Meals for Under £10: Spaghetti with watercress and pea pesto

This vibrant spaghetti recipe from Tesco Real Food takes classic pasta and pesto up a notch.

Homemade pesto is easy to blitz together in minutes – this veggie twist uses peas and peppery watercress and the dish is topped with an oozy poached egg.

Serves 4.

You’ll need

300g frozen peas

2 garlic cloves

85g bag watercress

2 tbsp hazelnuts, toasted

50g vegetarian hard cheese or Parmesan, grated, plus extra to serve

60ml olive oil

350g wholemeal spaghetti

4 eggs

Method

Bring a small pan of water to a simmer and add the peas and garlic. Blanch for 3 mins, then drain.

In a food processor, blitz the peas and garlic, most of the watercress (keep a few leaves for garnish), hazelnuts and cheese to a thick paste. Drizzle in the olive oil while continuing to pulse until the pesto is smooth and creamy. Season.

Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti to pack instructions, then drain, reserving 1 tbsp cooking water. Allow to steam-dry for 1 min, then transfer to large serving bowl. Cover with clingfilm.

Refill the pan with water and bring to a simmer. Make a whirlpool in the centre by stirring rapidly with the handle of a wooden spoon. When the whirlpool has almost completely subsided, crack the eggs directly into it. Poach them for 3 mins over a gentle heat, then transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon.

Toss the pesto through the spaghetti with the reserved cooking water, then divide between 4 bowls or plates. Top with a poached egg, the watercress, extra grated cheese and some black pepper.