Creamy One Pot Pasta with Asparagus, Bacon & Mushrooms

This pasta is wrapped in a dreamy creamy sauce and loaded with asparagus, crispy bacon and mushrooms. Better still, it’s all made in one pot!

The ULTIMATE One Pot Pasta

You know what, this is the first one pot pasta recipe I’ve uploaded to the blog. I knew it was coming, we ALL knew it was coming. So here it is in all it’s glory! And boy is it glorious, here’s why you’re going to LOVE it:

• Creamy – This pasta has a luxuriously cream sauce that’s made in the same pot as the pasta. You really can have your cake and eat it!
• Easy – No fuss, zero stress and no cooking ability required. This recipe is perfect for a midweek dinner and easily feeds a family of 4.
• Flavoursome – A creamy pasta that’s bursting with flavour. Did I already mention eating cake?

Why make one pot pasta?

Good question. Beside that fact it’s more convenient than having two pots on the go, there’s two other reasons I personally like a one pot pasta:

• Starch – As the pasta cooks in the sauce it releases starch, which helps create a nice creamy and glossy consistency.
• Pasta Flavour – as the pasta cooks it also takes on the flavour of the liquid it’s cooking in.

Pasta with Asparagus

One of the stars of the show in this recipe is asparagus. Asparagus actually works really nicely with pasta, and especially in this context. Because it’s cooking in the sauce with the pasta, it’s gorgeous flavours are dispersed throughout the sauce. It’s a really prominent flavour in the dish.

Alongside the asparagus, the other two main goodies are bacon and mushrooms. All 3 of these not only work beautifully together, but each work really well with cream and pasta.

How to make one pot pasta (quick summary)

1. Fry bacon.
2. Remove and melt butter.
3. Add asparagus, onion & mushrooms.
4. Brown then add garlic.
5. Pour in chicken stock and cream.
6. Add pasta.
7. Simmer and stir until al dente.
8. Stir in bacon, parsley and parmesan.

Why remove the bacon?

I do this for two reasons. First is so it doesn’t boil with the pasta and lose it’s crispiness. Second is to just free up a bit of room for the onion, mushroom and asparagus (otherwise everything will steam).

What do I do if the pasta doesn’t cook?

The ratios I give in the recipe will ensure you have a fairly thick sauce, but still properly cooked pasta. The pasta should always be a little al dente (have a bit of a bite to it), but if for whatever reason you want your pasta a little more cooked just add a few splashes more stock.

And there we have it! It really is that easy.

For another asparagus pasta recipe check out my Asparagus Pancetta Pasta and Baked Feta Orzo!

For more similar recipes check out these beauties too:

Creamy Pasta Recipes

• Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta
• Creamy Mushroom Pasta
• Creamy Salmon Pasta
• Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
• Creamy Tomato Sausage Pasta

Alrighty, let’s tuck into the full recipes for this one pot pasta shall we?!

How to make Creamy One Pot Pasta (Full Recipe & Video)

5 from 9 votes

Creamy One Pot Pasta with Asparagus, Bacon & Mushrooms

By: Chris Collins

This pasta is wrapped in a dreamy creamy sauce and loaded with asparagus, crispy bacon and mushrooms. Better still, it's all made in one pot!!

Prep: 10 minutes mins

Cook: 35 minutes mins

Total: 45 minutes mins

Servings: 4

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Equipment

• Large Pot & Wooden Spoon
• Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
• Jug (for stock)
• Fine Cheese Grater
• Slotted Spoon & Side Bowl (for removing bacon)

Ingredients 

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• ▢ 12.3oz / 350g uncooked Penne, or other short-cut pasta
• ▢ 3 1/3 cups / 800ml Chicken Stock, not piping hot!
• ▢ 1 cup / 240ml Heavy/Double Cream, at room temp
• ▢ 1/2 cup / 40g freshly grated Parmesan
• ▢ 5.3oz / 150g Asparagus, diced (woody ends removed)
• ▢ 5.3oz / 150g Mushrooms of choice, sliced (here I use Chestnut Mushrooms)
• ▢ 5.3oz / 150g Bacon, diced
• ▢ 2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
• ▢ 2 cloves of Garlic, finely diced
• ▢ 2 tbsp finely diced Fresh Parsley
• ▢ 1 medium Onion, finely diced
• ▢ Salt & Pepper, to taste

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions 

• In a large pot over medium heat add the bacon and fry until the fat fully renders and the bacon is nice and crispy. Don't be tempted to crank up the heat, you want it fairly low and slow to render down the fat. Remove the bacon from the pot and place in a bowl to one side, leaving the bacon fat behind.
• Melt in 2 tbsp butter, then add asparagus, mushrooms and onion. Fry until they begin to soften/pick up colour, then add garlic and fry for a minute or so longer.
• Pour in the chicken stock and cream (important the cream is at room temp and the stock isn't too hot or the cream may curdle). Give it a stir, then add the uncooked pasta.
• Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to low-medium, then cook until the penne is al dente, stirring frequently as you go. If the sauce soaks up before the pasta is cooked just add another dash of stock, water or milk to cook to help cook it through. You're looking for it to be al dente though (still a teeny bit hard).
• Once the sauce has thickened and the pasta is cooked, add back in the bacon with the parsley and parmesan. Season to taste then give it a final stir and serve up!

Video

Notes

a) Hot Stock / Cream - Make sure the stock is closer to room temp than it is piping hot, and make sure the cream is room temp (or close to). Pouring cold cream into piping hot stock is a curdle waiting to happen. 

b) Emulsify - Because you're trying to blend a fair bit of fat (bacon fat, butter, cream) with stock, which is essentially water, the starch from the pasta will allow you to do this. As such, it's important to give it a good stir as the pasta is cooking, just to help along with the emulsion.

c) Consistency - You're looking for the sauce to be thick enough to stick to the pasta, but not so thick there's no saucy consistency to it. If it does thicken before the pasta is cook just add a few splashes of stock (or water) until it's cooked.

d) Pasta - Pasta (IMO) should always be al dente (have a bit of a bite to it) and that's how it'll end up with this recipe. Don't expect to have super soft pasta!

e) Calories - based on sharing between 4 people.

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Nutrition

Calories: 855kcal | Carbohydrates: 85.2g | Protein: 23.23g | Fat: 48.46g | Saturated Fat: 23.904g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4.838g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16.447g | Trans Fat: 0.159g | Cholesterol: 130mg | Sodium: 764mg | Potassium: 844mg | Fiber: 11.3g | Sugar: 7.54g | Vitamin A: 1728IU | Vitamin C: 8.6mg | Calcium: 181mg | Iron: 2.69mg

Looking for more?

You’ll find plenty more delicious comfort food like this in my Debut Cookbook ‘Comfy’

If you loved this One Pot Pasta Recipe then be sure to pin it for later! Already made them or got a question? Give me a shout in the comments below and pick up your free ecookbook along the way!