One-Pot Spaghetti With Cherry Tomatoes and Kale

Easy

Credit New York Times

One-Pot Spaghetti With Cherry Tomatoes and Kale

Tejal Rao

• Yield 4 servings
• Time 20 minutes

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Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

In this simple recipe, raw pasta and cherry tomatoes are simmered together in a single pan, cooking the pasta and forming a thick, starchy sauce at the same time. The efficient technique is internet famous, but this is the British cookbook author Anna Jones’s vegetarian take on the phenomenon, adapted from her book “A Modern Way to Cook.” The technique is easy to master and endlessly adaptable: When you add the kale, you could also toss in a couple of anchovies and a generous pinch of red-pepper flakes. When you season and top with cheese, you could add a pile of fresh chopped herbs, like mint, basil or oregano.

Featured in: Review: Practical Magic For The Modern Cook. 

Pastas, Cherry Tomato, Kale, Spaghetti, Spinach, Easy, Quick, Weekday, Weeknight, Main Course

2,197 ratings

Ingredients

• 1 pound spaghetti
• 1 pound cherry tomatoes, halved (about 2 pints)
• 2 lemons, zested
• ¼ cup plus 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1 bunch kale or spinach, leaves only, washed and chopped
• Black pepper
• Parmesan, for serving

• Nutritional Information

Preparation

1. Bring just over a quart of water to a boil. Meanwhile, place spaghetti, tomatoes, lemon zest, oil and 2 teaspoons kosher salt in a large, dry, shallow pan. (The pan should be large enough that the dry spaghetti can lie flat.)
2. Carefully add the boiling water to the pan with the spaghetti. Cover pan, and bring up to a boil. Remove lid and simmer for about 6 minutes, using tongs to move the spaghetti around now and then so it doesn’t stick. Add kale or spinach and continue cooking until remaining liquid has reduced to a sauce and the pasta is cooked through. Taste, season with salt and pepper, and top with Parmesan.

Cooking Notes

500

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Lotti2 years ago

Yuck! Easier and much fresher tasting: Cook spaghetti in traditional way in one pot of water. Briefly heat tomatoes and lemon zest in oil in another pot and add spinach. Add cooked spaghetti and add salt and pepper and cheese.

541 This is helpful

Deb2 years ago

I like very spicy food, so mine has a lot of garlic, red chili pepper flakes, etc. The first time I made this was for a Vegan friend who was visiting. In place of Parmesan, I placed dry roasted almonds--unsalted--in my food processor and pulsed until they were the texture of fine meal. I stirred this into my finished dish and everybody thought it was cheese. It added protein to the dish and I omitted the one thing that made it non-Vegan--the Parmesan.

200 This is helpful

Marc2 years ago

Not to be too nitpicky about it or anything but isn't that, like, two pots? :-)

188 This is helpful

REINVENTING THE WHEEL?2 years ago

I think this is a fine recipe, that may be supplemented with just about any green such as arugula, swiss chard, etc. I think the normal way to cook pasta is the way to go here. I have found it is easier to add the ingredients after the pasta has been cooked "very" al dente to get the best flavor and consistency. This is an old and simple technique, which has worked in this and in many recipes.

143 This is helpful