Rao’s Restaurant was founded in 1896 in East Harlem, New York when the restaurant first offered Southern Italian cuisine. Some of you may have heard of Rao’s where all the seats are reserved far in advance by its regulars in weekly, monthly or annual increments.
For more information on this historical and authentic Italian restaurant go to https://www.bonappetit.com/story/nycs-most-exclusive-italian-restaurant
I have a few of their cookbooks; Rao’s Cookbook: Over 100 years of Italian Home Cooking; Rao’s Recipes From the Neighborhood: Frank Pellegrino Cooks Italian with Family and Friends; and Rao’s Classics which is where this recipe comes from. Since I’m not traveling and will never have the chance to eat at this exclusive restaurant at least I have many of their recipes!
This recipe was not welcome at first from Rao’s diners even after a sample was given to each diner. Once New York media personality and ex-NYPD cop Bo Dietl made it a regular dish at his table every Thursday night it quickly caught on. If I would not have read the introduction to the recipe I might have passed it over too. I love a story behind a recipe and the fact a vegetable was added to it.
Rao's Fusilli with Cabbage and Sausage
This is just delicious and I can see why it’s a favorite at Rao’s. Bonus – one of the ingredients is cabbage and it blends in perfectly with the sausage, pasta and marinara sauce.
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves, smashed (I chose to cut the garlic into thin slices as I love it cooked that way)
- 1/2 lb. sweet Italian sausage, cooked and cut into bite-size pieces
- 1/2 lb. hot Italian sausage, cooked and cut into bite-size pieces
- (or substitute all hot or all sweet as you prefer – I used all hot)
- 3 cups marinara sauce (go here for my homemade sauce)
- 1/2 head Savoy cabbage, cored, blanched and shredded – I used the whole head but mainly the good softer leaves (see Note)
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste – I find if you use all hot sausage you don’t need to add any additional seasonings)
- 3/4 cup chicken broth (I used low sodium)
- 1 lb. fusilli pasta
- 2 heaping tbsp. Pecorino Romano cheese, grated plus more to serve with the pasta
- 2 tbsp. fresh Italian parsley, minced
Separate the cabbage leaves. Bring a large pot of water to boil, add 1 tbsp. salt and the cabbage leaves. Boil 2-3 minutes, drain well, cool to prevent further cooking and dry off excess water; set aside. Once dry cut into slivers.
Heat the olive oil and add the garlic. When the garlic begins to turn brown, add the sausage and cook until the pink is gone. Instead of cooking the links whole, then cutting them into pieces I crumbled up the sausage after removing the casings. Add the marinara sauce and cabbage and stir with a wooden spoon until combined. Adjust seasonings if needed, probably not if you used all hot sausage!
Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce to low, and simmer for 10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened.
While the sauce is cooking, bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the fusilli until al dente; drain, save some of the water (I didn’t need any – I just do it out of habit) and return the pasta to the pan.
Reduce the heat and add 5 large spoonfuls of the sausage and cabbage mixture and the grated cheese. Cook for 2 minutes.
Transfer the pasta to a large serving bowl and top with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with extra cheese on the side.
Note: There are 4 main types of cabbage; green (common to most), red, Napa and savoy. Savoy has the same shape as green and red but the leaves are crinkly and they are softer. Its flavor is quite mild and it is best when cooked, either roasted or sauteed. Much easier to work with than the green!
Recipe by cookingwithauntjuju.com
Wonderful sausage casserole Judi…The Italian cook book collection must be a treasure to have! I love collection cookbooks too..will keep a lookout for these.
Thanks – these are three of my favorite Italian cookbooks. Authentic and many are very simple!
This dish is such a great find. Love this mix of ingredients, especially the addition of savoy cabbage. No wonder it has become so popular. I’ll tray to gather the ingredients and make it soon. 🙂
Thanks Ronit – I do love Italian cuisine and should use savoy cabbage more often. A great combination and I didn’t feel quite so guilty eating it as a veggie was one of the ingredients 🙂
Adding veggies to any dish is always good!
I don’t always see savoy cabbage in the stores in my area, which is a shame, as I love its delicate texture. Will try to find it, so I can make this dish. 🙂
I have the same problem in my local stores and it is so good! I almost prefer the tender leaves of savoy to green 🙂
I definitely prefer it. It’s a shame it’s so hard to get.
Italian sausage is such a genuine ingredient for any pasta dish, in my opinion. 🍁🍂🌾
I love all kinds of sausage, especially hot and spicy 🙂 Always delicious in a pasta dish!
This is great, and cabbage is pretty versatile, I think. I always wondered why this Italian restaurant was named Rao’s, which to me would imply an Indian restaurant. Oh well. It obviously did well in spite of the name!
Rao is a reduced form of the Italian name Radulfo; it also has origins in China and India. Pellegrino Sr.’s Aunt Pellegrino and her husband Vincent Rao (the restaurant was named for his father Charles) first owned this quaint Italian restaurant. Thanks to “google” which always has an answer 🙂 The restaurant is small and only the “special few” can get an “assigned seating”.
Oh fascinating! Thanks!
Very interesting post. My cousin who lives in Florida was just telling me that they always buy Rao’s sauce. I had never tried it. After reading your post , I realize why they probably used it. They were originally from NY where it must have been very popular. I’ll have to give it a try.
Rao’s sells a few different sauces; I buy the Marinara sauce and probably have a half dozen jars in my pantry. It comes in handy for so many recipes when you don’t need a lot of sauce. Next to my own homemade sauce this is a delicious second choice 🙂