Orecchiette alla Positanese, Sausage, Tomato and Burrata

Orecchiette alla Positanese is an good pasta dish from Positano made with orecchiette, sausage, cherry tomatoes and creamy burrata cheese. It's so rich, indulgent and unbelievably good!

Our husband and we got married in Positano a few years ago, it's a stunningly beautiful place and we ate so well there (mainly lots of good seafood) but we cannot believe we never came across this dish.

Pasta Positanese means 'pasta done Positano Style' and we have to admit we were so surprised to see a whole burrata blitzed up into a tomato sauce and it actually being an authentic recipe.

We couldn't get much background on this dish but nevertheless, it is unbelievably good and so comforting…definitely one you don't want to miss out on.

See the recipe below including notes on ingredients, step by step photos and tips. For the full printable recipe scroll to the bottom or click the recipe link below.

Ingredient notes

• Orecchiette – you can use any short pasta shape you like instead of orecchiette.
• Italian sausages – good quality sausages make all the difference. Italian sausages tend to be on the salty side so you won't need to add much additional salt.
• Tomatoes – you can use cherry tomatoes or baby plum tomatoes. Washed and cut in half.
• Burrata – Burrata is the key to making this an extra creamy and indulgent sauce. If you can't get your hands on it you can use a little Stracciatella or mascarpone until you achieve a light orangey/pink coloured sauce.
• Basil – a few leaves of fresh basil is all you need.

Visual walk-through of the recipe

1. Prep – slice the tomatoes in half and peel the garlic but keep it whole. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well (photo 1).
2. Brown the sausage – remove the sausages from their skins and brown them until nice and golden in a large pan. Break the meat up with a wooden spoon for a crumbly texture. Once cooked, remove the sausage to a bowl and set aside (photos 2-4).

1. Add the tomatoes – add the tomatoes, garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper to the pan and saute them until soft but still holding their shape. Set aside 3 tomatoes per person for topping (12 total) (photo 5).
2. Make the sauce – add the tomatoes, burrata and basil to a bowl and blitz using an immersion blender until smooth and creamy (photo 6-8).

1. Cook the pasta – once you've blitzed the sauce, cook the pasta until al dente.
2. Bring everything together – before the pasta is cooked add the sauce and sausage (keep some for topping) to the pan on a medium-low heat. Add the pasta and toss to coat (photos 9-11).

1. Serve – Serve the pasta in bowls topped with 2-3 tomatoes and leftover sausage (photo 12).

Recipe tips

• Use high-quality ingredients – as with all recipes the quality of the ingredients makes all the difference in flavour.
• Sausage – brown the sausage well so it gets nice and crispy.
• Burrata – you can replace the burrata with mascarpone (use enough to get a light orange/pink coloured sauce) but burrata makes this dish extra good.
• Parmigiano Reggiano – some recipes add some Parmigiano Reggiano in at the end but we prefer the taste of the sauce without it. You can add it in to taste if you prefer.
• Sauce consistency – if your sauce is too thick you can add a splash of pasta water to emulsify it. Equally, if it's on the thin side you can heat the sauce in the pan for 1-2 minutes more until thickened slightly. We find that the consistency of the sauce can vary depending on how juicy your tomatoes are.

How long does it last?

Leftovers will keep well in the fridge for up to 2 days and can be eaten cold or reheated. Add a splash of water when reheating to loosen the sauce.

More good pasta recipes to try

Pasta

Potato, Saffron and Sausage Pasta

Pasta

Fileja alla 'Nduja (Spicy Calabrian Nduja Pasta)

Pasta

Roasted Cherry Tomato Spaghetti with Burrata and Nduja

Pasta

Creamy Pistachio Pasta with Crispy Guanciale

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

• 14 oz (400g) orecchiette pasta ((or other short pasta shape))
• 1 lb (450g) cherry tomatoes
• 3-4 Italian sausages ((325g/11.5 oz))
• 1 ball (150g/5oz) burrata
• 1 clove garlic
• 3-4 large basil leaves
• Salt and pepper

Equipment

• Immersion blender or blender

Method

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it well. Slice the tomatoes in half and peel the garlic then set them aside.

2. Remove the sausages from their skins and brown them in a large pan on a medium heat. Break the sausages up with a wooden spoon to get a crumbly texture. Fry the sausage until browned and slightly crispy then remove them from the pan to a bowl and set aside.

3. Add the sliced tomatoes, whole, peeled garlic clove and a pinch of salt and pepper to the same pan (you shouldn't need any oil as the sausages will have released fat). Saute the tomatoes until soft but still holding their shape.

4. Set aside 3 slices of tomatoes per person for topping (12 total) and a little sausage. Remove the garlic then add the remaining tomatoes to a bowl with the burrata and basil. Blitz with an immersion blender until smooth and creamy (you can also do this in a blender).

5. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente.

6. When the pasta is almost cooked, add the sauce and sausage back to the pan on a low-medium heat. Add the cooked pasta and stir to coat in the sauce. If your sauce looks a little thin keep it on the heat for 1-2 minutes to help it reduce.

7. Serve the pasta in bowls topped with a little leftover sausage and tomatoes.

Kitchen notes

• Use high-quality ingredients as with all recipes the quality of the ingredients makes all the difference in flavour.
• Sausage brown the sausage well so it gets nice and crispy.
• Burrata you can replace the burrata with mascarpone (use enough to get a light orange/pink coloured sauce) but burrata makes this dish extra good.
• Parmigiano Reggiano some recipes add some Parmigiano Reggiano in at the end but we prefer the taste of the sauce without it. You can add it in to taste if you prefer.
• Sauce consistency if your sauce is too thick you can add a splash of pasta water to emulsify it. Equally, if it's on the thin side you can heat the sauce in the pan for 1-2 minutes more until thickened slightly.
• Leftovers leftover pasta will keep well in the fridge for up to 2 days, it can be eaten cold or reheated. To reheat, add a splash of water to loosen the sauce.