This Lemon Pasta recipe could be prepared in simply half-hour! It’s made with a creamy, contemporary lemon sauce and pairs completely with hen or shrimp. Makes a fantastic weeknight dinner! Recipe features a how-to video!
My Favourite Lemon Pasta Recipe
This lemon pasta recipe is a light-weight and creamy Italian dish with a citrusy,
Mediterranean twist. It’s brightly flavored with contemporary lemons, olive oil, and shallots. It’s easy, comes collectively rapidly, and makes an extremely refreshing weeknight dinner.
Pairing lemon with cream is a bit sudden, nevertheless it offers this dish a vibrant and contemporary taste that isn’t too wealthy. Collectively they create a silky sauce that coats the noodles fantastically with out being heavy like an alfredo sauce.
Why you need to attempt it:
- Takes solely quarter-hour to prep and one other 15 to prepare dinner.
- May be made with any pasta form you’ve got available.
- Pairs properly along with your favourite protein, like seared hen or shrimp.
- Distinctive and satisfying taste that’s pleasantly creamy, however not overly wealthy or heavy.
What You Want
We’re protecting it easy in at the moment’s lemon pasta recipe by utilizing just some high-quality substances. Listed here are a very powerful ones:
- Lemon juice + zest. Be sure that to zest your lemon earlier than juicing it (a lot simpler that manner 😅), and observe that you just solely need to zest the intense yellow half, not the bitter white papery layer/pith. Additionally! In contrast to my lemonade recipe, you actually can’t substitute bottled lemon juice right here; the flavour simply isn’t the identical.
- Crushed pink pepper. That is non-obligatory for these of you who don’t like warmth, however I like the very slight kick a pinch provides to this lemon pasta recipe. Alternatively, you may as well amp up the warmth with one other shake of crushed pink pepper, if desired.
- Heavy cream. We’ll subdue and complement the lemon with some heavy cream. Double cream or whipping cream may also work. I haven’t tried milk, however concern it could cut up.
- Shallot. I like utilizing a minced shallot for additional taste on this lemon pasta recipe. You may substitute minced garlic as a substitute if shallots aren’t your factor; see the recipe notes beneath for the substitution quantity.
- Parmesan. As in my risotto recipe, you have to use a superb high quality parmesan cheese and grate it your self! Don’t use pre-grated or shredded cheese, particularly not the stuff within the plastic shaker canisters. These cheeses include anti-caking brokers and might maintain the cheese from melting easily; solely freshly grated parmesan will create a clean sauce.
SAM’S TIP: A top quality pasta or selfmade pasta actually elevates this dish. I like to make use of spaghetti, linguini, or fettuccine. No matter sort you select, ensure that to prepare dinner your pasta til al dente and even simply shy of al dente, since we’re going to complete cooking it within the sauce.
Bear in mind, that is simply an outline of the substances I used and why. For the complete recipe please scroll right down to the underside of the put up!p
Find out how to Make Lemon Pasta
- Cook dinner your pasta in boiling salted water till al dente.
- Drain the pasta (don’t rinse!), ensuring to order roughly 1 cup of the water. Put aside.
- Zest and juice your lemon, ensuring to solely zest the yellow pores and skin and never the white papery layer. At all times zest earlier than juicing–it’s fairly difficult to zest an already juiced lemon!
- Soften collectively the olive oil and butter in a big saucepan over medium warmth.
SAM’S TIP: Save your pasta water and DON’T rinse your pasta after draining! The starches within the water and on the pasta will assist emulsify all the things collectively and create a silky, velvety sauce.
- Add the shallot, lemon zest, and crushed pink pepper. Cook dinner till the shallot is translucent.
- Whisk within the lemon juice till mixed.
- Slowly whisk within the cream whereas stirring continually. Let the combination come to a simmer, stirring steadily.
- Cut back the warmth to low and stir within the parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper.
- Add the pasta and a splash of pasta water (our magic bullet fur a well-emulsified sauce, it really works in all the things from lemon pasta to tomato-sauce-based ragu).
- Toss all the things collectively over low warmth till the pasta is totally coated within the sauce.
SAM’S TIP: Prime your lemon pasta with extra grated parmesan, chopped contemporary parsley or basil, and salt and pepper to style. I additionally wish to garnish with a number of lemon slices–so fairly!
Steadily Requested Questions
Pasta al limone is historically made with none cream and as a substitute solely depends on the emulsion of pasta water, butter, and parmesan to create a silky sauce. So I’d say my model is analogous, however not precisely the identical.
Seared hen or shrimp (like my garlic butter shrimp!) pair nicely with this lemon pasta recipe. I like to recommend cooking your protein individually and including it on high simply earlier than serving.
You too can serve your lemon pasta with a aspect of breadsticks or garlic knots, steamed asparagus or broccoli, roasted brussels sprouts, or a salad.
Sure, however you’ll need to reheat rigorously so that you don’t overcook the pasta or trigger the sauce to separate. I’d advocate following the guidelines for reheating in my fettuccine alfredo put up, since that recipe is analogous.
I hope your loved ones loves this dish as a lot as mine does!
Get pleasure from!
Let’s bake collectively! I’ll be strolling you thru all of the steps in my written recipe and video beneath! In case you do this recipe, be sure you tag me on Instagram, and you may as well discover me on YouTube and Fb
Lemon Pasta
Servings: 4 servings (2 oz per individual)
Energy: 532kcal
Stop your display from going darkish
Directions
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Deliver a big pot of well-salted water to a boil. As soon as boiling, prepare dinner pasta in keeping with bundle directions. As soon as pasta has cooked, reserve about 1 cup of pasta water earlier than draining noodles. Whereas pasta is cooking, start getting ready lemon sauce.
8 oz (226 g) spaghetti noodles
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In a big saucepan, mix oil and butter over medium warmth.
2 Tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil, 2 Tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter
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As soon as butter is melted, add shallot, lemon zest, and crushed pink pepper and prepare dinner till shallot is translucent (if substituting garlic, prepare dinner simply till garlic is aromatic/30 seconds).
1 heaping Tablespoon finely chopped shallot, ⅛ teaspoon crushed pink pepper, 2 Tablespoons lemon zest
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Whisk in 2 Tablespoons of lemon juice till mixed.
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
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Whereas whisking continually, slowly drizzle in heavy cream and whisk till mixed.
¾ cup (177 ml) heavy cream
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Deliver combination to a simmer (whereas stirring steadily). As soon as simmering, scale back warmth to low and add parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper.
½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, ½ teaspoon desk salt, ½ teaspoon floor black pepper
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Add heat, cooked spaghetti to the pan together with a splash (2-3 Tablespoons) of pasta water. Toss collectively over low warmth till pasta is nicely mixed and nicely coated with the sauce.
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Prime with contemporary parsley, if desired, and serve.
Recent chopped parsley for garnish
Notes
Shallot
Could substitute 2 teaspoons of minced garlic.
Parmesan
Utilizing freshly grated parmesan (with none anti-caking components) is vital, in any other case the cheese is not going to soften easily.
Protein
This dish goes nicely with grilled hen or shrimp. I sometimes prepare dinner individually then serve over the pasta.
Diet
Serving: 1serving | Energy: 532kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 13g | Fats: 33g | Saturated Fats: 17g | Polyunsaturated Fats: 2g | Monounsaturated Fats: 12g | Trans Fats: 0.2g | Ldl cholesterol: 74mg | Sodium: 509mg | Potassium: 220mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 951IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 199mg | Iron: 1mg
Dietary info is predicated on third-party calculations and needs to be thought of an estimate solely. Precise dietary content material will range primarily based upon manufacturers used, measuring strategies, cooking technique, portion sizes, and extra.
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