This miso pasta sauce with cannellini beans and leeks is THE most delicious meal EVER. It is the dreamiest combination of textures and the umami flavor of miso paste adds a huge flavor bomb. The beans make it a creamy sauce without any cream and makes it easily adapted to be vegan. This recipe will have you licking your plates clean, I guarantee it.
Hi! This is my first recipe of 2024 can you believe it?! This is a recipe I have adapted from plant based food blogger Nat's Nourishment. Her reel on instagram stopped me in my tracks and I knew I had to turn her leek and bean dish into a pasta. I have stayed pretty true to her recipe with a few BBT tweaks here and there.
I have used a hand rolled gnocchi sardi for this dish which I think adds such a lovely textural contrast to the soft beans and leeks. You could use any shape you like fresh or dried. If you have never used miso paste in a pasta before, don't be scared! It adds such an amazing depth of flavor. You'll have to make my Creamy Miso Mushroom Pasta next!
Ingredients:
Leeks - I had to use two small ones so if you find a really big one that should be enough.
Onion - If you follow me on instagram you know that when I recently travelled to the USA I was SHOCKED at how big the onions were. I used ½ a onion so maybe even use a ¼ if you are there.
Garlic - Fresh garlic cloves are the best option, jarred garlic is just not the greatest for cooking, it has a strange preserved flavor in my opinion.
Cannellini beans - You could also use any other kind of white beans like butter beans. Try and find a can that has no salt added. If you can't and they are in normal brine you might just need to watch your seasoning.
White miso paste - Miso is a fermented soy bean paste used in Japanese Cuisine, you've probably tried miso soup before. The colour name is a bit confusing as the white paste is still quite brown in colour. It's really easy to find in supermarkets now and usually comes in a tub. You can get red miso paste too but I haven't tested that with this sauce.
Fresh rosemary - I think miso and rosemary are a match made in heaven. You could substitute for thyme if you wish.
Fresh lemon juice - Lemon freshens up any pasta sauce, it cuts through the salty miso perfectly in this sauce.
Expert tips
- Weigh your pasta portions! This is always one of my biggest tips. It ensures the perfect pasta to sauce ratio and literally takes less than a minute. I suggest 100 grams dried per person or 150 grams fresh per person.
- Be careful when flipping the leek rounds over but it also really doesn't matter if they come apart.
- If you are unsure of the miso start with less and you can always add more.
- Use a large skillet that the pasta will fit into at the end.
- Undercook your pasta! If using dried pasta, undercook it by a minute so it can finish cooking in the sauce and still be al dente. By letting pasta bubble away in the sauce you allow the pasta to take on flavor and it helps thicken the sauce too.
- Reserve some starchy pasta water. I tend to transfer the cooked pasta straight into the sauce with a spider strainer so the water is left in the pot to use as I need.
How to make this miso pasta
Full ingredient list and method (plus a short tutorial video) is in the recipe card below.
ONE: Over a medium heat fry the leek rounds in extra-virgin olive oil and butter for 4 - 5 minutes until golden brown. Set aside.
TWO: In the same large skillet gently fry the onion for 3-4 minutes.
THREE: Add the garlic and cook for a further minute.
FOUR: Add the cannellini beans as well as all the liquid in the can and bring to a very gentle simmer.
FIVE: Add the miso, lemon juice and rosemary and stir through. Miso is quite a thick paste so mix it with a couple of tablespoons of hot water first if you wish.
SIX: Add your cooked pasta along with ¼ cup of pasta water.
SEVEN: Let the pasta simmer in the sauce very gently on a low heat for a minute or so. Add a splash more pasta water if you need.
EIGHT: Add the cooked leeks back in and gently stir through. Add in a knob of butter (optional) and serve with lemon zest and parmesan cheese and black pepper to finish.
Recipe FAQs
Absolutely! Just use a vegan butter to fry the leeks and again at the end (or leave the final butter out). Most dried pasta is naturally vegan but I am sure you'll know the ones you always use are.
No! The soaking liquid they are in is actually the basis of the sauce so tip it all in. That is why I suggest finding a 'no salt added' can so you can control the seasoning yourself.
I don't like rules so use any type of pasta you like but I personally think a short pasta shape works best here.
I never think pasta reheats particularly well but this will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 - 3 days.
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Want to make some pasta from scratch?
Have you ever made your own pasta from scratch? As well as delicious sauces I also have so many easy to follow guides on making pasta at home.
My Easy Homemade Pasta Dough recipe is a dough you can truly rely on. You could use it to make Homemade Pappardelle or any shape you like. For an even easier place to start I point people to my Semolina Past Dough. With just flour and water you can make some really easy and fun hand rolled shapes like the gnocchi sardi I have used in this dish.
Hand rolled pici pasta (seen below) is one of the shapes I suggest for any new pasta maker. It is a rustic hand rolled spaghetti shape from Tuscany. You will fall in love with it's chewy texture!
Want some other delicious sauces to try?
If you loved this miso pasta sauce with cannellini beans and leeks I have so many delicious recipes you should try. Check out my recipe section but here are a few I suggest! My Creamy Miso Mushroom Pasta should be on the list as you already have the miso. If you love leeks then my Creamy Caramelized Leek Pasta is divine as is my Mac and Cheese with Leeks and Bacon.
Made this recipe and loved it?
I would love love LOVE if you could leave me a review down below and let me know what you thought! I love to hear any changes or adaptions you have made too. Also if you put a photo on instagram, please tag me so I can see, it makes my day!
Recipe
Miso Pasta Sauce with Cannellini Beans and Leeks
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Ingredients
- 30 grams butter 2 tablespoons
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 1 big or two small leeks cut into 1cm rounds and rinsed
- ½ a yellow or brown onion finely diced
- 4 garlic cloves finely diced
- 1 x 400 gram can of cannellini beans plus the liquid in the can
- 1 ½ tablespoons white miso paste
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice plus the zest to serve
- ½ tablespoon heaped fresh rosemary leaves, roughly chopped, plus extra to serve
- ¼ - ½ teaspoon black pepper
- Freshly grated parmesan to serve
- Pasta of your choice 200 grams dried or 300 grams fresh
Instructions
- Cook your pasta in a pot of well salted boiling water, reserving a cup of the pasta water. I try and time the cooking of the pasta so that I can transfer the pasta straight from the water into the sauce.
- Heat the butter and olive oil over a medium heat in a large skillet that is big enough to fit all the pasta in at the end.
- Fry the leek rounds for 4 - 5 minutes, turning once half way until both sides are golden brown. Be gentle when flipping them but it doesn't matter at all if they come apart.
- Remove from the pan and then fry the onion gently for 3 - 4 minutes until translucent and softened. Add a drizzle of olive oil if it gets too dry.
- Add the garlic and cook for a further minute.
- Add the beans and their liquid into the pan and bring to a very gentle simmer.
- Add the miso paste (you can mix it first with a couple of tablespoons of water to make it easier to mix in).
- Add the lemon juice and rosemary, black pepper and mix well then let it gently simmer for a couple of minutes.
- Taste for seasoning and add a good few cracks of black pepper and salt if needed.
- Add your cooked pasta straight into the sauce with ¼ cup of pasta water and mix.
- Add the leek rounds in and gently mix through and let it all very gently bubble away for a minute. Add a splash more pasta water if you need.
- Feel free to finish the sauce with a tablespoon of butter.
- Serve with freshly grated parmesan, extra rosemary and lemon zest.
Sophia says
Great taste of miso, I used gnocchi and was lovely?
Jen says
Recipe was easy & fun to make. Used rosemary from the garden and bought the leeks from the farmers market. Turned out so yummy!
Emilie Pullar says
Thank you so much for making! So glad you enjoyed making it 🙂
Margo says
OMG! Made this tonight. Vegan version with Parmesan on mine. Wow! On the favourite list!
Going to make some more and squish into some focaccia dough.
Thanks Emilie! ??
Elizabeth says
This was so so delicious. The recipe was really easy to follow but the end product seemed very impressive. I can’t wait to make it again!
Deanna says
I made this tonight and it was incredible! I am vegan so I omitted the butter and just used a generous pour of a nice extra virgin olive oil instead. I also added sauteed blue oyster mushrooms, red pepper flakes, and some fresh thyme which tasted amazing in this dish.
Emilie Pullar says
Hi Deanna, love the additions you made!! Sounds so delicious. Thank you so much for making it 🙂
Karis says
OMG. First ever time I have used Miso. On opening the jar and inhaling, I thought finally Emilie has lost her mind........I tasted it and let's just say it's not something I'm going to be spooning out of the jar a la peanut butter. But then, we sat down to eat. Absolutely delicious. It served 2 adults and an eight year old - who btw loved it and there was enough for another spoon full each as seconds (we used 200g of GF Pasta).
thanks Emilie for another fine recipe to add to all the others bookmarked on my phone. Kx
Emilie Pullar says
This made me laugh so much!! I did actually think of putting a disclaimer in the recipe not to be put off by the smell or straight taste. Well done for persevering! Thanks so much for making 🙂
Haley says
SOOO good and so easy!!
Emilie Pullar says
Yay! Thanks so much for making! 🙂
Dara says
Made this for dinner tonight - used fresh Gnocchi. Easy and quick, and absolutely delicious. Definitely recommend adding a few good turns of ground pepper.
Emilie Pullar says
Thanks for making this so quick after it was published! I might actually add an amount of pepper into the recipe, so thanks for that! 🙂