Sausage, Fennel & Broccoli Pasta

Name: Sausage, Fennel & Broccoli Pasta
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Cuisine: European, Italian, Mediterranean
Ingredients: 1 head of broccoli, cut into small florets; 300g wholemeal fusilli pasta; 2 tbsp light olive oil; 1 bulb of fennel, thinly sliced; 400g high-quality pork sausages, casings removed; 2 garlic cloves, crushed; 1/2 tsp chilli flakes; juice of 1/2 lemon; salt, to taste; 25g Parmesan cheese, finely grated, to serve

7 steps

Prep:10minCook:20min

Another absolute belter of a pasta dish. You will love this one, I'm sure. I think sausage and fennel is one of the best combinations ever. This sausagemeat just has so much flavour, so get some decent ones in there. This recipe will also work with any type of pasta, so mix it up if you fancy it with spaghetti, penne or even gnocchi.

Updated at: Tue, 03 Oct 2023 06:09:18 GMT

Nutrition balance score

Great

Glycemic Index

Low

Glycemic Load

High

Nutrition per serving

Calories640.5 kcal (32%)

Total Fat34 g (49%)

Carbs62.3 g (24%)

Sugars5.7 g (6%)

Protein27.2 g (54%)

Sodium973.6 mg (49%)

Fiber9.2 g (33%)

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Ingredients

4 servings

1 headbroccoli

cut into small florets

300gwholemeal fusilli pasta

2 Tbsplight olive oil

1 bulbfennel

thinly sliced

400gpork sausages

high-quality, casings removed

2garlic cloves

crushed

½ tspchilli flakes

0.5juice of lemon

salt

to taste

25gParmesan cheese

finely grated, to serve

Instructions

Step 1

Bring a large pan of water to the boil and add the broccoli. Cook for 10 minutes until very soft, then use a slotted spoon to remove the broccoli to a bowl.

Step 2

Add the pasta to the pan and cook according to the packet instructions. Drain the pasta, reserving some of the pasta water, and set aside.

Step 3

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the fennel and a pinch of salt, then cover the pan with a lid. Cook for 15 minutes, removing the lid to stir occasionally, until the fennel has softened and is golden.

Step 4

Add the sausagemeat to the frying pan and cook until browned. Stir in the crushed garlic and chilli flakes for 1 minute, then add the cooked broccoli and pasta along with a splash of the pasta cooking water and the lemon juice. Stir together until combined, then taste and season with salt, as needed.

Step 5

Serve, sprinkled with Parmesan.

Joe's Tips

Step 6

If you can't get a fennel bulb, use 1 tbsp fennel seeds instead, sautéing them in the olive oil for only 1-2 minutes until fragrant, before adding the sausagemeat.

Step 7

If you are serving this to kids who are fussy about green veg, break down the broccoli into a kind of pesto when you stir it into the sausagemeat mix - they'll hardly notice it.