Vignarola
A springtime celebration of Rome's finest vegetables—fava beans, peas, and artichokes tossed with guanciale and Pecorino Romano. Light, seasonal, and deeply Roman.
Vignarola comes from the Roman countryside, where it represents the arrival of spring. The name comes from 'vigna' (vineyard), as the dish was traditionally prepared by vineyard workers.
Only a few ingredients
Guanciale
Dry pan, medium heat. The fat renders out — this is what the vegetables cook in. Edges colour, then the vegetables follow.
not pancettaArtichokes
Trimmed to the hearts and sliced. They take the longest — into the fat before anything else. Let them take a little colour.
Fava Beans
Double-peeled if you can — peel again after blanching and the inner skin comes off. Bitter without it. In after the artichokes have had a head start.
Peas
They need barely any time. Two or three minutes. If they go soft you've lost the sweetness that makes the dish.
Pecorino Romano
Grated at the very end, over the finished pasta. Not into the pan — it ties the sweetness of the vegetables to the salt of the guanciale.
Seasonal and fresh.
Vignarola is fundamentally a spring dish. While frozen vegetables work, the charm of this pasta lies in the sweetness and tenderness of spring vegetables at their peak. The guanciale and Pecorino bridge the seasons when fresh vegetables are unavailable.
Spaghetti
The light vegetables pair well with thin, delicate pasta.
Penne
The tubes capture the vegetable pieces beautifully.
Ready to cook?
These sources we trust. Each one makes it correctly.
Other sauces from the same region
Carbonara
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Aglio e Olio
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Cacio e Pepe
Beyond simplicity lies complexity. Cheese and pepper. That is all. Yet the three-minute emulsification required to build this sauce separates the masters from the novices.
Burro e Parmigiano (Alfredo)
A silken emulsion of butter, Parmigiano Reggiano, and pasta water. Roman simplicity at its peak—no cream, only technique. The sauce emerges when cold butter meets hot pasta and starchy water.
Amatriciana
A bold, rustic sauce from the mountain town of Amatrice. It is the evolution of Gricia, adding tomato to the holy trinity of guanciale, pecorino, and pepper.
Papalina
A creamy Roman sauce of peas, heavy cream, and either prosciutto or guanciale. It is a richer cousin to Peas and Bacon, with papal grandeur in its name.
Zozzona
A rustic, hearty Roman pasta of tomatoes, pancetta, and a hint of cream. The name comes from the Roman dialect word 'zozz,' meaning dirty, simple man—it's a working person's dish.
Gricia
The ancestor of Carbonara. Guanciale, Pecorino, and black pepper without the egg—a dish of pure Roman clarity, celebrated for its restraint.
Arrabiata
The angry sauce. Four ingredients, one rule: enough chili to matter.