I bumped into the original dish at an Italian restaurant the family visited once in high school. I don't remember it that well beyond "this was delicious" so I've tried to recreate it a few times; this evolved from that.
It's evolved over the years (and continues to evolve) via a few things, mainly (as of 1/29/2020):
* Discovery of sliced fried garlic, via Babish's aglio e olio video
* Discovery of capers, probably via Gordon Ramsay
* Discovery of broccolini, no idea where
Ranges below are based on appetite but the ratios should stay approximately the same (e.g. 50g pasta means more like 1 link sausage).
Unsolved problems here include the best way to do the broccolini, and the best timing/oil heat for the capers. Ideally I like them fairly crispy but this seems hard to do.
Ingredients (per person):
* Pasta (Rigatoni preferred), 50-100g depending on appetite
* Salt for water
* Spicy sausage links (Hot Italian or Andouille), 1-2 links. Fine to use good chicken sausage
* Garlic, 4-6 cloves minimum (typically ~1 head/2 people if doing 180-200g pasta)
* Optional: Capers, ~1tbsp. Relatively large ones often work better.
* Optional: Broccolini (3-4 stems)
* EVOO (usually about 2-4 tbsp total, I don't really measure)
* Optional: Parsley to garnish
* Optional: Parmesan to garnish. Aged is better.
* Optional: Pepper flakes to amp up the heat
* Optional: White/Sherry vinegar or lemon juice
Steps:
1) Put your pasta water on to boil - this tends to take a while and some pasta (e.g. store-bought dry rigatoni) can take upwards of 15mins, so best to start early.
2) Prep - slice sausages 1/8" to 1/4" thick, slice garlic thin, drain the capers and set to dry on paper towels. Break up the broccolini if using. Chop parsley.
If using a long-cooking pasta - put into the water around here
For the below steps, pepper flakes can be added to the oil while it heats up in order to add extra heat.
3a) Sausage: Heat ~1tbsp of olive oil in a large saute pan over medium/medium-high heat. Once shimmering, add the sausages slices and toss/mix to coat with oil. Arrange slices in a single layer and cook 2-4 minutes, until very brown and crispy. Flip and repeat for the other side. Reserve. Don't clean this pan yet.
Note: I like my sausage crispy for this. Don't underdo it.
3b) Garlic: Heat ~2tbsp of olive oil over medium-low heat in a saute or fry pan (can be the sausage pan, if not using broccolini). Add the garlic and spread around; it should be just sizzling at the edges. Cut the heat to low and leave to fry for 2-5 minutes.
3c) Broccolini (Optional): Heat ~1tbsp of EVOO over medium-high heat in a large sautee or fry pan (can add a splash of oil to the sausage pan and use that if desired) and add the broccolini, tossing or mixing to coat well. Cook, tossing occasionally, until browned.
Proceed with below once pasta is 2 minutes from ready
4) Turn the garlic pan to medium heat. Once heated, add the capers and fry for 30-60 seconds, then cut the heat.
5) Drain pasta and add 1-2 splashes of pasta water to the garlic pan. Mix the oil and water around to emulsify, then add the pasta and mix until well-coated with sauce. Optionally, grate in a small amount of parmesan and continue to mix. Also optionally, add a light sprinkle of vinegar or lemon juice to cut the richness - be conservative here.
6) Add the sausage and broccolini and stir to combine. Serve, and top with parsley.
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