Sometimes you see something come along on Instagram that you immediately think: I have to try that. This tagliatelle with rocket sauce, grilled vegetables and pistachios is one of those. Sas went into the kitchen and came out with a festive plate of pasta and in no time at all on a weekday. Just put the arugula in the blender with lemon, olive oil and capers, add pasta, grill vegetables, top with nuts - and you're done. You want to make this. We explain it step by step.
Arugula salsa verde
A quick meal is nice, but preferably one with a bit more flair than a standard student snack. This tagliatelle with rocket sauce falls exactly into that category. A word about rocket: I am not necessarily a fan of it - I have almost choked on it too often - but its nutty flavour is great. And we will keep it in, but in a much softer form: as salsa verde. This is originally a fresh, Italian green sauce with herbs such as parsley, capers, garlic, olive oil and sometimes some vinegar or anchovies. In this recipe, we make a rucola variant with capers and lemon. Vegetarian, in other words. No more choking danger, just plenty of that nutty flavour. Note: a little acid from the capers is nice, but it should not become an acid bomb. I made this recipe three times to find just the right proportions for a whole bag of arugula. A whole bag, yes really - you'll be amazed how little is left when you blend it.
Fun fact: rocket leaves are actually the young leaves of mustard greens. Hence the spicy bite. You can very easily sow arugula yourself. Keep on picking as the plant just keeps on growing happily.
A quick green pasta sauce made with rocket and capers.
Tagliatelle with rocket sauce ‘sala-verde’ and pistachios
Kitchenware
- measuring cup & hand blender(or blender)
- large pasta pan
- grill pan
Ingredients
- bag of rocket 85 gr
- 1 el capers leaked
- 8 el olive oil
- 3-4 el lemon juice
- pinch of salt & pepper
- fresh tagliatelle
- handful of shelled pistachios
- Parmesan or vegan grater
- optional: grilled vegetables of your choice such as courgette tomato, pepper
Instructions
- First, make the rocket sauce. Put the arugula in a blender, along with the capers, olive oil, lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper. Blend to a smooth arugula salsa verde. Taste and adjust - the acidity should remain subtle.
- Bring a pan of water to the boil and cook the tagliatelle as indicated on the packet.
- Peel the pistachios and pound them coarsely with a rolling pin. Tip: put a clean tea towel over them, this saves flying nuts and tidying up.
- Slice your favourite vegetables and grill them briefly on both sides. Courgette, tomato or pepper are top combinations.
- Drain the pasta, ladle out a portion and generously spoon some of the rocket sauce over it. Serve with the grilled vegetables, sprinkle with the pistachios and finish with Parmesan or vegan grater.
More quick recipes
- See also this pasta salad once.
- See also this falafel once.
- See also this bruschetta with parmesan cream once. Fast and also something really special.
Photo credits: thegreenlist.nl. Sources: veggipedia.nl.
