This Italian Chicken Sausage Pasta with Kale recipe is an easy, healthy, and delicious make-ahead weeknight dinner! With the easiest homemade ground Italian chicken sausage and a creamy parmesan sauce, your family will love it!
Healthy, comforting, and utterly delicious! Say hello to my Italian Chicken Sausage Shell Pasta with Kale. It’s a traditional comfort food made healthy with a homemade version of ground Italian Chicken sausage flavored with garlic and fennel seeds. Hearty shell pasta perfectly cups the creamy parmesan cheesy sauce for every bite. Finally, Kale… In this recipe, the kale is cooked in the flavorful sauce so it wilts down and melds into the backdrop so perfectly. Kale brings texture and healthy veg-balance. Parmesan on top is the salty and nutty finish. This is one delicious italian sausage pasta recipe!
Super Easy Recipe for Italian Chicken Sausage Pasta with Kale!
Homemade Italian Sausage – with Ground Chicken!
Have you ever made your own Ground Italian Chicken Sausage? It’s incredibly easy and right at your fingertips as long as you have a few simple ingredients. My version for this recipe uses ground chicken, which is a leaner meat than pork or beef. It works really great for Italian Sausage because it sticks together nicely.
To make this yourself, all you need is fresh minced garlic, Italian parsley, fennel seeds, salt, and pepper! You can make a couple pounds of this ahead, then portion it out and freeze it for later.
It’s great with a simple tomato sauce or marinara sauce. I love to add it to Lasagna, to sheet pan dinners, like my One Pan Italian Sausage, Eggs, & Veggies, and so many other pasta dinners, like this Italian Sausage Cauliflower Cream Noodles. Oh, and just wait until you try it in my Chicago Style Sausage Pizza!!
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Easy Ingredients You have on Hand
These are easy ingredients that you have at home or can easily get at the grocery store.
Ground Italian Chicken Sausage
- Ground White Meat Chicken (or ground turkey)
- Garlic
- Italian Parsley
- Fennel Seed
- Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
All other Ingredients
- Uncooked Pasta, Shells or Orecchiette
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Onion
- garlic
- Chicken Broth
- Milk or heavy cream
- Cornstarch
- Kale
- Salt and Ground Black Pepper
- Red Pepper Flakes (optional)
- Grated Parmesan Cheese
Simple Equipment for this Italian Sausage Pasta Recipe
Nothing special for this one! Just a large pot to cook the pasta in and a large skillet/frying pan for cooking the sausage, then the sauce. I use my absolute favorite 12″ Ceramic Pan, which is great because food really does slide right off with minimal oil and I don’t have to worry about food sticking and burning. It comes with a glass lid, which is perfect for watching your dinner cook!
Oh, and mincing garlic is made super easy with a Garlic Press.
Time Saving Prep-Ahead Steps for this Italian Chicken Sausage Pasta
We are all extremely busy and making dinner during the week can be overwhelming. Here are the steps you prepare in the day(s) in advance and store in the fridge as your meal Kit… (See the recipe below for more details)
For this recipe, you really want to eat it right after you mix it all together when the sauce is still creamy. But, you can get everything ready to go ahead so all you do is cook it and in 30 minutes, you have dinner!
Dice the onion and store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to cook. Clean the kale and dry it in a clean towel. Then rough chop it into bite-size pieces. Store the kale in the fridge with a cool damp towel on top until ready to cook.
You can also mix the Italian Sausage ahead of time as well. Mince the garlic, chop the parsley, and measure out the fennel seed, salt, and pepper. Mix all of these ingredients with the ground turkey or chicken. Store in a container in the fridge until ready to cook.
Note: If you prefer to buy premade Italian Sausage, look for the bulk. If all you can find is Italian Sausage Links in casings, make sure it is raw. Then cut the casing and squeeze the meat mixture out into the pan.
COOK YOUR PASTA WITH ITALIAN SAUSAGE AND KALE
To start, boil your pasta according to package instructions. Before draining the pasta, be sure to save a cup of the cooking pasta water to use in the sauce.
To a preheated large pan/skillet, add a teaspoon of Olive Oil and then add the Italian Sausage, breaking it up with a spatula or spoon into small bite-size pieces. Let it sit and sear for about 4-5 minutes in the skillet over medium heat. Then stir so that the other sides sear. Cook for another 3-4 minutes until no pieces are pink and look fully cooked through. Remove to a plate.
Add another teaspoon of Olive Oil if needed, then add the onions and garlic. Stir so they do not burn. Cook on medium-low heat for 4-5 minutes until the onions are translucent. Add the kale, salt, and pepper and stir to combine.
While the kale begins to cook, make the slurry by adding the 2 tablespoon of cornstarch to the milk and stirring until dissolved.
Add the chicken broth and the milk slurry to the pan. As the sauce heats up, it will start to thicken, so be sure to stir every couple minutes as this happens to prevent clumping. Once the liquid has thickened a little, about 4-5 minutes (note, it will not be very thick, just a little bit thicker than it was), add the sausage back to the pan.
Test the Kale, if it needs to cook more, cover and let cook for another few minutes. If the Kale is cooked to your liking, add the cooked pasta, ½ cup of the pasta water, and ½ cup of the grated Parmesan Cheese. Mix to combine. If needed, you can add more of the pasta water to thin out the sauce.
Serve the pasta garnishing with more Parmesan Cheese.
ENJOY! 😍 Carrie
Italian Sausage Pasta Recipe FAQs
Can I buy premade Italian Sausage?
Of course, to save time, you can certainly buy Italian Sausage! For the most authentic flavor, I recommend using raw Italian sausage as it gives you those wonderful little sausage bites that get beautifully browned. With kids, I would buy Sweet Italian Sausage, which is not really sweet, but it’s also not spicy Italian sausage. Of course, if your family prefers spicy, then go for it!
How can I make this Italian Sausage Pasta spicier?
If you are buying premade sausage, then you can get Hot or Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage. Or you can add red pepper flakes to give it the spicy flavor.
Can I substitute fresh Spinach for the Kale in Pasta recipe?
If you want a substitute for the kale, you can use fresh baby spinach. However, for Baby spinach, you will not need to cook it in advance. Instead you can simply add it to the pasta in Step 5 after the sauce thickens.
Can I make this in the slow cooker?
I do not recommend the slow cooker for this. It’s really such a quick cooking pasta recipe that needs all of the flavors from browning the sausage in the skillet and then cooking the kale and making the sauce.
Can I use any other pasta with this?
Yes, you can use any pasta you have on hand or prefer! I really like short cut pasta, such as shells or penne pasta for this, as it makes it easier to mix in the sauce with the kale and sausage. However, you could certainly use a long pasta as well.
Can I make this ahead and reheat it?
Yes, this is a recipe that you can definitely make ahead on Sunday and reheat on a busy weeknight! To reheat, you can add it back to a pot with a touch of water to add moisture. Then cover and warm on medium-low heat slowly. Or you can reheat it in the microwave.
Italian Chicken Sausage Pasta with Kale
Ingredients
Italian Sausage
- 16 ounces Ground White Meat Chicken (or ground turkey)
- 2 cloves Garlic minced
- 3 Tablespoons Parsley Chopped
- 1 teaspoon Fennel Seed
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Fresh Ground Pepper
- 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
All Other
- 10 ounces Uncooked Pasta, Shells or Orecchiette
- 2 teaspoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Onion, small
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 cup Chicken Broth
- 1 cup Milk
- 2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
- 2 cups Kale, chopped
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes (optional)
- ¾ cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
Instructions
Prep Ahead Steps
- Mince the garlic, chop the parsley, and measure out the fennel seed, salt, and pepper. Then add all to the ground chicken in a large mixing bowl. Mix to combine. Cover the bowl and store in the fridge until ready to cook.
- Dice the onion and store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to cook.
- Clean the kale and dry it in a clean towel. Then rough chop it into bite-size pieces. Store the kale in the fridge with a cool damp towel on top until ready to cook.
Cooking Steps
- Boil a large pot of water for the pasta. Once the pasta water is boiling, add a splash of Olive Oil and a pinch of salt. Add the pasta and stir so that it doesn't stick it itself. Boil the pasta until al dente. Remove 1 cup of the pasta water and then drain the pasta. Leave the pasta in the strainer until the sauce is ready.
- To a preheated large pan/skillet, add a teaspoon of Olive Oil and then add the Italian Sausage, breaking it up with a spatula or spoon into small bite-size pieces. Let it sit and sear for about 4-5 minutes. Then stir so that the other sides sear. Cook for another 3-4 minutes until no pieces are pink and look fully cooked through. Remove to a plate.
- Add another teaspoon of Olive Oil if needed, then add the onions and garlic. Stir so they do not burn. Cook on medium-low heat for 4-5 minutes until the onions are translucent. Add the kale, salt, and pepper and stir to combine.
- While the kale begins to cook, make the slurry by adding the 2 tablespoon of cornstarch to the milk and stirring until dissolved.
- Add the chicken broth and the milk slurry to the pan. As the sauce heats up, it will start to thicken, so be sure to stir every couple minutes as this happens to prevent clumping. Once the liquid has thickened a little, about 4-5 minutes (note, it will not be very thick, just a little bit thicker than it was), add the sausage back to the pan.
- Test the Kale, if it needs to cook more, cover and let cook for another few minutes. If the Kale is cooked to your liking, add the cooked pasta, ½ cup of the pasta water, and ½ cup of the Parmesan Cheese. Mix to combine. If needed, you can add more of the pasta water to thin out the sauce.
- Serve the pasta garnishing with more Parmesan Cheese.
Video
Notes
- You could replace the homemade Italian Sausage with 1 lb (16oz) store-bought bulk Italian Sausage
- For the pasta, I used medium shells, but you could use any pasta you like. The small-cut pasta with a cup shape to capture the parmesan and sausage is traditional, but any will taste great!
- For the parmesan, you can use grated or shredded. The grated is best as it can really mix into the dish to create a sauce.
Esmé Slabbert says
Splendid and so appetizing looking. Pinning it
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