Blistered Broccoli Pasta With Walnuts, Pecorino and Mint Recipe (2024)

This was way too dry. The concept of blistered broccoli is wonderful. But dry? Not so wonderful. Here's a suggestion. Keep the blistered broccoli aside, out of the liquid you need to add to make this a cohesive dish. Just add some left-over pasta water (approx. 1/2 cup) to the pasta as you sprinkle with cheese, etc. Then add the blistered broccoli last, to keep it from getting soggy. Now you have just a little sauce, which brings it all together.... That's All, Folks!

This was quite tasty, but I plan to make a few changes the next time I make it.1. Fry the walnuts whole, and then cool and chop. Trying to remove chopped nuts from hot oil was tricky.2. I will roast the broccoli. There was too much to get into a single layer in the pan, and I didn't get as much sear as I'd like.3. I'll add some onion and garlic, because that is never unwelcome.4. I will save some of the pasta water to make more of a sauce.

Absolute slam dunk. I prepped the lemon zest, grated cheese, measured walnuts etc and the whole thing came together between boiling the water and sprinkling the parsley. Delicious!!

Or, you can make enough roasted broccoli (Kenji Alt-Lopez's method, for example) for a roast veg-based meal tonight to throw the leftovers into this dish tomorrow, having already achieved a beautiful, low-fuss char on the broccoli.

Surprising to have just about all ingredients on hand (had to add asparagus and use spaghetti instead of short pasta) but still really good, easy, & quick. And “Blistered Broccoli “ is a good name for a band

Loved it! Had a whole bag of broccoli florets from Costco and I always struggle with how to use all of it with just two people. The walnuts were a delicious touch. I could have used more! And lots and lots of cheese make this a winner! I also used parsley and will try with mint next time. So easy, even for carnivores like me.

The first time I made this I used all mint, no parsley, and it was absolutely delicious. The second time I used a mixture of parsley and mint since I had both in my garden. I will only do mint from now on; it's just so much better. This is a very easy recipe that yields delicious, restaurant-quality results. I wouldn't change a single thing.

I used a combination of broccoli, asparagus, and cauliflower. The combination of all the flavors, especially the mint and the lemon at the end, made this a real winner. This is a perfect lockdown recipe. Leftovers did not make it past 11 pm​. Thanks

I roasted the broccoli instead so I could stir in some pasta water at the end and add the broccoli last— I do think this would have been too dry without the pasta water. Other than that the flavours were really good (I used a combination of mint & parsley, and also added some sliced garlic at the beginning) and I loved the crunch of the walnuts.

Try using green garlic shoots in lieu of mint or parsley.

I added bacon to the dish and turned out great! I cooked bacon first and reserved the bacon fat. Then with a clean pan, I followed the recipe - except 1. I added two teaspoon of bacon fat to olive oil before blistering bacon and then 2. tossed the cooked (and chopped) bacon at the end when mixing with lemon zest, cheese, and roasted walnuts.

Can this be adapted for frozen broccoli? #quarantine no fresh broccoli...

Everything was delicious but it was super dry without any type of sauce

Amazing quarantine dish! Easy with only minimal prep work; I used half mint and half Italian parsley and went heavy on the zest (one and a half lemon). Amazingly hearty for a vegetable pasta dish. You'll not miss meat.

2 minutes, shake, then another 2-3 minutes. Heat stays medium-high.

Excellent concept. As others have noted, recommend using some of the pasta water to make for a tiny bit more sauce. Will try roasting extra broccoli next time. Pan-roasting is more effort than needed, especially for this volume of broccoli (my 15" pan is a PITA to use and clean for something like this). Also +1 to using just mint. We use this dish to "de-weed" the garden of mint from time to time...

Served to guests to rave reviews. Followed recipe except didn't chop the walnuts. Loved the surprise crunch against the smooth softness of the pasta. Faster too. To my mind searing the broccoli in a pan retains its water content vs. drying it out in the oven. It was in no way dry. In fact even without the extra drizzle when serving, there was still olive oil at the bottom of the pan and my bowl. Fast, easy and delicious!

My husband and I found this perfect as written, but it is important to have everything prepped beforehand, and watch the walnuts carefully. No problem with dryness. Going into the favorites file.

Reserve 2 cups pasta water. 1 cup nuts

Added sun-dried tomatoes, roasted red peppers, and pesto. Had I not made these additions, it would have been very bland.

Delicious, quick and easy. I used less oil (1/3 cup) and turned down the heat to medium. On medium-high heat the walnuts charred in 15 seconds.

Good casual, low key meal. Came together quickly with almost no prep. I upped the broccoli and reduced the pasta for a better ratio. I also used roasted broccoli. Also used limes instead of lemons because that’s what I had on hand. Like some other commentators, I found the finished product pretty dry. I ended up adding in a little chicken broth at the end. Not to cause any drama, but mint is truly the greatest herb. More mint pasta recipes, please!

This needs garlic and no mint!!!! >:0

I juiced the entire lemon and added it with the zest, which I think helped prevent dryness. I also used the smallest grate on the pecorino romano to help the cheese coat the pasta. This was a great balance of nuttiness, spice, and cheesy flavor.

More walnutsMore broccoliJ kenji roasted broccoli recipe cooked <17 minRoasted onionReserve pasta water

We loved this. I made one small change & used a finely chopped piece of preserved lemon since I had them on the counter. 1/4 of a lemon, pulp removed. No salt added to the walnuts since the lemon had it.

Used pignolli nuts, would add a little pasta water, and add broccoli at very end.

My Japanese mother would have had a helluva time pronouncing this one. Bristered blocorri ftw! Said with all the blistered tender-crunchy bunches of fresh leafy grief in my heart.

An Italian trick I learned from my nonna. You don't want dry pasta, as some have mentioned here. Reserve a half cup or cup of the cooked pasta water. It'll be full of starch to make the dish luscious and creamy. Add it to the skillet with the pasta and other ingredients as needed & cook until absorbed.

This sounds great. I'm allergic to most tree nuts (especially walnuts), does anyone have a substitution suggestion to get some of the effect of the walnuts? I guess some crunch and bitterness?