Everyday cooking
Broccoli pasta with garlic
Some of the broccoli is crushed to make a green sauce around short pasta shapes.
- Total time
- 25 min
- Servings / pieces
- 4
- Topic
- Everyday cooking
Broccoli can do more than sit beside pasta in large florets. Here, part of it is crushed with olive oil, garlic and cooking water to create a green sauce, while larger pieces provide texture. The peeled stalk is useful too: small cubes go into the water earlier than the tender florets. Chilli is optional and restrained. This method needs one large boiling pot and a frying pan. Offer hard cheese at the table if wanted, but the combination already holds together through the broccoli and starchy water rather than depending on cheese for thickness.
Method
Step by step
- 01
Prepare broccoli
Divide the broccoli into small florets. Peel the stalk and cut its centre into 1 cm cubes. Thinly slice the garlic. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil.
- 02
Boil together
Add the penne. After about 3 minutes add the stalk cubes, then add the florets 5 minutes before the pasta finishes. The broccoli should be tender enough to crush but still green.
- 03
Warm garlic
Warm the oil in the frying pan over gentle to medium heat. Let the garlic and optional chilli infuse for 1 minute without letting the garlic brown.
- 04
Crush broccoli
Reserve 250 ml cooking water, then drain the pasta and broccoli. Roughly crush about one-third of the broccoli in the frying pan with 80 ml water. Add the remaining broccoli and pasta.
- 05
Finish the pasta
Turn everything together for 1–2 minutes, adding more water as needed. Finish with lemon juice, salt and pepper. The sauce should settle into the pasta grooves. Serve immediately, with cheese separately.
Times are a guide. Your hob, oven and ingredients affect the result; use the cooking cues as well as the clock.
Use the stalk effectively
The outside of a broccoli stalk can be fibrous. Remove it generously with a knife or peeler until you reach the pale, juicy centre. Small stalk cubes need longer than tender florets, so they enter the water first. Discard woody ends instead of trying to boil them into submission.
A green sauce without blending
A potato masher leaves a coarse texture rather than a smooth purée. Too little liquid makes the mixture dry; too much causes it to slide off the pasta. Add cooking water gradually. Frozen broccoli also works, with its cooking time adjusted to the packet instructions.
Kitchen questions
One more question?
Can I add lemon zest?
Yes. Add finely grated zest from a washed unwaxed lemon at the end. It adds fragrance but does not completely replace the acidity of the juice.
Must I use penne?
No. Rigatoni and orecchiette also catch small broccoli pieces. Turn very thin spaghetti carefully to avoid breaking the strands.
