Fettuccine With Sausage and Fried Sage

By Moira Hodgson

Fettuccine With Sausage and Fried Sage
Craig Lee for The New York Times
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
5(571)
Comments
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Sage is not just for stuffing, or so Moira Hodgson argued in a 1997 article that extolled the many virtues of the leafy herb. Frying sage leaves in olive oil or butter, as is done in Italy, tones down their strong earthy flavor, leaving behind just a hint. In this recipe, once the leaves are crisped and set aside, a pound of hot Italian sausage and a bit of garlic are browned in the fragrant oil. A cup of cream is added to the pan to deglaze. Finally, the cream, sausage and a generous grating of Parmesan are tossed with a pile of fettuccine and topped with a scattering of delicate sage leaves. It's an elegant, satisfying 30 minute meal.

Featured in: FOOD; The Subtle Flavor of Fried Sage

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 1pound fettuccine
  • 1pound hot Italian sausage
  • About 24 sage leaves
  • 3 to 4tablespoons olive oil
  • 1clove garlic, minced
  • About 1 cup heavy cream
  • Coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • Freshly grated Reggiano Parmesan
Ingredient Substitution Guide
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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Bring four quarts of water to a boil for the fettuccine.

  2. Step 2

    Fry the sage leaves in the olive oil in a skillet until they are crisp. Drain them on paper towels, leaving the oil in the skillet.

  3. Step 3

    Chop the sausages in chunks and sauté them in the oil until the pieces are browned, adding the garlic toward the end so that it gets golden but not burned. Remove the sausage from the pan and set aside. Meanwhile, cook fettuccine until al dente.

  4. Step 4

    Pour off the fat from the skillet (preserving the garlic) and add the cream. Bring it to a boil, scrape up cooking juices and return the sausage to heat through. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

  5. Step 5

    Drain the pasta and put it in a heated serving bowl. Pour the sauce on top. Toss and sprinkle with sage leaves. Serve with Parmesan passed separately at the table.

Ratings

5 out of 5
571 user ratings
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Comments

Margaux Laskey, Staff Editor

So easy and so tasty. Next time I will try removing the sausages from the casings and crumbling them as I fry instead of cutting into chunks.

Kristen

For the price point and the time to craft, this recipe is fab! I did find that the sauce wasn't quite enough to even gently coat the pound of fettuccine, and will likely increase the sauce recipe in the future. Great weeknight, after-school meal!

John Neill

If you’ve frozen the sausages, immediately following thawing while still extremely cold, this is the perfect time to lengthwise slit the casing right down one side & just “roll” out the meat.. keep cry chilled until ready to break up -which happens so very comfortably they conveniently still hold together nicely. You may pop cold sausages into the freezer for a short time before de-casing, to replicate this.

dang

I found that frying the sage really muted its flavor to the point of barely registering. So I added more fresh sage pieces to the sauce just before mixing it with the pasta, which worked for me.

sslee

Fabulous and so quick and easy. Made minor adjustments - doubled cream and garlic per other reviewers’ suggestions, used 50/50 mild hot sausages, and about a tablespoon of fennel seed when I added the garlic. Next time will fry more sage, use a short, fat, tubular pasta, and toss pasta with warm sauce instead of pouring sauce over pasta in the serving dish. Incredibly tasty but rich, so feeds at least 4 healthy eaters. Even better the next day!

Angie

Excellent very very quick recipe (especially if you don’t have to uncase your sausage). Added a little pasta water to help coat the noodles and some lemon juice right before serving.

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