SPICY SAUSAGE PASTA
Turn up the heat in your kitchen by making this flavoursome spicy sausage pasta with mushrooms, baby spinach, wine and lots of chillies!
Ingredients
- 300 gm dried pasta (NOTE 1)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 500 gm Italian sausages (NOTE 2)
- 18 gm butter (1 tbsp)
- 6 medium mushrooms
- 3 cloves garlic
- ½ small onion
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 1 tsp chilli flakes (NOTE 3)
- 2 small red chillies (NOTE 3)
- ¼ cup white wine (NOTE 4)
- ½ cup reduced-salt chicken stock
- 2 cup packed baby spinach
- ¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese (and extra for topping)
- salt and pepper to season
Instructions
- Cook the pasta as per the instructions but make sure not to overcook it. Scoop out half a cup of pasta water before draining it from the pasta and set aside.
- Heat up a tablespoon of oil in a large deep frying pan on medium to high heat. Add in the sausages and cook to sear only, they don't need to be cooked through just firm enough to hold their shape. Remove the sausages onto a chopping board and use a sharp knife with tongs to slice the sausages (roughly 0.5cm in thickness).
- In the same frying pan, add in the remaining oil and heat it up on medium to high heat. Add in the sliced sausages and cook until they've browned nicely. Move the sausages to the side of the pan and add in the butter, once it. has melted add in the mushrooms and stir occasionally until the mushrooms are golden. Add in the garlic, onion, fennel seeds, dried and fresh chillies and stir quickly but gently for 2 minutes.
- Pour in the wine and stir gently until the alcohol smell disappears. Add in the stock and spinach, cook until the spinach has wilted. Stir in the pasta and cook for 5 minutes or until heated through, if the pasta feels dry add in a few tablespoons or of the reserved pasta water. Taste the pasta and season with salt and pepper if needed. Take the pan off the heat and add in the parmesan and stir through. Serve and garnish with more grated cheese on top.
Notes
(NOTE 1) Pasta - Any variety of dried pasta can be used. Cook the pasta as per the instructions but don't overcook the pasta as it should be 'al dente' which means the pasta should still be firm when bitten. Before draining the pasta reserve half a cup of the pasta water to add to the dish later.
(NOTE 2) Italian sausage is a must in this dish and shouldn't be substituted for any other sausages. It's loaded with flavour as the pork is marinated with garlic, onion, paprika, chilli flakes, fennel and other herbs and spices. It's definitely worth buying some good quality raw Italian sausages for this dish.
(NOTE 3) Chillies - I used both fresh and dried chillies. The dry chillies provide a smokey flavour and the fresh one adds heat. You may opt to leave the fresh chilli out if you prefer this dish to be less spicy.
(NOTE 4) Dry white wine is lower in sugar levels than other varieties. Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio are popular dry white wine varieties.
Leftovers - As this dish is not saucy, the pasta may dry up a little when stored. Keep it in an airtight container and store it in the fridge for up to 2 days.
A Third-Party Application calculated the calories and nutritional information, so this is an approximate guide only.
Cooking measurements are in Australian standard spoon and cup measurements.
Nutrition
Serving: 1servingCalories: 877kcalCarbohydrates: 63gProtein: 33gFat: 53gSaturated Fat: 17gPolyunsaturated Fat: 7gMonounsaturated Fat: 26gCholesterol: 101mgSodium: 1091mgPotassium: 811mgFiber: 4gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 1985IUVitamin C: 41mgCalcium: 144mgIron: 4mg