One Pot Pea and Bacon Pasta Recipe - Savory Nothings (2024)

This One Pot Pea and Bacon Pasta recipe is super quick and easy to put together – even the pasta gets cooked right in the creamy sauce!

I’ve made this particular pea and bacon pastaabout a thousand times now – it’s my backpocket meal for those crazy days you don’t want to cook, but still have hungry mouths to feed.

It’s so quick, easy and fuss-free to make – and everything cooks in a single pot! I mean, did you seethe amount of dishes there’s to wash after a one pot meal? It’s like a dream come true.

Here, crispy bacon pairs with peas and a creamy cheese sauce to create the ultimate comforting pasta dish. My family absolutely loves this, and I’m sure yours will, too!

Ingredients you’ll need

Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for quantities!

Ingredient notes

• Shells: Feel free to use a different pasta shape, but I do recommend using a smaller shape that cooks in less than 10 minutes. Elbow macaroni work great, as do bow ties.
• Chicken broth: Vegetable broth works in a pinch. I do not recommend beef broth, as it can have an overpowering taste.
• Milk: I mostly use whole milk for this recipe, although 2% works great, too. 1% is OK. I would not recommend fat free milk, the pasta would be more watery/less rich.
• Peas: I have made this pasta with corn in place of the peas, and with a mixture of peas and corn. Works great!
• Bacon: Diced ham is a great substitute for the bacon, if you’re looking for something a little lighter.
• Ricotta: I love ricotta in this recipe, although cream cheese works just as well. Mascarpone yields a very decadent pasta (delicious! but decadent).
• Garlic/onion: I really like the combination of bacon, garlic and onion in this recipe, although the original version of this recipe didn’t include the onion and garlic. Feel free to leave them out, or to use ¼ teaspoon each onion and garlic powder instead.

How to make Pea and Bacon Pasta

1. Cook the bacon in a large skillet until crispy, then set it aside on paper towels to drain off any excess fat.

2. In the same skillet in the bacon fat, cook the onion and garlic until fully softened and lightly browned.

3. Pour in about 1 cup of chicken broth to scrape away any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, then pour in 1 more cup of broth (reserve the remaining cup to add as needed while cooking the pasta).

4. Add the milk, pasta, peas and seasoning and stir well.

5. Simmer until the pasta is done, adding more broth as needed. Then stir in the cheeses until creamy.

6. Crumble the bacon and add it to the pasta with the parsley (if using), then serve immediately!

Recipe tips

• Do not pre-cook the pasta! It really does go in completely dry and uncooked. If you pre-cook it, your dish will come out very soupy.
• Make sure you only add 2 cups of the chicken broth initially, then gradually add the remaining cup to the pasta as it is cooking. This way, you only add as much as you need (different types of pasta require different amounts of liquid). If the dish seems too dry/not saucy enough once you stir in the ricotta cheese, just add another splash of broth to thin it out a little.
• I highly recommend serving the pasta right away – it will continue soaking up liquid as it sits and cools, and it really is the creamiest and tastiest when it is served as soon as it has finished cooking.

Leftovers

While I do not recommend making this pasta ahead on purpose, you can easily keep leftovers refrigerated for up to 3 days.

I highly recommend reheating leftovers of this dish as a pasta casserole – just place them in a casserole dish (maybe add ¼ cup of milk if it seems dry), top with shredded cheese and bake at 375°F for 20-25 minutes, until fully heated through.

Freezer tips

If you want to make this pasta ahead of time to freeze for later, I highly recommend freezing it in a casserole dish. Pack it up well, then label with the name and date. Freeze for up to 3 months.

Defrost in the fridge overnight, then unwrap, sprinkle with cheese and bake at 375°F for 20-25 minutes.

Serving ideas

We like to serve a salad or vegetable side with this pasta dish – I love some roasted asparagus (or air fried asparagus!), sautéed green beans (or air fried green beans… ?) or some roasted broccoli with it.

For a salad, I will usually go for a creamy cucumber salad or for a tomato cucumber salad.

If you need to bulk up your meal for big eaters or to stretch it to serve more people, it tastes delicious with some grilled chicken, air fried chicken breast or air fryer pork chops.

PSIf you try this recipe, please leavea review in the comment section and add a star rating in the recipe card – I appreciate your feedback! Follow along onPinterest,FacebookorInstagram.

Printable recipe

Recipe first published on 05/06/2015. Updated with slight improvements to recipe, new photos and better text on 04/19/2021.

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