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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I love this recipe….my whole family loves it. It’s the second time I doing this recipe, this time I didn’t have chicken broth on hand so I used the pasta water, and it was just as delicious.
I don’t know why it has taken me so long to write a review on this recipe. This recipe is absolutely delicious and is definitely one of our family favorites. And a bonus that it’s a quick cook as well so that we can make it often!
This surprises me with how good it is every time I make it. The sauce always turns out perfectly creamy and flavourful, and the broccoli is the perfect medium to sop it up. Red pepper flakes are just what this dish needs. A perfect balance of brightness, sweetness, saltiness, spiciness and umami; plus, this food has an undeniable comfort-food quality despite being having a decent amount of veggies in it. A very very good dish, one of my favourites.
I love this recipe and make it often. I love using the orecchiette but have had an issue with the pasta sticking together in stacks and not cooking all the way through. What can I do to prevent pasta doing this?
Hi Billie, I find that happens sometimes too. You could use a different shape pasta if you find that it’s really problematic for you or when you add the pasta to the pot, try pouring them into your hands and letting them run through into the water, instead of dumping them in all at once. Also, stir them often. Hope that helps!
This was sooo good and EASY…the easiest IMO, of all your main course meals!!! I used Italian Turkey sausage cuz my hubby is trying to get some weight off. IF left up to ME I wanted the real thing, hot Italian sausage!! BUT this is really tasty with the Turkey sausage!! This will be a regular dish from now on! Everything I make from you Jenn is fantastic!
Thanks so much for sharing your gift!
Made this many times. A huge favorite with the family. Like some of your other readers I started to briefly microwave the broccoli before adding to the pan. In my experience it took a lot longer than 3-4 minutes to get to the crisp tender stage if I didn’t. Maybe my idea of crisp tender is just different than others. Either way a delicious dish! Thank you.
Made it again last night.
So easy and our 10 month old loves it!
Delicious!! I used microwave steamed broccoli and just blotted with paper towel to get out excess moisture before adding to skillet. I used a box of 12 ounce pasta but 1.2 lb sausage and poured in extra chicken broth but reduced. This was so, so good. Adding to my meal rotation!
So easy and yummy! We all loved it.
As I didn’t have chicken broth at hand, I used vegetable broth instead, a perfect alternative.
For my husband, I added some cream at the end of the cooking process, but it’s really no must.
I, personally, prefer the lighter version without.
So easy and delicious! Healthier than most pasta dishes – no cream sauce, but you don’t even miss it. If watching calories, cut the amount of pasta in half, it’s still wonderful. Love this with Kirkland’s mild Italian Sausage from Costco. Along with the broccoli, add chopped red and yellow peppers for additional color, flavor, and nutrition.