Dinner Tonight: Pasta e Broccoli Recipe

Updated August 09, 2018

A white dish with pasta e broccoli, with some cheese grated on top. — Serious Eats / Blake Royer

File this one under "Italian recipes so simple you'd almost overlook them." In the family of spaghetti with oil and garlic or with chile and anchovies, is this pasta with broccoli. Under certain circumstances like, say, a harried weeknight or even a contemplative Sunday afternoon, anything more involved just seems needlessly complicated.

What really works with the famous pasta e broccoli is that if you cook it long enough, the parboiled broccoli breaks up into the pasta and almost melts into a pasta-clinging sauce when combined with the cooking water. Increasing the ratio of broccoli-to-pasta not only makes the dish a bit healthier, but better too. While this version is a simple one with garlic, pepper flakes, and Parmesan, another route might melt some anchovies into the oil and skip the Parmesan. Either way, this is, at the very least, a delicious way to eat your broccoli.

Recipe Details

Dinner Tonight: Pasta e Broccoli Recipe

Cook 35 mins

Total 35 mins

Serves 4 servings

Ingredients

1 pound pasta
1 large head broccoli, cut into florets
4 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon red chile flakes, or to taste
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and add the broccoli florets. Cook until tender, then remove with a slotted spoon. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, reserving 1/2 cup cooking water before draining.
In a large, heavy skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add garlic and red chile flakes and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute, then add broccoli and toss well in the oil, cooking until completely tender, 1-2 minutes.
Add pasta to the pan with the broccoli and toss well to coat. Add half the Parmesan and reserved pasta cooking water little by little until it creates a sauce that clings to the noodles. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately with remaining Parmesan.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
640	Calories
19g	Fat
96g	Carbs
21g	Protein

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories	640
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 19g	25%
Saturated Fat 4g	21%
Cholesterol 11mg	4%
Sodium 1151mg	50%
Total Carbohydrate 96g	35%
Dietary Fiber 7g	27%
Total Sugars 5g
Protein 21g
Vitamin C 74mg	372%
Calcium 183mg	14%
Iron 5mg	26%
Potassium 626mg	13%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.