next time.
Kare Raye
March 19, 2015 at 3:44 pmThanks for your comment; you could also try throwing in the veggies later on in the process if you prefer them less cooked.
Marlin
March 20, 2015 at 12:29 pmHi, I am vegan and my husband is allergic to soy…what can I use to substitute the heavy whipping cream? thanks!!!!
Kim
March 21, 2015 at 3:31 pmMaybe some cashew cream or coconut milk???
Marlin
March 23, 2015 at 1:32 pmThank you for the suggestions!! 🙂
Kare
March 21, 2015 at 3:34 pmLove both those suggestions. Also almond milk, or just omit it altogether. It’s still plenty good without. 🙂
Ryan
March 24, 2015 at 10:47 pmMade it. Loved it. We drink coconut milk so I used that and threw in whole wheat linguine I had in the pantry. Doubled up on everything because I like my leftovers 😉
SarAh
April 3, 2015 at 4:59 amCan this be made ahead for a party? How far ahead? I’m afraid it will get soggy if not eaten right away. Thanks!
Sarah
April 6, 2015 at 8:57 pmWe loved this! My husband ate 3 bowls and my 2 year old had 2 plates. We didn’t have heavy cream so I subbed milk + butter and added additional parm. We also added other veggies to use up some things in our CSA box. Very versatile!
melissa
November 3, 2015 at 7:34 pmwhat other veggies did you use
Sally @ Good Dinner Mom
April 16, 2015 at 4:15 pmKare, this is such a fabulous dish. I’m featuring it tonight at an “everything asparagus” cooking class I’m hosting at our local Whole Foods Market. :)!
Kendra
April 21, 2015 at 9:11 pmThis looks really tasty! I am allergic to tomatoes, so I have to skip the vegetable broth – would chicken broth work as a substitute?
Winnie
April 26, 2015 at 7:28 pmLiterally just finished eating a bowl of this, and it’s my new favorite pasta dish! And I’m not even a vegetarian! Excellent job, looking forward to trying more of your recipes 🙂
Cassandra
May 4, 2015 at 9:00 pmI made this tonight with cashew cream because I am vegan, brussels sprouts since I didn’t have any broccoli on hand, and cayenne since that’s what I had. It was really yummy and my non vegan husband liked it as well. I will definitely be making this again!!! Thanks so much for the recipe 🙂
Emily | Rainbow Delicious
May 13, 2015 at 1:27 amI made this tonight and my whole family loved it! The only thing I did differently was that I sauteed the onions and garlic a little bit before adding any of the other ingredients to the pot and I forgot to add in the parsley. Turned out so fab!
Carla Smith
May 16, 2015 at 4:13 pmJust made it, verrry good! All the ingredients really came through, I add diced tomato for additional color and shredded chicken.
Laura
May 19, 2015 at 12:40 amDelicious. This is the second time I’ve made it. Used different veggies each time. Whatever came in my csa box. Will make this again!
Emily
June 9, 2015 at 9:24 pmI made this for dinner and it was soooo easy and yummy! Thank you for a quick vegetarian dinner 🙂 I made it without any whipping cream and it tasted great.
Nici
July 9, 2015 at 6:11 amWow, just made this recipe. I had to replace the asparagus with zucchini, cause asparagus season is over. But it was sooo delicious. Thank for you very much 🙂
Leo Sigh
July 29, 2015 at 12:47 amI’m vegan so I’ll substitute soy milk or coconut milk and a cheese substitute, but this looks fabulous. And, I’m with you on one-pot meals. SO easy to make and less cleaning up 🙂
Rajul
August 9, 2015 at 10:44 pmGreat idea! Can’t wait to try it!
Marla Meridith
September 2, 2015 at 7:27 amLoving this pasta!!
Micaela
September 18, 2015 at 8:43 amWould it be possible to substitute the cream with full cream plain yoghurt?
Kare @ Kitchen Treaty
September 19, 2015 at 12:00 pmHi Micaela, I’ve not tried it, but I’m sure it would be delicious. If you do try it, please report back! You can also opt to leave the cream out entirely if you like – it’s still tasty without!
Lauren Grossman
September 23, 2015 at 9:30 pmHello!
I have made this a few times and everyone in our family loves it! But taking only 20 minutes?! I wish! Does that time not include the chopping? Perhaps. But I spent a ton of time chopping and without a doubt this took about 45 minutes start to finish. I may be a bit slower than average but not that slow! Regardless, thank you for all of the wonderful recipes! This website has changed dinner time in our house!
Lauren
Lily
September 25, 2015 at 9:05 amI don’t like soft vegetables, and I wanted to add shrimp (recommended!), so here’s what I did:
First, in a separate pan, I sauteed the garlic, onion, and red pepper flakes in olive oil. Then I added the mushroom and some shrimp (and some salt and pepper). This adds one extra step to the “one-pot” process, but it’s actually quick and worth it. I think it adds way more flavor.
Then I just cooked the pasta in the broth for 7-8 minutes, not adding the broccoli or green beans (instead of asparagus) until the last couple minutes. They really cook fast and were perfectly tender by the end. Towards the end I added the frozen peas and shrimp/onion mixture. Lastly, I added the cream, some butter, cheese, and parsley. There were the right amounts of everything, cooked and seasoned perfectly. I recommend this recipe!
Leanne
September 27, 2015 at 10:57 pmSo wonderful and easy! Thanks
Sue
October 5, 2015 at 11:08 amMade this last night and it was fabulous. Easy, healthy, and delicious. Thank you!