Fast Recipes

Casarecce with pork sausage, cavolo nero and chilli

Pork, fennel, chilli and pasta - now that's what you call a match made in heaven.

By Max Adey
  • 10 mins preparation
  • 20 mins cooking
  • Serves 4 - 6
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There's no beating a warm, comforting bowl of pasta. Classic Italian flavours – pork, fennel, cavolo nero and chilli – do the trick here. Can't find casarecce? Penne and rigatoni work a treat.

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 thick pork and fennel sausages, skins removed, broken into bite-sized pieces
  • 6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp finely chopped rosemary
  • 1½ tsp fennel seeds
  • 1½ tsp dried chilli flakes
  • 125 ml (½ cup) dry white wine
  • 125 ml (½ cup) chicken stock
  • 4 cups (firmly packed) roughly torn cavolo nero (about 1 bunch)
  • 500 gm dried casarecce
  • 50 gm finely grated parmesan, plus extra to serve
  • ¼ cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Method

  • 1
    Heat olive oil in a large casserole over high heat, add sausage and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned (4-5 minutes), then remove from pan with a slotted spoon. Add garlic, rosemary and spices to pan, season to taste, and stir until fragrant (1-2 minutes). Deglaze with wine and reduce until almost evaporated (1-2 minutes), then return sausage to pan with stock and cavolo nero. Cover with a lid, and cook until cavolo nero is just wilted (2-3 minutes).
  • 2
    Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large saucepan of salted boiling water until al dente (10-11 minutes). Drain, reserving a little pasta water, then toss pasta with sausage sauce, parmesan and parsley, adding pasta water to thin the sauce. Season to taste and serve topped with extra parmesan.
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  • undefined: Max Adey