Orecchiette Pasta with Sausage together with Broccoli is a super elementary recipe that uses minimal ingredients nevertheless packs rich, savory, satisfying flavors. It includes hearty pasta, seasoned Italian sausage, tender fresh broccoli, flavorful olive fossil oil, as well as bold in addition to nutty tasting parmesan.
What is Orecchiette?
Orecchiette is a type of southern Italian pasta shaped like fiddling ears. The discussion ‘orecchia’ translates to ‘ear’ patch the suffix ‘etta’ translates to ‘small-scale’ or ‘niggling’.
It is made from semolina flour too can live institute inward ii sizes, just inwards the U.due south. usually just ane size (in this recipe nosotros purpose the larger size that’sec about i/two-inch, the smaller works good for soups).
Orecchiette holds sauces well amongst it’second bowl form, too it’s a fun unique form to make alongside.
You tin can buy it online, or I’ve as well constitute this type of pasta at Target in addition to larger Kroger stores.
You’ll love it inwards this easy recipe!
Orecchiette Recipe Ingredients too Possible Substitutes
- Broccoli crowns: Broccoli rabe will also function hither, you’ll only desire to include more than stem. One large bunch of kale would live some other tasty selection.
- Orecchiette pasta: If you lot are having difficulty tracking down this specialty pasta, yous tin can substitute orecchiette amongst pocket-sized shells, mini penne, farfelle, or cavetelli.
- Salt as well as pepper: I use regular table salt but kosher salt is dandy also.
- Extra virgin olive oil: If you’d similar you tin can purpose butter hither instead.
- Garlic: Use fresh garlic for best flavor.
- Italian sausage: Recipe was made alongside Italian pork sausage only Italian turkey sausage will be great besides. Hot or mild may be used depending on what rut y'all prefer.
- Parmesan: Romano cheese will brand a keen substitute if that’sec what yous have.
- Red pepper flakes: If yous purpose hot sausage, you lot won’t postulate these, unless y'all want it spicier.
- Pasta water: I include this in the ingredients list because it is critical to the recipe and nosotros role a generous sum, then only another reminder non to drain it (near recipes volition but bill it in the directions department of the recipe).
How to Make Orecchiette Pasta amongst Sausage as well as Broccoli
- Boil salted H2O in pot: Add four quarts of water to a big pot, take to a boil over medium-high estrus then flavor alongside common salt (I purpose two Tbsp).
- Cook broccoli inward H2O: Add broccoli to boiling H2O in addition to cook until tender, about four – 5 minutes. Using a spider or a sieve, withdraw broccoli too transfer to a colander, piece leaving H2O inwards pot.
- Remove broccoli, rinse: Run broccoli under cold H2O to cease cooking. Drain well. Chop broccoli into smaller pieces.
- Cook pasta in same pot: Add pasta to H2O inward pot in addition to boil until it’s but barely al dente, according to times listed on package. Reserve i 1/two cups pasta water.
- Heat oiled skillet: While pasta is boiling, heat one Tbsp olive fossil oil into a 12-inch non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.
- Cook sausage inwards skillet: Crumble sausage inwards minor chunks into skillet in addition to cook, breaking up in addition to tossing occasionally, until cooked through, virtually 7 minutes. Add garlic during concluding two minutes of cooking the sausage.
- Simmer pasta water amongst sausage, toss inward pasta together with fix: Pour inward i loving cup of the pasta water into the sausage. Let it simmer for almost a infinitesimal too reduce slightly. Add al dente pasta in addition to ready patch tossing, until tender, about two minutes.
- Add olive crude too pepper flakes: Drizzle inwards remaining three Tbsp olive petroleum, season with ruby pepper flakes to gustation as well as toss.
- Toss in cheese: Sprinkle inwards parmesan, and toss to melt into sauce.
- Finish with broccoli: Toss inwards broccoli. Season with common salt equally needed in addition to pepper to gustation.
- Thin sauce equally needed, garnish servings: Loosen with more pasta water equally needed. Drizzle servings amongst more olive crude if desired, serve with garnished alongside more than parmesan.
Helpful Tips
- Remembering pasta water: If you have a difficult fourth dimension remembering to reserve pasta water before draining the pasta, you tin set a 2-cup glass measure loving cup in the colander inwards the sink as a reminder to ladle out close to of that pasta water as well as reserve earlier draining.
- Don’t sub pasta H2O: It is critical to use pasta water in addition to non merely tap H2O or even broth because it won’t accept the necessary starches to help bind as well as emulsify the sauce – including the rock oil, cheese together with water.
- Sear in addition to chocolate-brown the sausage: Only toss the sausage occasionally while cooking. You desire it to brown too non steam. I similar to set out amongst chunks and allow them actually sear on that outset side and then offset turning in addition to breaking upward afterwards a few minutes.
- Start alongside a hot skillet: A preheated hot skillet is likewise critical to reach a prissy sear on the sausage.
- No soggy pasta: Set a timer for the pasta too only boil more or less al dente because it will ready a second time in the skillet to your preferred texture.
- Keep the sausage fat: Don’t drain that rendered sausage fat! It adds lots of flavour hither.
- Add extra olive fossil oil as needed: Add more than olive crude to gustation. I prefer to add a few extra tablespoons for richness and season. It tin can vary how much you may ask depending on how fat the batch of sausage was as well as how much rendered fatty it gives off.
- Make the splurge: Use good quality parmesan such every bit Murray’second from the big cheese wheels at the deli.
More Pasta Favorites to Try
Orecchiette with Sausage as well as Broccoli
A super simple recipe that uses minimal ingredients still packs rich, savory, satisfying flavors. It includes hearty pasta, seasoned Italian sausage, tender fresh broccoli, flavorful olive crude, in addition to bold together with nutty tasting parmesan.
Servings: half-dozen
Ingredients
- ane lb broccoli crowns, bottom stem trimmed too reserved for some other role, remaining cutting into florets
- Salt too freshly earth black pepper
- 12 oz. orecchiette pasta
- four Tbsp extra-virgin olive crude oil, divided, addition more than if desired
- 1 1/two Tbsp minced garlic (iv cloves)
- 1 lb Italian sausage* (tin function mild or hot)
- two/iii cup (ane.vi oz) finely shredded Parmesan, plus more than for serving
- i i/two cups reserved pasta H2O, divided
- Red pepper flakes, for serving
Instructions
- Add iv quarts of water to a large pot, take to a boil over medium-high heat and then season amongst table salt (I purpose ii Tbsp).
- Add broccoli to boiling water in addition to cook until tender, about iv - five minutes. Using a spider, remove broccoli together with transfer to a colander, while leaving water in pot.
- Run broccoli nether common cold water to finish cooking. Drain well. Chop broccoli into smaller pieces.
- Add pasta to water inwards pot and boil most ane minutes shy of al dente, according to time listed on bundle. Reserve i ane/2 cups pasta H2O.
- While pasta is boiling, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil into a 12-inch non-stick skillet over medium-high rut.
- Crumble sausage inwards small-scale chunks into skillet in addition to make, breaking upward in addition to tossing occasionally, until cooked through, almost 7 minutes. Add garlic during last ii minutes of cooking the sausage.
- Pour in ane loving cup of the pasta water into the sausage. Let it simmer for most a minute as well as trim back slightly. Add all dente pasta together with prepare spell tossing, until tender, almost ii minutes.
- Drizzle inwards remaining three Tbsp olive rock oil, season alongside cherry-red pepper flakes to gustation in addition to toss.
- Sprinkle in parmesan, and toss to melt into sauce.
- Toss in broccoli. Season with salt as needed together with pepper to gustation.
- Loosen with more pasta H2O every bit needed. Drizzle servings alongside more than olive crude if desired, serve with garnished amongst more parmesan.
Notes
*If yous take links on mitt vs liberate sausage then purpose 4 Italian sausage links. Cut together with remove casings.
Nutrition Facts
Orecchiette amongst Sausage as well as Broccoli
Amount Per Serving
Calories 527
Calories from Fat 234
% Daily Value*
Fat 26g40%
Saturated Fat 12g75%
Polyunsaturated Fat 4g
Monounsaturated Fat 18g
Cholesterol 47mgxvi%
Sodium 700mgxxx%
Potassium 581mg17%
Carbohydrates 49gsixteen%
Fiber 4g17%
Sugar 3g3%
Protein 23g46%
Vitamin A 537IUeleven%
Vitamin C 70mg85%
Calcium 153mgxv%
Iron 2mg11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutrition values are estimates solely. See full disclaimer here.