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2-Ingredient Pesto Tortellini served up on a pink plate

2-Ingredient Pesto Tortellini (One Pot)

Print Recipe
This Pesto Tortellini brings tons of savory, herbaceous, and zesty flavor with just 2 ingredients, 15 minutes, and one pot!
Course Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine Italian
Diet Vegetarian
Keyword 30 Minutes or Less, 5 Ingredients or Less, Meatless Pasta, One-Pot, Pasta Night, Pesto, Pesto Pasta, Pesto Tortellini, Tortellini
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 2 servings
Author Marley Goldin

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 9 ounces Cheese tortellini fresh, frozen, or dried
  • 4 ounces pesto 4 oz = approx. ½ cup
US - Metric

Instructions

  • In a large pot, bring 10 cups of water to a boil.
  • Once boiling, add tortellini and gently boil. For fresh, boil 2-3 minutes, for frozen, boil 5-6 minutes, for dried, boil 10-12 minutes. Refer to instructions on packaging for best results.
    9 ounces Cheese tortellini
    Adding fresh tortellini to gently boiling water
  • Use a heat-safe container (I use my Pyrex measuring cup) to extract about ½ cup of pasta water. Then, strain the tortellini and add it back to the pot (but keep off of heat).
    Using Pyrex measuring cup to extract boiling pasta water from pot
  • Add about ¼ cup of pesto to the pot with the cooked tortellini, followed by about 1 tablespoon of conserved pasta water. Stir to coat. Then, continue to add pesto and pasta water, alternately, until you are satisfied with the consistency and flavor. *
    4 ounces pesto
    Pesto tortellini still in pot freshly made
  • Serve hot or cold. Enjoy!

Notes

  • *The amount of pesto you use will vary depending on the type of pesto you use. I find that 4 ounces is perfect for my homemade pesto, but it's better to start with less and add more as needed, taste testing in between!
  • For more vegetarian pasta options, check out this list of Hearty Meatless Pasta Meals. 
  • For more recipes with pesto, check out this list of Best Pesto Recipes!