Penne With Brussels Sprouts, Chile and Pancetta

Penne With Brussels Sprouts, Chile and Pancetta
Dane Tashima for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
Total Time
20 minutes
Rating
5(1,643)
Comments
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Pasta and sliced brussels sprouts make a good pair, the softened green shreds commingling with the chewy noodles in the sauce. Here that sauce is a simple one with big flavors: pancetta, rosemary, garlic and chile. The raw brussels are then added to the pan. A splash of lemon juice at the end is a bright touch. Within 30 minutes, dinner is ready. Vary this recipe at will — use regular bacon instead of pancetta, or skip the meat altogether and use extra cheese to make a satisfying vegetarian main course. Use a knife or a food processor (fitted with the slicing blade) to cut the brussels. A mandoline works too but isn’t necessary, because the brussels don’t need to be paper thin, or uniform in size. These are unfussy slices you can do by hand.

Featured in: The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Brussels Sprouts

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Ingredients

Yield:2 servings
  • Sea salt
  • 8ounces penne
  • 2tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, more for drizzling
  • 3ounces pancetta, diced
  • 1large rosemary sprig
  • 6garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
  • 1jalapeño or Serrano chile, thinly sliced (or substitute 1 large pinch crushed red pepper flakes)
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 8ounces brussels sprouts, thinly sliced
  • 2teaspoons butter
  • Fresh lemon juice, for serving
  • Freshly grated pecorino cheese (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (2 servings)

814 calories; 35 grams fat; 10 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 18 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 100 grams carbohydrates; 9 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 25 grams protein; 735 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Bring large pot heavily salted water to a boil. Add the penne and cook until pasta is just al dente (do not overcook).

  2. Step 2

    Meanwhile, heat large sauté pan over high heat and add the olive oil. When oil is hot, add the pancetta and rosemary, and sauté until the fat on the pancetta starts to turn translucent and very lightly brown, about 1 minute. Add the garlic, chile and freshly ground black pepper to taste, and sauté until garlic and pancetta turn richly brown, about 3 minutes. Add the brussels sprouts, a large pinch of salt and a splash of water to pan, and sauté until sprouts just start to soften, about 2 minutes. Spread sprouts mixture in pan and press down to flatten. Let it sear for a minute, then stir it up and repeat. This helps brown the sprouts. Add the butter, and sauté for another minute.

  3. Step 3

    Drain penne and add it to pan with brussels sprouts mixture. Cook, tossing, until everything is well mixed. Spoon into pasta bowls and top with a drizzle of oil and lemon juice, and a little cheese if you like.

Ratings

5 out of 5
1,643 user ratings
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Comments

Wonderful! Being vegetarians, we used shitake mushrooms in place of pancetta. Would also be great with toasted sliced almonds and/or raisins.

I just made this for the first time, and I love it. For my oven using high heat was too much, so I cut back to medium high heat and cut down on the cooking times by as much as a minute. I'll try this again this weekend, and in the future I may substitute mushrooms for pancetta to make it a vegetarian meal.

Pancetta adds lots of salt flavor. "Heavily salted" penne water adds salt. Other directions add salt. Too much. Lay off the salt and add at end if needed. Otherwise this was terrific. The brussell sprouts cook down quite a bit so don't skimp. I'll add more next time. Wife thinks this is good for dinner party.

Based on the comments, made with 3 oz center cut (meaty) bacon crosscut 1/4”, ~14 oz Brussels before trimming, 7 oz penne. Cooked bacon a bit more than the recipe describes (fattier than pancetta) before adding the rest. Otherwise close to recipe. Bam!

Is there a substitute for the brussel sprouts? No one in my house likes them. Yes, I know lots of people have been converted to eating Brussel sprouts .loaded with maple syrup, bacon,etc. They still taste like Brussel sprouts.

@Sandie made this recipe tonight with broccoli which I steamed lightly after cutting and dried w paper towel. Big hit. I used Parmesan Reggiano and broccoli because that was what I had and it was fab.

I made this pretty much as directed with a few changes. Doubled the amount of pancetta and browned before I removed then fried the sprouts in the fat (definitely add more than called for), to which i added sliced shallots. I also added a couple ladles of the pasta water at the end when I was incorporating everything. It was sooooo good, don’t skip the lemon juice and pecorino!!

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