Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli
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Packed with flavor and easy to make, this orecchiette with sausage and broccoli is a longtime favorite—the whole family gobbles it up, veggies 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
Step 1: Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil—it should taste like the sea. Add the orecchiette and cook until al dente.
Step 2: Brown the sausage. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until lightly browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
Step 3: Cook the broccoli. Add the remaining 4 tablespoons of olive oil along with the broccoli, chicken broth, salt, and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring frequently, until the broccoli is tender-crisp, 3 to 4 minutes.
Step 4: Enrich the sauce. Stir in the butter until melted, then simmer for a few minutes to reduce and concentrate the sauce.
Step 5: Toss it all together. Add the sausage and broccoli mixture to the drained pasta and toss well, along with half of the grated cheese.
Step 6: Serve. Transfer the pasta to a serving bowl or individual bowls and top with the remaining grated cheese. Enjoy!
Video Tutorial
More Italian Pasta Dishes You’ll Love
Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli
Ingredients
- 16 oz orecchiette
- 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 lb sweet or spicy Italian sausage, removed from casings
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 oz chicken broth
- 1 lb broccoli florets
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon crushed 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.
Notes
Nutrition Information
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 now my (somewhat picky) teen daughter’s most-requested dinner! I’ve made it with both “real” and plant-based sausage and it’s delicious either way. Especially good for busy evenings since it reheats beautifully. My kids can come and go after school and still have a decent dinner.
Delicious! Easy to make and so flavorful! I used spicy Italian sausage and it was perfect!! Thank you for the terrific recipe!!
Quick and delish! My family of 5 loved it!!
This is a delicious, yet easy recipe. It’s a keeper! Thanks, Jen!
Hi Jenn:
Made this last night and besides being wowed by the smell throughout the house, the flavor profile was wonderful! So happy it makes a lot because my husband and I love leftovers. He told me to write “Keeper” on it.
Jenn — Would it be OK to add a little white wine to the broth?
Sure, Peter – I think that would work well. Enjoy!
My wife and I have been making this for years, our daughter used to eat this all cut up on her high chair and mow it down and I think it’s a big reason she likes broccoli.
This recipe is amazing, quick, deep but not over powering flavor. It’s one of those warm hug kinda meals that just, yeah .. it’s wonderful.
SO DANG GOOD! Super easy to make, didn’t take much time at all, has just the right level of spice, and the flavor is phenomenal! Delectable! Delicious!
Really nice! Made with Impossible spicy sausage meat so cut down on the salt and oil, and had some leftover celery so chopped up small and fried off with the sausage. Feels like a very customisable recipe.
We really enjoyed this dish!
I keep coming back to this recipe when I get into a meal-planning slump. It’s easy and my kids absolutely love it. Perfect for a busy weekday meal. Thank you!