Pasta Alla Norcina (Pasta with Sausage, Ricotta and Parmesan)
The name of this pasta dish comes from the Italian town of Norcia, in central Italy, one of the oldest towns in the world that still exists today. It is famous for its pork products – salami, pancetta, prosciutto and sausage. This pasta recipe is in homage to and my version of the original Pasta Alla Norcina recipes (of which there are many), combining pasta and simple pork sausage in a savory creamy sauce. The original recipes also use truffle oil (another Norcia specialty) and shavings of truffles to garnish. My recipe does not include truffles (as not everyone likes the flavour of truffles, including me) but feel free to add this if you wish.
Simple in ingredients, yes, quick and easy to make, yes, deep and rich in flavour, oh yes! Because of how simple this dish is, don’t be tempted to add additional spices or hot sauces or seasonings or vinegars – the combination as written below is subtle and delicious. Some recipes garnish with a sprinkle of nutmeg when serving. Again, feel free to do so. Serve with a green salad and a homemade salad dressing and you have a meal that family and friends will love.
As always, when you make this recipe, I would love to see your creation so please post a photo of your Pasta Alla Norcina goodness and tag my IG account #RenataCollective or leave a comment with your thoughts!
Prep Time: 10 minutes / Cook Time: 25 minutes / Makes: 4 servings
Ingredients
3 Garlic Cloves - chopped and set aside to work its nutritional magic
2½ Cups (about 300gr) Rigatoni Pasta – alternate: any other tubular pasta – conventional or gluten free
1 Medium Cooking Onion - chopped
6 Italian Sausages
1/3 Cup White Wine – alternate: veggie bouillon or chicken broth
200g Ricotta
½ Cup Parmigiano Reggiano - grated plus more for garnishing
4 Tablespoons Olive Oil
Pinch of Seasoned Herbed Sea Salt or Plain Sea Salt
Grind of Fresh Black Pepper
½ Cup Pine Nuts – toasted – optional - alternate: chopped walnuts, hazelnuts, or herbed breadcrumbs ((see note below for simple herbed breadcrumb instructions)
2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley
½ teaspoon Chili Powder
How It’s Made
Start your salted pasta water boiling. Add the rigatoni and stir. Cook the rigatoni to the package directions – each brand has its own suggested length of time. Test when it comes to that suggested time - you want the pasta al dente.
Reserve a cup of pasta water.
Drain well as tubular pasta holds more water than spaghetti type pasta. Set aside.
While the water is coming to a boil and the pasta is cooking, in a large frying pan, over medium heat, add the olive oil and when it is hot, add the onions – sauté for 2 minutes until they become translucent.
Add the garlic and sauté, making sure neither the onions or garlic burns, but rather both become a nice light brown. Turn off the heat for the moment.
Next you will prepare the sausage. A tip I learned from my Zias – cut the length of the sausage to peel off the skin. With a fork, press into each sausage to flatten and break up the sausage meat.
Return the pan to medium-high heat and add the sausage meat to the pan. Stir and break up hunks of sausage meat as best you can. Cook until the meat is cooked through.
Prepare the cheese mixture – in a medium bowl, mix the ricotta and the parmesan cheeses together. Add a few tablespoons (start with 3) of the reserved pasta water and stir to combine and create a smooth mixture.
When the sausage is cooked, add the white wine (or bouillon/broth) and stir. The wine will reduce as it boils and there should be only a small amount of liquid in the pan.
Season with a pinch of herbed seasoned sea salt and a few grinds of fresh black pepper.
Reduce the heat to medium, add the ricotta/parmesan mixture to the pan and stir.
Add the well-drained rigatoni to the pan, along with another 3 tablespoons of the reserved pasta water. Stir. Turn the heat to low and allow the pasta to heat up and the flavours to mix together.
To serve, spoon a generous portion onto a plate, add a few frinds of fresh black pepper, sprinkle more parmesan on top, sprinkle some parsley on top, add a pinch of chili powder on top and garnish with toasted pine nuts or other nuts of your choice or some herbed breadcrumbs. (See below for how to make a simple herbed breadcrumb!)
Enjoy!
Note
Simple Herbed Breadcrumbs – in a medium frying pan, add 4 tablespoons olive oil. Add ¾ cup breadcrumbs (regular or gluten free), 2 cloves of garlic minced very fine, a pinch of sea salt and a pinch of chili powder. Stir constantly so it doesn’t burn, until it is a nice golden brown. This will take about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer to a dish so the heat from the pan doesn’t continue to cook the breadcrumbs. Add 2 teaspoons dried parsley and stir to mix it in.
