15-Minute, Easy, Healthy, Protein-Packed, Plant-Based Meal: 9 Ingredients. This vibrant green pasta sauce is a nutritional powerhouse. Start with your choice of leafy greens for an iron boost. The greens are gently cooked to reduce oxalates, then enhanced with a dash of mustard powder to increase sulforaphane for an anti-cancer kick. Silky tofu adds creaminess and extra protein, while optional beans boost both protein and fiber.
Not only is this green pasta sauce perfect for meal prep—it can be easily frozen or refrigerated for later use—but it also tackles common nutritional challenges—meeting your iron and protein needs!
This Green Pasta recipe was inspired by this quick and easy Pesto Pasta with Tofu on my site, as well as this Pasta with Tahini Sauce.
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🥬 Which Leafy Greens are the Healthiest?
Some of the healthiest leafy greens include kale, spinach, Swiss chard, collard greens, and arugula. These nutrient powerhouses are packed with vitamins A, C, and K, as well as essential minerals like iron and calcium, and boast powerful antioxidants that help reduce inflammation, and cognitive decline, and support overall health. Incorporating a variety of these greens into your diet ensures you benefit from a broad spectrum of nutrients for optimal well-being.
Choosing the best leafy greens depends on your nutritional priorities. For lower oxalate levels, kale, collard greens, bok choy, and arugula are excellent, and cooking them can further reduce oxalates. If you're looking for more iron, try spinach, kale, or Swiss chard, while collards, kale, spinach, mustard, turnip greens, and Swiss chard offer a good dose of calcium. (Note: Lemon juice is added to the green pasta sauce to increase iron absorption.)
However, cooking cruciferous greens can reduce the cancer-fighting compound sulforaphane, so adding ingredients like mustard powder helps boost sulforaphane back into your dish.
Cooking vegetables can increase the amount of calcium and iron they can provide. Leafy greens are loaded with oxalic acid, which blocks the absorption of iron and calcium but breaks down under high temperatures. Cooking utensils also have a role in determining the bioavailability of iron.
👩🏼🌾 Ingredients & Health Benefits
- Miso is a healthier alternative to salt, as it doesn’t raise blood pressure like regular salt does!
- Garlic: Studies have shown that adding garlic or onion to meals can significantly increase the absorption of non-heme iron (the type found in plants) and zinc, making them valuable additions to plant-based dishes for better nutrient uptake.
- Nutritional yeast adds a rich, savory, cheese-like flavor and helps thicken dressings. To boost your B vitamin intake, opt for fortified nutritional yeast, which often includes B12. (See my brands for fortified and unfortified here.)
- Lemon juice increases iron abdsorption of the leafy greens.
- Mustard powder helps boost anti-cancer sulforaphane of the cooked greens.
See the printable recipe card below for quantities.
🥑 Substitutions
- Avocado - serve with chopped avocado for more creaminess and texture.
- Beans - Optional white beans, black beans, pinto beans, or French lentils boost the dish with protein and fiber, transforming Green Pasta into a complete meal.
- Tofu - Silken tofu and soft tofu contribute a luxuriously creamy texture to the green sauce. For an extra protein boost, opt for medium or firm tofu and add extra vegetable broth as needed to achieve your desired consistency.
- Garlic - substitute with 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Longevity spice mix - add a pinch for serving
For more healthy pasta dinners, visit my Vegan Pasta Recipes page.
📖 How to Make Green Pasta
This is an overview. The full recipe is at the bottom of the post.
- Choose your leafy greens. Chop them and measure them in cups. Transfer the leafy green vegetables to the canister of a blender. Add the tofu, green chili pepper, nutritional yeast, mustard powder, black pepper, and garlic.
- Blend all the ingredients without the miso, then add the miso at the end to preserve its fermentation benefits.
- Optional for beans: If adding beans, prepare them using the quick soak method. Rinse the beans, cover them with water, and bring them to a boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let them soak for an hour, then drain and cook for about 50 minutes or until tender.
- Dissolve the miso in broth or water—using about one and a half times its volume—before adding it to the sauce for even distribution.
- Transfer the blended green sauce to a medium skillet and heat it over medium-low until warmed through. Then, stir in the miso until evenly distributed, and add the beans if using.
- Add your desired amount of pasta to the skillet and toss gently until evenly coated with the sauce. Allow it to cook for about two minutes until warmed through, or serve immediately at room temperature.
✔️ Expert Tips
- Avoid overcooking your pasta. Cooking it al dente not only helps maintain a lower glycemic index, supporting better glycemic control but also improves its texture for storage and reheating.
- Boost Sulforaphane: Since cooking can diminish the cancer-fighting compound sulforaphane found in cruciferous vegetables, add a pinch of mustard powder after cooking to help restore its benefits.
- Tofu Texture: Use silken tofu for a super creamy sauce, or medium/firm tofu for extra protein. Adjust the broth as needed to get your desired consistency.
- Iron boost: Use a cast iron skillet to increase the iron content of your meals. Cooking acidic dishes in cast iron, such as tomato-based sauces, can leach extra iron into your food, offering an added nutritional boost.
- Optional Protein & Fiber: Feel free to mix in beans (like white, black, or pinto) or lentils for an extra protein and fiber boost.
- Season for Flavor: Balance the dish with a dash of salt, pepper, and a squeeze of lemon juice to brighten the flavors.
- Meal Prep Friendly: This sauce works great for meal prep—it can be refrigerated or frozen, ensuring you have a nutritious, ready-to-go meal on busy days.
- Versatile Storage and Serving Options: You can store this pasta dish as a complete mixture or keep the sauce and pasta separate—both methods work well. Plus, it’s versatile enough to be enjoyed chilled from the fridge, at room temperature, or reheated to your preference.
- Storage: Refrigerate leftover Green Pasta in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
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🙋🏽♀️ Recipe FAQs
Jamie Oliver's Green Veg Pasta is a vibrant, nutrient-packed dish that blends a variety of green vegetables and herbs into a flavorful sauce. Typically, the recipe features ingredients like spinach, basil, and other greens—combined with garlic, olive oil, and a hint of lemon—to create a light yet satisfying meal. Celebrated for its simplicity and quick preparation, this pasta dish offers a creative way to enjoy vegetables while delivering a healthy dose of vitamins and antioxidants. Whether served hot or at room temperature, it’s a favorite for those looking to incorporate more greens into their diet in a delicious and easy-to-make format.
Long, thin pasta like spaghetti, linguine, or fettuccine are ideal for lighter sauces, letting the green flavors shine. Short, shaped pasta such as penne, rigatoni, fusilli, or farfalle have grooves that capture more sauce for a burst of flavor. For a nutritious twist, whole wheat or gluten-free options are also great.
🍽️ Related Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Green Pasta
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Ingredients
- 8 ounces dry pasta whole grain or legume pasta, plus more to taste
- 3 cups chopped kale or leafy greens
- 16 ounces silken tofu or soft, or medium tofu
- 1 green chili pepper stem-end removed (optional)
- 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper plus more to taste
- 1 large clove garlic
- 2 tablespoons mellow miso
- 3 tablespoons vegetable broth or water
- 3 cups cooked white beans 2 (15-ounce) cans or 1 cup dried beans, cooked (optional)
- 1 lemon juice to taste
- Salt or salt substitute to taste
Optional for serving:
- 1 avocado chopped
Instructions
- Cook the pasta until al dente. Drain and set aside.
- Blend: Transfer the leafy greens to the canister of a blender. Add the tofu, green chili pepper, nutritional yeast, mustard powder, black pepper, and garlic. Blend until smooth. Add more broth as needed if using medium-firm tofu.
- Heat the sauce: Transfer the blended green sauce to a medium saucepan or sauté pan. Cook over medium-high heat until warmed through.
- Dissolve the miso in the broth or water. Add the dissolved miso to the green sauce and stir. Remove from the heat.
- Add the desired amount of pasta, and beans (if using). Mix well.
- Season with lemon juice, salt, and black pepper to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
This information is provided as a courtesy and is an ESTIMATE only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased can change the nutritional information in any given recipe.
Mirabelle says
Wow! We’ll definitely be making this again. It comes together so quickly and it’s delicious! I used beans that I cooked in my InstantPot the night before. The colour of the sauce is so beautiful and vibrant! Thank you!
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
I am glad you gave it a try. Some are put off by the green veggies but I think they taste great in this combo!
Andrea says
As soon as I saw this recipe I knew I had to try it. It is simple, quick, has a high protein content, and very delicious. My hubby and I both loved it. Thank you for the great instructions and details.
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
Awww truly happy to hear that you both enjoyed the Green Pasta. I appreciate you leaving a comment.
Kitty says
Really doesn't look appealing to me!
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
It has good reviews! Tastes better than it looks.
Carol Copeland says
Thank you so much for this informative pasta post and delicios recipe! This will be my meal prep for next week. I always look forward to your weekly meal prep emails and plan accordingly. I have always thought pasta to be on the unhealthy side, but now I know if I choose whole-grain or legume based pasta that is not the case. Thank you again for all your longevity tips and recipes! You are making the world a better place!
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
So glad you will now enjoy some whole grain pasta! Have a great weekend.
Sarah Thomson says
This recipe is so easy and tastes incredible! 💚 You posted this at the perfect time because I've been dealing with an ulcerative colitis flare and can only tolerate pureed cooked veggies/legumes right now.
To make it more flare -friendly, I omitted the pepper, used baby greens, and subbed a lower-fiber pasta. When I'm feeling better, I can't wait to make the regular version!
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
So glad you enjoyed it! Baby greens are a good option! Feel better soon.