Orecchiette with Friarielli Broccoli, Garlic and Chilli Recipe
by Nicola Lando
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Easy
What is orecchiette?
Orecchiette is a hand-shaped semolina pasta, originating from Puglia in the south of Italy. The name translates to ‘ear’, describing the small, curved shape of the pasta.
How to make orecchiette
If you want to try making orecchiette by hand, make your semolina pasta dough (for 4 people, mix 400g fine semolina flour with 200ml water in a bowl, kneading for 10 minutes until smooth), then follow the instructions below:
- Sprinkle your work surface with semolina flour and roll the pasta dough into a long sausage shape. Cut into 1cm pieces.
- Place your thumb in the centre of the dough to flatten it slightly, but still leave the edges a little higher.
- To create the ear, pick up the pasta disc and place it over your thumb.
- Use the fingers on your opposite hand to gently pull the sides down over your thumb.
- Rotate hands, placing the pasta disc on the opposite thumb and pull down the opposite sides so you have a neat ear shape.
Orecchiette is ideal if you want your sauce to cling to the pasta (the orecchiette act like little wells for the sauce to sit in).
What is orecchiette cime di rapa?
This classic Puglian dish (also known as orecchiette con cime di rapa) celebrates cime di rapa – broccoli rabe or broccoli friarielli. We’ve used stems that are preserved in oil with a little garlic and hot pepper for gentle heat.
Here, we make a simple glossy sauce with garlic, olive oil and cooking water, then stir through the cooked pasta and chopped broccoli. Adding Aleppo pepper gives a fruity, aromatic flavour, while a dusting of grated pecorino adds a sharp, salty kick.
This simple pasta dish is a wonderful way of making the most out of jarred vegetables.
Ingredients for orecchiette with friarielli broccoli, garlic and chilli Serves: 3
- 250g orecchiette
- 1 tbsp + ½ tsp kosher salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 fat garlic cloves (15g), peeled and finely chopped
- 200g friarielli broccoli, chopped into 2 inch pieces
Ingredients to garnish
- Black pepper
- Aleppo pepper
- Grated pecorino
Method for orecchiette with friarielli broccoli, garlic and chilli
- Cook the pasta according to packet instructions, seasoning the water with 1tbsp kosher salt.
- Meanwhile, add the garlic and olive oil to a cold pan and cook over a medium heat until sizzling but not golden.
- One minute before the pasta cooking time is up, drain the pasta, reserving around 250ml of cooking water (or ladle 250ml water from the pan into a jug before draining). Tip the drained pasta and half of the cooking water, plus ½ tsp kosher salt into the pan with the garlic. Stir gently over a medium heat until the pasta is just cooked and coated in a glossy sauce - add additional cooking water as needed. Stir in the friarielli broccoli.
- Serve with plenty of black pepper, chilli and grated pecorino cheese.
About the author
Nicola Lando is the co-founder and CEO of Sous Chef, where she has spent more than a decade sourcing, tasting and selecting specialist ingredients, cookware and tableware from producers around the world.
She trained at Leiths and later completed a stage at a Michelin-starred London restaurant, experiences that helped shape Sous Chef’s original mission: to give home cooks access to the same exceptional ingredients used by professional chefs.
Today, Nicola leads much of Sous Chef’s product sourcing and ingredient selection, working directly with producers and travelling internationally to food fairs, farms, mills and manufacturers. She tastes thousands of products each year and has built deep expertise across storecupboard ingredients, olive oil, condiments, spices, preserved foods and specialist cooking ingredients.
She holds an olive oil sommelier certification from ESAO in Spain, Imperial Executive Education’s Certificate in Nutrition for Health: Evidence-Based Tools and Strategies certificate; as well as studying Food Safety and Control at University of Greenwich.
Nicola also writes recipes and ingredient guides for Sous Chef, combining practical cooking experience with first-hand knowledge from producers, suppliers and specialist food makers. Her work focuses on helping cooks understand how to choose better ingredients, use them well, and get more flavour from their cooking.
