This page may contain affiliate links. So I receive a small commission at no cost to you when you make a purchase using my link. This post is about the classic Italian dish called Orecchiette With Broccoli!
A trip to Italy would be a trip to foodie heaven. Italy boasts some of the most delicious food on planet Earth. It is a dream of mine to travel back to Italy on a culinary tour. Can you imagine amazing pastas, wines, cheeses, and desserts available at most every corner in Italy? Foodie heaven for sure!!
Saucer Shaped Pasta
Puglia, which forms the “heel” of Italy’s boot, is a region in Southern Italy. And Puglia arguably has some of the best food in the country. A signature dish from Puglia is Orecchiette with Broccoli. Orecchiette is a type of pasta that comes from the Puglian area. Saucer shaped, it means “little ears” in Italian.
Puglian Orecchiette with Broccoli is often made with broccoli rabe. I have used regular broccoli in this recipe, which is just as delicious. The main flavor comes from anchovies, which is commonly used in southern Italian cooking. So, this dish is savory and also a bit spicy due to the addition of red pepper flakes.
Certainly anchovies are not just for pizza!! And, I love cooking with anchovies. In this instance, the combination of olive oil, garlic, red peppers, and anchovies is absolutely delicious.
Meanwhile, I challenge you to practice your Italian whilst making this dish! Keep repeating “orecchiette” and “Puglia” until these words roll off your tongue. 🙂
Most importantly, you will love Orecchiette with Broccoli! So, I hope you will enjoy this soon, and be sure to top with a generous amount of parmesan! Enjoy a taste of southern Italy!!
You may also enjoy these other pasta recipes:
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Cheers!
Grace
Puglian Orecchiette with Broccoli
Ingredients
- 1 crown broccoli medium to large
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 4 anchovy fillets with oil
- 1/2 ts red chili flakes can also sub a couple of your favorite chilies!
- 4 tbsp butter
- 16 oz orecchiette pasta
- 3 tbsp olive oil extra virgin
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- parmesan cheese grated
Instructions
- Cut the broccoli crown into bite sized pieces
- Heat up your olive oil and butter in a heavy skillet, then add minced garlic and stir fry on med heat for 1 minute
- Add your anchovy fillets, with some of the oil that the fillets were packed in. Stir fry for 2 minutes, or until the anchovies have “melted”
- Add red chili flakes (or a couple of your favorite minced chilies), stir, and keep warm on a very low setting
- Boil pasta water in a large pot, and prepare your orecchiette according to package directions. PLEASE NOTE: You will need to reserve approximately 1 cup of the pasta water, collected at or near the end of the time when the pasta is finished cooking
- 3-4 minutes before your pasta is finished cooking, add the broccoli pieces into the boiling pasta water
- When the pasta is finished cooking, drain the broccoli and the pasta. REMEMBER: You will need to reserve 1 cup of the pasta water just prior to draining the broccoli and pasta
- Add the cooked broccoli and orecchiette to your anchovy, garlic, red pepper (or chilies), and olive oil mixture, and stir
- Start adding the reserved pasta water a little at a time and continue stirring. This helps make a smooth sauce and prevents the pasta from sticking!
- Add salt and pepper to taste
I can’t wait to make this! It looks amazing. Love your dog.
Hi Linda! I hope you are well! Thank you so much for your comments and I’m super excited that you may try it out! Please do let me know what you think of it and any comments and suggestions for improvement are greatly appreciated. Toby sends his love back. 🙂 Thanks again take good care! Grace
This recipe sounds delicious but I am allergic to anchovies. Is there a substitute I can use?
Hi Dana! Hope you are well! So sorry to hear about your anchovy allergy. 🙁 I haven’t used these myself but I’ve read about several substitutes: thin sheets of nori (seaweed) ground into a powder, capers or chopped kalamata olives. Other subs are fish sauce, shrimp paste, and Worcestershire, but they may contain anchovy themselves. I might go ahead and suggest the capers or the olives for this dish…they are super salty so you won’t need too much but I think either one would go nicely. 🙂 If you do end up making this I’d love to hear your feedback! I could also add some comments in the post about your situation and how the substitution turned out..it could help others as well! Thank you so much and take care!! Grace