Broccoli Pasta
This easy broccoli pasta recipe is healthy but comforting and takes less than 20 minutes to prepare with kitchen staples.
I was looking for an easy side dish to pair with some flank steak with balsamic roasted tomatoes, garlic butter mushrooms, and crusty bread I was serving for dinner. I found this easy broccoli pasta recipe on Jo Cooks that was super easy to make and tasted delicious. We all enjoyed this easy broccoli side dish recipe and I’ll make it again soon.
Broccoli Pasta
Ingredients:
- ½ small head of broccoli, cut into small florets
- 6 oz orecchiette pasta, or any pasta of your choice
- 1 tbsp olive oil, more for serving if desired
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- Crushed red pepper flakes, to taste
- Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
- ½ cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated
How to Make Broccoli Pasta
Cook the broccoli by bringing a large pot of well-salted water to boil over high heat.
Add the broccoli and cook for 3-4 minutes, until bright green and tender. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked broccoli to a bowl; keeping the pot of water boiling over high heat.
Cook the pasta using the same boiling water you cooked the broccoli, add the pasta and cook until al dente, per the package instructions; drain reserving ½ cup of cooking water.
Saute the broccoli by heating the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add the cooked broccoli, garlic, red pepper flakes, sea salt, and freshly cracked pepper, to taste, and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
Add ¼ cup of the reserved cooking water to the large skillet and cook, stirring often, for 10 minutes until you can easily mash the broccoli with a spoon.
Finish the dish by adding the drained pasta and parmesan cheese to the skillet with the broccoli; stir everything together and add more pasta water if needed.
Taste for seasoning and adjust with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper as needed. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil, if desired.
Serve immediately with additional parmesan cheese. Enjoy.
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ small head of broccoli cut into small florets
- 6 oz orecchiette pasta or any pasta of your choice
- 1 tbsp olive oil more for serving if desired
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- Crushed red pepper flakes to taste
- Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
- ½ cup parmesan cheese freshly grated
Instructions
- Cook the broccoli by bringing a large pot of well-salted water to boil over high heat.
- Add the broccoli and cook for 3-4 minutes, until bright green and tender. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked broccoli to a bowl; keeping the pot of water boiling over high heat.
- Cook the pasta using the same boiling water you cooked the broccoli, add the pasta and cook until al dente, per the package instructions; drain reserving ½ cup of cooking water.
- Saute the broccoli by heating the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add the cooked broccoli, garlic, red pepper flakes, sea salt, and freshly cracked pepper, to taste, and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
- Add ¼ cup of the reserved cooking water to the large skillet and cook, stirring often, for 10 minutes until you can easily mash the broccoli with a spoon.
- Finish the dish by adding the drained pasta and parmesan cheese to the skillet with the broccoli; stir everything together and add more pasta water if needed.
- Taste for seasoning and adjust with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper as needed. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil, if desired.
- Serve immediately with additional parmesan cheese. Enjoy.
A comforting meal for pasta fans!