Here’s a list of 13 unique ditalini pasta recipes; you’ll find here the classic Fagioli and minestrone, but also not-so-traditional recipes for this tiny pasta!
Small pasta shapes deserve all the love and attention, too!
Ditalini is still gaining popularity compared to its well-known pasta relatives here in the U.S., but it’s just as delicious and versatile.
This small-cut, tube-shaped pasta works in everything, really.
It’s one of the best pasta for soup because of its tiny size, but it’s also great for any other pasta dish: on a salad, baked, or covered with rich, thick sauces.
Ditalini also cooks in a flash compared to larger shapes, making it a fantastic pasta if you’re in a rush for a filling home-cooked meal.
Check out our list of 13 ditalini recipes for you to get to know this pasta shape.
Classic Italian Minestrone Soup is a popular veggie soup recipe that uses ditalini.
Try Southwest Style Cowboy Casserole for something a little bit on the wild side!
Stay tuned until #13 for a recipe with an exciting twist. 🍲
Let’s kick off this list with a rustic chicken soup recipe that can get you back on your feet.
Nothing says home-cooked better than a tasty chicken soup.
Comforting, savory, and satisfying, this dish brings out the best from simple ingredients.
It gets a meaty and satisfying flavor from just chicken, veggies, and a few herbs and spices.
Tomato gives it nice umami and a hint of sweet.
Be sure to use low-sodium chicken stock to control the salt level as desired.
Homemade stock or broth is ideal, but you can use vegetable broth, bouillon cubes, or any substitute!
You know what we say: if it works, it works!
This unconventional risotto doesn’t use rice, but it’s as yummy and creamy.
Cacio E Pepe—cheese and pepper in Italian—is a one-two flavor punch combination that will excite your taste buds.
It’s risotto-style, so the pasta is cooked in the same pan as the other ingredients.
The richness of the butter-and-olive-oil sauce is complemented by the fragrance and mild heat of cracked black pepper.
Tangy pecorino romano cheese is grated at the end and mixed until it’s completely melted in the pasta.
A cup of wine gives the dish a pleasant acidity.
This dish is perfect for an afternoon garden party!
Crisp summer vegetables give this salad an incredible, refreshing bite.
Their texture goes excellent with the al dente pasta, creamy avocados, and soft mozzarella cheese pearls.
A mix of mayonnaise and dijon mustard binds all the ingredients together.
This recipe is very adaptable.
You can easily make this dish your own by using your favorite fresh vegetables or adding some protein.
This dish can be pretty filling as it is with the pasta, but adding a little shredded chicken breast will make it more satisfying and tasty.
Peas, baby, peas!
This is an easy dish that even beginners can make in no time.
The garlic butter and pea sauce should be ready once your pasta is a nice al dente.
While the peas cook in the microwave for a few minutes, you can gently cook a few crushed cloves of garlic and red pepper flakes with melted butter.
Baby peas have a fantastic texture that is irresistibly soft and mushy.
Their mellow sweet and savory taste is boosted with flavorful garlic butter.
Everything’s better with butter, right?
Red peppers add some heat, but you can leave them out if you want.
Minestrone is an Italian favorite!
This is an easy one-pot dish packed with bright and flavorful vegetables.
The key to making a delicious minestrone is timing in the cooking process.
Diced carrots and squash are sauteed with onions, garlic, and celery in the first step.
They will soften nicely as all the other ingredients cook, giving them a pleasantly sweet and savory flavor.
Be sure to add the kidney and green beans near the end to keep their shape and texture.
You can enjoy this hearty soup with fresh or reheated garlic bread.
Craving a meaty soup that can pick you right up?
Try out this Fagioli recipe!
Like minestrone, it’s filled with fresh veggies that impart a lot of flavor to the soup.
It uses fresh sausage instead of cured or smoked ones to highlight the bright and savory flavors of the vegetables.
It has a lot of warm flavors from a blend of cumin, oregano, chili powder, and red pepper flakes.
Squeeze in two tablespoons of tomato paste to give that delicious umami.
It’s best to make a large batch of this to save time.
It freezes well, so you’re good to go for another meal for the family.
This minty and lemony pasta recipe is so delicious!
The ricotta cheese has a mild, creamy, milky flavor that tastes amazing with fresh peas.
Lemon zest wakes up the flavor of this pasta dish by adding acidity.
The brightness of the lemon and mint is complemented by the aged nutty and savory flavor of parmesan cheese.
A good grating of parmesan before you finish cooking will season the entire dish beautifully.
You can use lime zest, lemon extract, or other substitutes if you’re all out of lemons.
Try out this recipe if you want something rustic that tastes like home!
Like any home-cooked favorite, this dish features simple but tasty flavors from just a few ingredients.
Rendered pancetta gives the dish a lot of fatty, meaty, and briny flavors.
It’s like bacon but has a cleaner, smoke-free taste that won’t clash with the other ingredients.
Tiny lentils go perfectly with the size of the small-cut ditalini.
Their tenderness matches the soft pasta, making for a pleasant mouthfeel.
Say howdy to this cheesy baked Cowboy Casserole!
It’s loaded with meat and veggies and covered with gooey cheese—who can say no?
Ground beef and country-style pork sausage give the casserole a robust, meaty flavor.
Browning allows the meat to develop deep, complex flavors that are hard to get from any ingredient.
You can swap out the country sausage for garlic or Italian sausage if you want something with a bit more kick.
In this house, we like it fresh, and this dish ticks all the boxes!
You can use any tender herb or leafy green for this recipe.
Roughly chop any leftovers in your pantry and add them to the mix.
The key is to cook the greens well enough to blend into the garlic and anchovy sauce.
Anchovies have a robust salty, umami taste balanced by smooth, creamy, and tangy yogurt.
The yogurt improves the consistency of the sauce, so feel free to use enough to get the thickness you like.
A dollop of yogurt and a topping of more greens right before serving makes this dish look so appetizing.
Looking for a recipe to make in your old reliable instant pot?
You got it!
Turkey, like chicken, has a mellow flavor that works great for dishes with lots of simple, fresh ingredients.
Parmesan rind is tossed into the pot with the other ingredients.
This allows the nutty flavor of the cheese to blend into the soup.
The high-pressure level of the instant pot will help melt the rind, which will thicken the dish.
If you can’t get ground turkey, this dish is excellent for using leftover turkey in your freezer.
Just shred them into bite-size pieces before adding them to your instant pot.
This is one of those quick and yummy dishes you’ll want to cook over and over again.
It’s done in no time—perfect for a weeknight meal.
Chicken breasts are cut and pounded to make tender cutlets before searing them in a hot pat.
A simple seasoning of S&P and garlic powder brings out the savory browned flavors of the chicken.
The sweetness of the zucchini works well with the tomatoes and the lemon.
You can swap out the chicken breast for deboned chicken thigh if you want something more tender and easier to cook.
This pasta dish is cooked in beer and beef broth instead of plain water.
The malty sweetness and pleasant floral fragrance of the reduced pilsner beer all get absorbed by the pasta.
Reducing the beef broth also improves its deep, savory flavor.
Season the cooked pasta with salt, pepper, and parmesan cheese, and you’ve got a filling meal.
This dish is excellent with mixed greens on the side, but you can also pair it with bread or fish.
The bottom line
Ditalini pasta proves that small can do it all!
It’s even better than larger pasta in some dishes, especially when paired with other small-cut ingredients or when in a rush.
Check out all the yummy dishes you can cook with it on our list.
Best Ditalini Pasta Recipe Collection
Here’s a list of 13 unique ditalini pasta recipes; you’ll find here the classic Fagioli and minestrone, but also not-so-traditional recipes for this tiny pasta!
Ingredients
- Sicilian Chicken Soup
- Cacio E Pepe Pasta Risotto
- Ditalini Pasta Salad
- Sweet Baby Pea Ditalini Pasta
- Classic Italian Minestrone Soup
- Pasta Fagioli
- Ditalini Pasta With Lemony Ricotta & Peas
- Sicilian Lentil Pasta
- Southwest Style Cowboy Casserole
- Ditalini With Tender Herbs, Chickpeas, & Yogurt
- Instant Pot Turkey Meatball Ditalini Soup
- Lemon Chicken Ditalini
- Cheesy Ditalini With Mixed Greens
Instructions
- Find your favorite recipe from our Ditalini Pasta Recipes list.
- Gather all the ingredients needed.
- Start cooking and make us proud!