Chef Graziella
Acquacotta Maremmana
The humblest soup in Tuscany, born from the wild Maremma where shepherds and charcoal burners transformed water, onions, stale bread, and an egg into sustenance. Proof that poverty teaches better than plenty.
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Pasta e Fagioli alla Veneta
Created by
The bean soup of the Veneto, where borlotti beans simmer with pork rind until the broth turns creamy and the pasta drinks it all in. No tomatoes. No apologies.
Soups & Stews
Italian, Venetian
Weeknight
Comfort Food
Budget Friendly
30 min
Active Time
2 hr 30 min cook•3 hr total
Yield6 servings
The cooking of Venice is so distant from that of Naples, although they are both Italian cities, that not a single authentic dish from one is to be found on the other's table. This truth applies nowhere more clearly than to pasta e fagioli. The Neapolitan version is red with tomatoes. The Venetian version contains none. If you add tomatoes, you are no longer making Venetian food. You are making something else.
In the Veneto, this soup is white and creamy, thickened by the beans themselves. You cook borlotti until some of them dissolve into the broth while others hold their shape. You enrich it with pork rind or pancetta, which gives body and depth without announcing itself. The pasta is short and sturdy, something that will not fall apart as the soup rests and thickens.
This is peasant cooking. Contadini in the hills behind Venice and Verona made this with dried beans from the summer harvest, a scrap of pork saved from the slaughter, and whatever pasta was in the cupboard. They knew what we have forgotten: that the humblest ingredients, treated with respect and given time, become extraordinary.
Pasta e fagioli has fed the poor of the Veneto since beans arrived from the Americas in the 16th century. The Venetian version evolved distinctly from its southern cousins, reflecting the region's preference for cream-colored soups enriched with pork rather than the tomato-bright broths of Naples. Farm families in the provinces of Verona and Vicenza still argue about whether the pasta should be broken spaghetti or short tubes.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
dried borlotti beans
Quantity
1 pound
soaked overnight
pork rind (cotenna)
Quantity
4 ounces
scraped clean and cut into 2-inch pieces
pancetta
Quantity
3 ounces
diced fine
extra virgin olive oil
Quantity
1/3 cup, plus more for drizzling
yellow onion
Quantity
1 medium
diced fine
carrot
Quantity
1 medium
peeled and diced fine
celery stalks
Quantity
2
diced fine
garlic cloves
Quantity
2
peeled and lightly crushed
fresh rosemary
Quantity
2 sprigs
fresh sage leaves
Quantity
4
chicken broth
Quantity
8 cups
preferably homemade
short pasta
Quantity
8 ounces
kosher salt
Quantity
to taste
black pepper
Quantity
to taste
freshly ground
Parmigiano-Reggiano
Quantity
for serving
freshly grated
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| dried borlotti beanssoaked overnight | 1 pound |
| pork rind (cotenna)scraped clean and cut into 2-inch pieces | 4 ounces |
| pancettadiced fine | 3 ounces |
| extra virgin olive oil | 1/3 cup, plus more for drizzling |
| yellow oniondiced fine | 1 medium |
| carrotpeeled and diced fine | 1 medium |
| celery stalksdiced fine | 2 |
| garlic clovespeeled and lightly crushed | 2 |
| fresh rosemary | 2 sprigs |
| fresh sage leaves | 4 |
| chicken brothpreferably homemade | 8 cups |
| short pasta | 8 ounces |
| kosher salt | to taste |
| black pepperfreshly ground | to taste |
| Parmigiano-Reggianofreshly grated | for serving |
Equipment Needed
- •Heavy 6-quart Dutch oven or soup pot
- •Large pot for cooking beans
- •Food mill or immersion blender for pureeing beans
Instructions
- 1
Prepare the pork rind
If using pork rind, place it in a small pot, cover with cold water, and bring to a boil. Drain and repeat. This removes excess salt and impurities. Set aside. The rind will become silky and nearly dissolve into the soup, giving it body that no other ingredient can provide.
Ask your butcher for pork rind. It is often free or nearly so. Scrape off any remaining fat, which can make the soup greasy. - 2
Cook the beans
Drain the soaked beans and place them in a large pot with the blanched pork rind. Cover with fresh cold water by three inches. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Reduce heat to low and cook until the beans are completely tender, about one hour to one hour and fifteen minutes. The beans should crush easily between your fingers. Do not drain. Reserve the beans in their cooking liquid.
- 3
Build the soffritto
In a heavy pot or Dutch oven, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until the fat renders and the pancetta begins to crisp at the edges, about 8 minutes. Add the onion, carrot, and celery. Cook slowly, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are completely soft and the onion is golden, about 15 minutes. Add the crushed garlic, rosemary, and sage. Cook one minute more until fragrant. The garlic must not brown.
FLAVOR, IN ITALIAN DISHES, builds up from the bottom. The soffritto is the foundation. One can often trace the unsatisfying taste of would-be Italian cooking to the reluctance of some cooks to execute this step thoroughly. - 4
Combine beans and soffritto
Remove the pork rind from the beans and cut it into small pieces. Set aside. Using a slotted spoon, transfer half of the beans to the soffritto. Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Pass the remaining beans through a food mill or puree them with their cooking liquid, then add this puree to the pot. The combination of whole beans and pureed beans creates the proper texture: creamy but with substance.
- 5
Simmer the soup
Return the chopped pork rind to the pot. Simmer gently, uncovered, for 45 minutes. The soup will thicken as the starch from the pureed beans integrates. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Season with salt and pepper, remembering that the pancetta and broth contribute salt. Taste as you go.
- 6
Cook the pasta
Remove the rosemary sprigs. Add the pasta directly to the soup. Cook, stirring frequently, until the pasta is tender but retains pleasant resistance, following the package time as a guide but testing earlier. The pasta will continue to absorb liquid as it sits. If the soup becomes too thick, add more broth or water. It should be very thick, almost like a stew. A spoon should nearly stand upright.
Cook the pasta directly in the soup, not separately. The starch from the pasta thickens the broth further and the pasta absorbs flavor. This is not optional. - 7
Rest and serve
Remove from heat and let rest for at least 15 minutes. The soup continues to thicken and the flavors meld. Ladle into warm bowls, drizzle generously with your best olive oil, and serve with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano at the table. The olive oil is not decoration. It is essential.
Chef Tips
- •Borlotti beans are essential. Cannellini will give you a different soup, pleasant but not Venetian. Borlotti have a chestnut-like sweetness and a creamier texture when pureed.
- •The soup improves overnight. Make it a day ahead if possible. It will thicken considerably in the refrigerator. Add broth or water when reheating to restore the proper consistency.
- •If pork rind is unavailable, a Parmigiano-Reggiano rind simmered with the beans provides richness, though the character changes. Do not use bacon, which is too smoky for this soup.
- •The garlic is restrained here, just two cloves, and they are removed before serving. The unbalanced use of garlic is the single greatest cause of failure in would-be Italian cooking. Use restraint.
Advance Preparation
- •Beans can be cooked with the pork rind up to two days ahead and refrigerated in their liquid.
- •The completed soup, without pasta, can be made three days ahead. The flavors deepen with time. Add pasta when reheating.
- •If adding pasta ahead, the soup will thicken dramatically as the pasta absorbs liquid. Add broth liberally when reheating. Some cooks prefer to add fresh pasta each time they serve.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 450g)
Calories
730 calories
Total Fat
29 g
Saturated Fat
8 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
21 g
Cholesterol
33 mg
Sodium
1275 mg
Total Carbohydrates
78 g
Dietary Fiber
21 g
Sugars
2 g
Protein
40 g
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