Frittata di Pasta: Traditional Italian Pasta Frittata

I am obsessed with making frittata di pasta, or frittata of pasta! In southern Italy, it may also be called frittata di maccheroni or frittata di spaghetti, but no matter the name, this dish is delish!

What is a frittata di pasta? The original basic recipe for pasta frittata is egg and pasta combined with whatever other scraps of vegetable, meat, and/or cheese you have on hand. Think of it as a pasta omelette.

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It’s a great way to bring new life to leftover pasta. I love using leftovers; I guess it’s from my Italian heritage.

After all, minimizing food waste is ingrained in Italian food culture. Some of Italian cuisine’s best dishes have roots in cucina povera, or “the cuisine of the poor.” This cooking repurposed things like stale bread, left-over portions, or unused ingredients to creatively stretch a family’s food budget.

And this classic dish of Neapolitan cuisine, frittata di pasta Napoletana, is a delicious example of using available ingredients in a resourceful way.

Frittata di Pasta Ingredients 

This is one of the most flexible recipes you’ll ever come across. Because it’s a recipe born from using leftovers, there are so many different versions. These are the ingredients for my family’s favorite.

Pasta

Type of pasta: If you’re visiting Naples, you’ll mostly see spaghetti frittata, or frittata di pasta Napoletana, using long pasta shapes. However, in the true spirit of cucina povera, if you don’t have leftover spaghetti, feel free to use short pasta shapes or, really, any type of pasta. I’ve even used Asian noodles (don’t tell my Italian family)!

Sauced or plain: For this particular recipe, I use plain pasta. But if yours has sauce on it, it will still be yummy. Pasta with pesto sauce, tomato sauce, or even cacio e pepe pasta, all tastes great.

Cooked pasta: Since your pasta frittata is going to be cooking, slightly al dente pasta is ideal, but not necessary. If you are cooking pasta especially for this recipe, run it under cold water right after it is cooked. If you cooked an extra large batch of pasta so that you will have leftovers, store the remaining pasta in a Ziploc bag or airtight container until you are ready to use it for making this dish. 

Cheese

Just like pasta shapes, most popular Italian cheeses will be terrific. I almost always use grated parmesan cheese, and my preference is the real deal, parmigiana reggiano from Emilia-Romagna. I’ve been hooked on this cheese since my first trip to Bologna.

In addition to grated cheese, I’ll sometimes add something cubed, like mozzarella (fior di latte) or provola affumicata. But if you have scamorza cheese or grana padano or something else you like, use it! 

Meats

This recipe uses cubed hard salami and sliced prosciutto. But, as I’ve said, anything goes. I’ve even not added meat when my pasta was covered in Bolognese sauce.

Frittata di Pasta Recipe

Ingredients 

4 cups cooked pasta
4 ounces hard, dry salami, cubed
2 slices prosciutto  
10 eggs 
½ cup parmesan cheese, grated 
1 tablespoon chopped parsley 
½ teaspoon black pepper 
¼ teaspoon garlic salt 

Recipe

1. Preheat oven to 325°.

2. Spray a 9-inch (24-cm) round ovenproof casserole dish with nonstick spray, or brush it with a drizzle of olive oil. You can also use a cast iron skillet.

3. Add pasta to the baking dish and sprinkle in the cubed salami.

4. Tear the prosciutto into small pieces and distribute throughout the pasta, pushing some of the ham to the bottom of the pan.

prosciutto added added to the dish of pasta and salami

5. With a whisk, beat the eggs thoroughly in a large bowl.

6. Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and whisk to combine.

making the egg mixture for pasta frittata

7. Gently pour the egg mixture over the pasta and pat things down so that all of the pasta is covered by the mixture.

8. Pepper lovers, add a little fresh cracked pepper to the top.

9. Place your prepared casserole dish or skillet in the oven on the middle rack and cook for approximately 45 minutes until the to top of the frittata is golden brown and the egg is completely cooked through. Test with a toothpick.

10. Let the frittata cool at least 10 minutes before serving.

Alternative Cooking Method 

There are two choices of cooking methods, stove-top and oven. My Italian nonna always made her frittatas in the oven, so that’s the way I make them, and it’s super easy. Plus, if you cook it in the oven, your baking dish can double as a serving plate.

Alternatively, you can use a nonstick pan on the stove as if you were making a spaghetti omelette, similar to a Spanish tortilla.

Pour the pasta mixture into a large frying pan and cook over a low flame. When almost cooked, put a large plate on top of the pan. Flip the pan over so that the frittata transfers onto the plate. Then, gently slide the frittata back into the pan and cook until the top becomes golden brown.

Serving Frittata di Pasta

Serving pasta frittata is a cinch! It is such a versatile dish and can be served hot or at room temperature. Like Torta Pasqualina and the famous French dish, quiche, it can be served for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Well, in America anyway.

A slice of frittata di pasta in front of the whole frittata

Breakfast

Although I love to start my day with pasta and eggs, the Italians usually choose breakfast pastries for their morning meal. Just like you won’t see quiche for breakfast in France, frittata di pasta is not a breakfast food in Italy. Fun French and Italian food fact: In these countries, eggs are not a traditional breakfast food.

Lunch & Dinner

Frittatas are often a main dish. They can be a complete meal on their own, or served with a green salad. But as with the frittata pasta recipe itself—anything goes! One great idea is to try your frittata with my burrata panzanella salad!

Snack

I’ve been known to pull cold pasta frittata out of the fridge the next day and eat it as is—cold.

In Campania, I’ve received small squares of this frittata pasta as a bar snack—way better than peanuts. And there’s also a similar Naples street food version of this dish, frittatina di pasta, that is a fried snack.