Cavolo nero linguine with pangrattato

Name: Cavolo nero linguine with pangrattato
Prep time: 30 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: Serves 4
Cuisine: Italian recipes
Ingredients: 1 large garlic bulb, cloves peeled; 100g olive oil, plus extra if needed; 200g cavolo nero, any tough stalks removed; 400g dried linguine; 5 anchovy fillets, plus 1 tbsp of their oil; 40g panko breadcrumbs; Finely grated zest 1 lemon, plus juice to taste

By: Pollyanna Coupland
Food producer, delicious.

Published: 5 Jan 23
Updated: 18 Mar 24

Test kitchen approved

A deep green purée, rich with slow-cooked garlic, really delivers in this simple cavolo nero linguine dish. What takes it from good to great are the crispy breadcrumbs flavoured with lemon and anchovy showered on top, adding savoury crunch to the silky sauce below.

Next time: try ricotta and cavolo nero gnocchi with sage butter.

Serves 4
Hands-on time 30 min

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Ingredients

1 large garlic bulb, cloves peeled
100g olive oil, plus extra if needed
200g cavolo nero, any tough stalks removed
400g dried linguine
5 anchovy fillets, plus 1 tbsp of their oil
40g panko breadcrumbs
Finely grated zest 1 lemon, plus juice to taste

Method

Put the garlic cloves in a small pan and cover with the oil (if they’re not completely submerged, add more oil until they are). Cook over a very low heat for 15–20 minutes (there should be very small bubbles forming around the cloves, rather than a full-on simmer) until the cloves are soft and a very pale golden, then lift them out with a slotted spoon. Reserve the oil.
Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add the cavolo nero and the linguine and cook, stirring occasionally. After 3½ minutes, lift the cavolo nero out of the water and transfer to a blender. Add the confit garlic and whizz to a smooth green sauce, adding a ladle or 2 of the pasta water if needed. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
Put a small frying pan over a medium heat and add the anchovies and their oil. Cook for a minute, breaking up the anchovies to help them dissolve, then add the breadcrumbs and cook for another minute, stirring until golden. Add the lemon zest and season with a little salt (remember the anchovies will provide plenty of saltiness) and pepper.
Drain the pasta and toss with the sauce. Divide between 4 plates then sprinkle over the anchovy crumbs, adding a final drizzle of garlic oil.

Recipe from January 2023 Issue

Nutrition

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 624kcals
Fat: 24.1g (3.3g saturated)
Protein: 17.3g
Carbohydrates: 81.6g (3.2g sugars)
Fibre: 5.6g
Salt: 0.6g

delicious. tips

The leftover garlic oil can be kept in the fridge for up to a week and is an absolute joy to cook with – use it to cook with or drizzle it over salads and other pasta dishes.
To confit is a French technique which sees food submerged in fat (in this case oil) and cooked low and slow until soft. As you can imagine, it results in some seriously tasty dishes. Cooking garlic like this transforms it into something mellow and sweet and leaves you with a delicious garlicky oil to boot.

Japanese panko breadcrumbs are widely regarded as the best breadcrumbs you can buy. Due to the specific way they’re made (using a special type of flaky bread) they are crispier than regular breadcrumbs. Thankfully, they’re now widely available in large supermarkets.

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Cavolo nero linguine with pangrattato

Ingredients

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Nutrition

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