Creamy Pasta with Sausage and Peppers
I’ve been thinking about making something like this for a few weeks now. No idea if it’s original or not, but it came out delicious! It’s Creamy Pasta with Sausage and Peppers, only… there’s no cream. Trust me. It works!
Ok, to make it, you’ll need some sliced bell peppers and onions, the pasta of your choice (I think short tube pastas work really well here), Italian sausage, butter (preferably really good European butter like Kerrygold), and grated Pecorino Romano – NOT just “Romano”!!! Get the real stuff. You could also use grated Parmigiano Reggiano – NOT “Parmesan”!!! Get the real stuff, but if the jar/container you’re looking at has “cellulose” in it, put it back on the shelf. You’ll also need a couple of tablespoons of dry, white wine. Lastly, you’ll need some reserved pasta water after you cook the pasta. The amounts of all the ingredients depends on how much food you’re making. Too many variables here for me to give you exact measurements.
Brown up the sausage, and once it’s fully cooked slice up all or some of the sausage. Once the slices are cooked, remove the sausage to a bowl/plate and sauté the peppers and onions until cooked, but still a little crunchy. My recommendation is that you don’t salt the peppers and onions, as the salt will help push them to be a bit mushy when done. While sautéing the veggies, start cooking the pasta. Use water that is salted to taste like the ocean. Cook to al dente. Once the veggies reach the doneness you want, add the sliced sausage to the pan. Get the sausage hot again, then add the wine to the pan to deglaze it. Stir it all around to pick up all the flavorful bits on the bottom of the pan.
Once the pasta is almost al dente, reserve a half cup to full cup of pasta water depending on how much food you’re making.
Next step is making the ‘creamy sauce’ without cream. So, you can do the sauce two ways. I usually do it in each individual bowl, only because it’s usually just my wife and I. You could also do the sauce in a large single bowl for family dining.
Either way, you’ll combine the al dente pasta fresh out of the water, butter, a tablespoon or two of pasta water, and the amount of grated cheese you prefer in the bowl until they come together to make a homogeneous creamy sauce. The grated cheese will dissolve with the butter and heat of the pasta, and it will help the butter to emulsify the sauce with the small amount of pasta water. If it doesn’t happen soon as you stir the pasta, keep stirring it a little longer. If it’s still a little grainy or goopy with the cheese, add a little more butter and/or pasta water. If it’s too watery, add more cheese. Once it looks like cream, it’s done.
Once it’s done, dump in the sausage and peppers and toss to coat everything with sauce.
Finally, top it all with a little more grated cheese and freshly cracked black pepper.
