Chef Chuck's Orecchiette with Sausage

Orecchiette con Salsiccia


The shape of Orecchiette pasta, meaning small ear, holds onto all these wonderful flavors of sausage, garden vegetables, white wine and red hot pepper flakes. A simple combination of unique shaped pasta with garden fresh onions, zucchini and garlic makes this recipe a summer special.


Orecchiette with Sausage
1 pound orecchiette pasta
1/4 cup olive oil
4 Italian sausage links
3 garlic cloves, lightly crushed
1 small white onion
4 baby zucchini
1 cup white wine
salt and pepper
red hot pepper flakes
sprig of rosemary
parmigiano cheese, grated


In a large pot heat water, add salt cook pasta till al dente. In a large frying pan heat olive oil, add garlic and remove sausage casings and brown sausage. Stir and cook about 3 - 5 minutes, move sausage to side of pan and discard garlic. Add onions, and saute till translucent then add zucchini, white wine, salt, pepper. Bruise rosemary stem by hitting it with the back of a knife, this will release the aromas. Mix and simmer an additional 3 minutes, remove rosemary and discard. Add pasta to this mixture with a little pasta water stir and add red hot pepper flakes. Grate parmigiano cheese on pasta.