A vibrant, herb-infused pasta dish featuring crispy pancetta, sweet peas, and fresh greens tossed in a buttery, chili-spiced sauce, finished with a hint of lemon and Parmesan.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, seasoning it generously so it tastes like seawater.
Add capellini spaghetti directly into the boiling salted water. Cover the pot and stir gently with tongs to prevent sticking. Cook for 8 and a half minutes.
While the pasta cooks, heat a pan over high heat and fry diced pancetta until the fat renders and it becomes crispy. Add a little grape seed oil and season more with black pepper than salt.
Add thinly sliced garlic to the pan and sauté with the pancetta until caramelized.
Stir in fresh chili pepper slices with seeds to infuse heat and combine the flavors well.
Add a knob of butter, letting it melt into the smoky pancetta fat to create the base of the sauce.
Stir in frozen peas and mix until warmed through and slightly cooked.
Add freshly chopped herbs—whole pieces of chives, roughly chopped parsley, and torn basil leaves. Stir to release their aroma into the sauce.
Pour in a little vegetable stock to loosen the sauce and blend the flavors. Simmer briefly, then taste and adjust seasoning with salt or pepper as needed.
After the spaghetti has been cooking for eight minutes, add chopped lettuce leaves to the pan and fold them gently into the sauce to keep their freshness and crunch.