Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli
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Packed with flavor and easy to make, this orecchiette pasta dish is a longtime favorite—the whole family gobbles it up, broccoli and all!
Sometimes it seems impossible to make a meal that pleases the whole family. What one child happily eats, the other one suddenly isn’t “in the mood for.” But every once in a while, I come across a recipe that everyone loves, like this orecchiette pasta dish adapted from Lidia’s Italian Table by Lidia Bastianich. Not only is it quick and easy to make—25 minutes tops—but the whole family devours it, broccoli and all.
“My whole family loves this (even my 5 year old who doesn’t typically like pasta). It’s so nice to have an easy go-to meal for the middle of the week that my small children get excited about and so does my husband. Thank you!!”
What You’ll Need To Make Orecchiette With Sausage & Broccoli
Orecchiette is named for its shape, which resembles a small ear (the Italian word orecchiette means small ear). If you can’t find it, it’s fine to substitute another pasta, like farfalle or fusilli.
Italian sausage is a great ingredient to have on hand for weeknight dinners. Not only is it quick and easy to cook, but it’s also flavored with a variety of aromatics, herbs and spices, such as garlic and fennel, which add depth and complexity to pasta dishes without the need for a lot of additional seasoning. This makes it an easy and convenient way to add flavor to pasta dishes, such as baked ziti and lasagna. Buy bulk sausage, or sausage meat without the casing, if possible (it’s often easy to find around holiday season as it’s used in stuffing recipes). Otherwise, just squeeze the sausage meat out of the casing.
Pecorino Romano is a hard, salty, and pungent Italian cheese made from sheep’s milk. It’s readily available in grated form in the cheese section of most large supermarkets but if you can’t find it, it’s fine to substitute Parmigiano Reggiano.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by cooking the pasta.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet and add the sausage.
Cook, breaking the meat up with a spoon, until the sausage starts to brown, 5 to 6 minutes.
Add the garlic and cook a minute more.
Add the remaining 4 tablespoons of olive oil, broccoli, chicken broth, salt and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring frequently, until the broccoli is tender-crisp, 3 to 4 minutes.
Stir in the butter until melted and simmer for a few minutes to reduce and concentrate the sauce.
Add the sausage and broccoli mixture to the drained pasta and toss well, along with half of the grated cheese.
Transfer the pasta to a serving bowl or individual bowls and top with the remaining grated cheese.
Video Tutorial
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Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli
Packed with flavor and easy to make, this orecchiette pasta dish is a longtime favorite—the whole family gobbles it up, broccoli and all!
Ingredients
- 1 pound orecchiette
- 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 pound sweet or spicy Italian sausage, removed from casings
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 pound broccoli florets
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup freshly grated pecorino Romano
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the orecchiette and cook according to package instructions.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium high heat. Crumble the sausage into the skillet and cook, breaking apart with a spoon, until lightly browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and add the garlic; cook for 1 minute more.
- Add the remaining 4 tablespoons of olive oil, chicken broth, broccoli, salt and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring frequently and scraping the bottom of the pan to release the flavorful brown bits, until the broccoli is tender-crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the butter until melted and simmer for a few minutes to reduce and concentrate the sauce.
- Drain the pasta well and place back in the pasta pot. Add the sausage and broccoli mixture, along with half of the cheese, and toss to blend. Taste and adjust seasoning. Transfer to a serving platter or individual bowls and pass the remaining grated cheese at the table.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: This dish can be frozen for up to 3 months and reheated on the stovetop. If the dish has dried out a bit in the freezer, add a little water or broth while reheating. Just take care only to reheat it and not continue to cook it.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 624
- Fat: 28 g
- Saturated fat: 10 g
- Carbohydrates: 64 g
- Sugar: 3 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 29 g
- Sodium: 692 mg
- Cholesterol: 51 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This is perfection! I followed the recipe exactly and it was delicious! We all loved this, and will be making it regularly. Thanks so much, Jenn!
Thank you for this yummy recipe! It’s a keeper & shall be made again! So happy to have leftovers for tonight too!! Have a blessed day and a Happy New Year!😊
Delicious! It was very easy to make. I used a combination of hot and sweet sausage and it was fantastic.
hi Jenn Love your recipes. for this one, as i have a huge intolerance to Broccoli – do you have another suggestions for the veggie? Thanks
Hi Barb, Glad you like the recipes! I think this would also work nicely with asparagus and/or peas. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
Very delicious…not light on the calories however. I added some fresh spinach at the end to increase the nutrition value. I like pasta recipes that don’t always have a tomato sauce, nice change.
I made this last night, and it was absolutely yummy! My husband went for a walk, and I asked him to buy me a head of broccoli, and he came home with a pound of asparagus! So I used it, and it turned out fantastic!! My sauce was a little more brothy than I expected, so am wondering if it was because broccoli captures some sauce in its heads, while asparagus doesn’t… Still was really tasty – but would have had a nice loaf of bread to go with it, if I realized. Really yummy, will make many times again!
I am suprised that no one has done this recipe with rapini. Sounds like a fantastic recipe.
I had Orecchiette, Rapini & Salsiccia when I was in Florida last year. Was the best meal I ever had! Just now looking for a recipe, yours looks to be the best. So I’m making it with rapini
Love, love, love it! Simply delicious! Will definitely be making this again because I didn’t have extra virgin olive oil (used regular olive oil). I’m sure it’ll be even better with what the recipe called for. Thanks Jenn.
I liked the dish. I think I did something wrong at the broccoli and butter stage cook about 1 minute. I will have to play with it. Thank you for another bowl of yum yum!!
My husband and I really enjoyed this dish that was so flavourful, warm and delicious. It was a really nice change to have a yummy pasta dish without tomatoes.
Jenn, thank you for another great recipe. I made this tonight, as written, and my husband can’t stop talking about it. Like other commenters, between your book and digital recipes, I no longer look anywhere else when I need a new one. I’ll be making your red wine braised short ribs this Sunday. Thanks again.
💕
I made this for the second time tonite. Delicious and even better than I remembered. I amped up the red peppers a smidge and cut the pasta in half as I am not a pasta appreciator. Great Sunday dinner with plenty of leftovers which I will freeze. It froze beautifully as I recall. Thank you, Jenn.
I’ve used your recipe a few times now and have made some of my own adjustments along the way. My main question to the author of this recipe is; how do you get the sausage morsels to remain crispy as seen in the photo? I found that when adding the chicken broth, the sausage loses its crispy texture and becomes soggy meat with none of that beautiful crisp and color in your photo. Your feedback would be greatly appreciated!! Still a tasty recipe.
Hi Saumil, The sausage really doesn’t stay crispy. It may appear that way in the photo but I think I probably put the brownest pieces in the picture (and also do a little adjusting of the color after I shoot the recipes). 🙂 Hope that clarifies!