Go from pantry staples to vegan pasta dinner in under 20 minutes with this quick and easy White Bean Pasta Puttanesca Recipe. Diced tomatoes and olives, miso and capers make this savory and flavorful, creamy and dairy-free….the perfect weeknight meal. Leftovers can be eaten cold or at room temperature for potluck vegan pasta salad perfection!
Quick and easy dinners that taste great, are satisfying and nutritious make it into my weekly rotation. This simple white bean vegan pasta puttanesca is exactly what I make when I have no time and have no plan. My version of puttanesca omits the cheese and the anchovies….after a few tries, I nailed the flavor profile and you won’t find any of the taste missing!
I’ll serve this delicious pasta dish with a basic green salad or cabbage salad, praying for leftovers for lunch the next day!
Ingredient Notes
- Olives: You can find olives of all different types with and without the pits in. My two favorite types of olives are castelvetrano and kalamata…for their flavor, texture and color.
- Capers: The briny flavor the capers adds is really what makes this dish shine…so, choose larger jarred capers if you can find them and don’t be shy about adding a splash of caper juice for added flavor too.
- Miso paste: To keep this puttanesca vegan, I use the miso paste for a burst of umami without having to use anchovies, which are a traditional puttanesca ingredient.
How to make it
I prefer the texture of the olives that come with the pits still in. So I think the effort to take the pits out is totally worth it. A cherry pitter makes this an easy task. You can also push them out with a metal straw. You can save time by buying already pitted olives.
Fill medium sized pot with salted water and bring to a boil to cook the pasta while you’re making the sauce.
Heat a large skillet over medium-low heat to slowly cook the garlic. Stir constantly until it’s fragrant, but not browning.
Add the diced tomatoes and their juices, miso paste and tomato paste. Use the back of a wooden spoon to help distribute both pastes into the liquid. Keep cooking until a thick and chunky sauce emerges.
Roughly chop the olives, leaving some larger pieces and add them along with the capers and rinsed white beans.
Mix well and allow mixture to simmer, thickening, while the pasta is cooking. Before draining pasta, set aside ½ cup cooking water.
Turn off heat and stir in ½ cup pasta water. Then add in nutritional yeast and fresh parsley.
Pour the al dente pasta into the skillet and mix until fully coated with the sauce.
Taste for seasoning. I didn’t add salt to the recipe because I thought the capers and olives, plus the miso paste added enough sodium and I found it flavorful. I did love the addition of some crushed red pepper, because I like a bit of heat on my pasta dishes. This would be the time to add a bit of salt/pepper or an additional sprinkling of nutritional yeast or fresh herbs to taste.
Debra’s Pro Tips
- Cook the pasta 1 minute less than it says on the directions for al dente. I usually time 6 minutes for any small shape pasta.
- Don’t forget to dip a pyrex measuring cup into the pot with the pasta to save ½ cup water before draining.
- A bit more pasta water or a splash of caper juice is a great way to thin the sauce out if you find it too thick.
- If you like a saucier puttanesca, use a larger can of diced tomatoes.
- An extra sprinkle of nutritional yeast gives the dish a cheesy type flavor.
- Serve at room temperature or cold for puttanesca pasta salad!
- This will stay good in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
- The sauce will accumulate on the bottom of the dish, so give it a good stir before serving.
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📖 Recipe
White Bean Vegan Pasta Puttanesca
Ingredients
- ½ lb. pasta cooked al dente, and set aside ½ cup pasta water
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic pressed or grated
- 1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon miso paste
- 1 15 oz. can cannellini beans
- ½ cup kalamata olives rough chop
- ½ cup castelvertrano olives rough chop
- 2 tablespoon capers
- 3 tablespoon chopped flat leaf parsley
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions, setting timer for 1 minute less than the recommended time. Before straining, use a pyrex measuring cup to divert ½ cup pasta water.
- Heat heavy skillet over medium-low heat. Swirl in olive oil to coat bottom of pan and then add the garlic. Cook, stirring constantly for 30 seconds, until fragrant, but not brown.
- Stir in diced tomatoes and their juices, tomato paste and miso. Stir until miso and tomato paste have fully dissolved.
- Stir in beans, olives and capers. Let cook for about 5 minutes as the flavors concentrate.
- Turn off heat and stir in ½ the parsley and the nutritional yeast.
- Stir in pasta water and then pasta. Mix well. Sprinkle on remaining parsley and taste. Season with salt and pepper or a pinch of crushed red pepper to taste.
- Can be served hot, cold or at room temperature. Store in airtight container in the refrigerator for a week.
Notes
Nutrition
Note
The nutrition calculations were done using online tools. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients you used. You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information is accurate, complete and useful.
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