Orazole Pasta with Italian Sausage
Why You’ll Love This
Man, that looks so good.
Whoo, this thing looks good.
I like the spicy Italian sausage flavor in this dish, which offers a satisfying and comforting pasta meal.
They’re really giving us a lot of flavon.
Ingredients
- spicy Italian sausage
- mild Italian sausage
- spinach
- orazole pasta
- chicken broth
- heavy whipping cream
- salt and pepper to taste
- Parmesan cheese
- red chili flakes
- garlic
- onion chop
Instructions
- We’re gonna heat up our Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
- We’re gonna add our sausage, and we’re gonna cook this sausage into its brown, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as we brown ground meat for hearty dishes.
- Now we’re gonna add our onions, and we’re gonna continue cooking this over medium heat for another four or five minutes until those onions start to soften.
- Now we’re gonna come behind that with our garlic, our chili flakes, and our orzo.
- And we’re gonna stir this in for about 30 to 45 seconds.
- Now we’re gonna come behind that with our chicken broth, our heavy cream, and we’re gonna get this mixed in, continue to let that temperature rise back to a medium-high heat, to build a rich and flavorful pasta sauce.
- So we want this to come up to where it starts to bubble, and once it starts bubbling, continue to let it cook for about 10 minutes uncovered at the same temperature.
- To finish this off, we’re gonna add our Parmesan cheese here to the mix, alone with our spinach.
- We’re gonna get that stirred in.
- And now what we’re gonna do, we’re gonna cover this baby up for five to 10 minutes, and let it sit here while the spinach wilts, the cheese melts, and it thickens up to your liking, all right?
- Now you’re gonna do a little taste set to add your salt and pepper.
- So I have like a half a teaspoon of salt and a half a teaspoon of pepper.
- So we’re just gonna add that in here.
- Get that mixed around in here.
Cooking Tips
I recommend you grate your own Parmesan cheese don’t buy the packaged version, as grating fresh cheese for best results truly elevates the dish.
It doesn’t make the dish hot. It just adds some additional flavor.
Now you wanna stir it periodically because that pasta will tend to stick at the bottom of that pan, and if you have to turn it down, turn it down, you don’t wanna lose too much of the liquid before the pasta done.
Because of course, we’re cooking the pasta in this step too, so we want that pasta to be fully cooked after that 10 minutes, all right?
This is how you want the texture to be. You don’t want the two watery, but you want it to be creamy like this.
Make sure some of your liquid has evaporated.
If you got the spicy Italian sauces, I would probably say leave out the chili flakes because I could taste a little heat. This helps with adjusting spice levels in your main courses.
So the spicy Italian sauces gives you the heat that you need, a milk heat that you need.
Chili flakes and spicy Italian sauces. Just ask that. They just compounds the heat.
But if you use mild, add those chili flakes. If you want a little heat or if you want to straighten up that flavor.
And remember, guys, I’m not a chef.
I know it seems like it, but I just cook a lot and now I’m out.
I’m just gonna say peace.
Creamy Orazole Pasta with Spicy Italian Sausage
A comforting and flavorful one-pot pasta dish featuring spicy Italian sausage, tender orzo, fresh spinach, and a rich, creamy sauce finished with Parmesan cheese. This dish is packed with flavor and comes together easily in a Dutch oven.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (optional, for browning sausage)
- 1 pound Italian sausage (can be spicy, mild, or a mix), casings removed
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 – 1 teaspoon red chili flakes (adjust to taste, omit if using very spicy sausage)
- 1 pound orzo pasta
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 5-6 ounces fresh spinach
- 1/2 – 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
- Heat your Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the Italian sausage (and a tablespoon of olive oil if needed to prevent sticking). Cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until it is thoroughly browned. Drain any excess grease if desired.
- Add the chopped onions to the Dutch oven with the sausage. Continue cooking over medium heat for 4-5 minutes, or until the onions begin to soften.
- Stir in the minced garlic, red chili flakes, and orzo pasta. Cook, stirring constantly, for about 30-45 seconds to lightly toast the orzo and release the aromatics.
- Pour in the chicken broth and heavy whipping cream. Stir everything together well, ensuring no orzo sticks to the bottom. Bring the mixture back up to a medium-high heat until it starts to bubble.
- Once bubbling, continue to cook uncovered for about 10 minutes, stirring periodically to prevent the pasta from sticking, until the orzo is almost al dente and much of the liquid has evaporated.
- To finish, add the Parmesan cheese and fresh spinach to the Dutch oven. Stir until the spinach begins to wilt and the cheese starts to melt into the sauce.
- Cover the Dutch oven and let it sit for 5-10 minutes. This allows the spinach to fully wilt, the cheese to melt completely, and the sauce to thicken to your desired creamy consistency.
- Perform a taste test and season with salt and pepper to your preference. (The article suggests starting with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper). Stir again to combine the seasonings.
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