Lemon Garlic Pasta
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This easy lemon garlic pasta comes together quickly with a handful of everyday ingredients. It’s fresh, silky, and delicious.
A versatile family pasta dish for when you need dinner done in 15 minutes.
I’m a big fan of lemon and garlic in pasta sauces. I’ve already used this wonderful combination in these scrumptious lemon ricotta pasta, creamy penne pasta and pasta with olives.
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And I wonder why I didn’t post this lemon garlic pasta recipe long before!
It was one of my staples when I was a student, and I still love how easy and economical it is, and it’s great that doesn’t require a ton of ingredients.
With this simple recipe, turning butter, garlic, parmesan, lemons, and starchy cooking water into a lemon garlic butter sauce that nicely coats your pasta is a breeze.
The starchy pasta water is used to emulsify all the ingredients. This popular Italian technique is a no-brainer that makes your pasta silky and juicy in just a few seconds.
Let’s see how to make it now!
List of the ingredients
- Pasta
- Butter
- Garlic
- Lemon
- Parmesan cheese
- Basil (optional)
- Red pepper flakes (optional)
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Salt & pepper
How to make lemon garlic pasta
(Note: this is a quick description with step-by-step photos; the full recipe is at the bottom of the page)
- In a large skillet, sauté garlic and red pepper flakes in butter.
- Stir in hot starchy pasta water (this helps to emulsify the rest of the ingredients in the skillet).
- Add the parmesan cheese, lemon juice, and zest, and stir for a few seconds until you have a smooth, runny sauce.
- Drain the pasta, add it to the skillet along with the fresh basil, and toss until well combined and the pasta looks juicy and nicely coated.
- Serve with a drizzle of olive oil and grated parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Ingredients & Substitutions
Pasta: I used linguine for this recipe, but you can substitute whatever pasta you’ve got on hand. Your favorite long pasta noodles, angel hair pasta, penne, fusilli, or gluten-free pasta work just fine.
Butter: It makes the sauce flavorful and silky, but you can use extra virgin olive oil instead of butter, and you can add a touch of heavy cream if you wish.
Garlic: I use 4 fresh garlic cloves, but feel free to adjust the quantities to your taste, especially if you’re not a garlic lover! ; )
Lemon: Of course! I use lemon juice and zest to bring out the flavor, and I love this microplane for grating the lemon zest finely.
Parmesan cheese: If possible, use freshly grated parmesan; it melts much better than the pre-grated stuff. Pecorino cheese is also a good substitution.
Basil: I love its aromatic flavor, pop of color, and freshness. Fresh parsley or thyme will also work.
Red pepper flakes: aka chili flakes, for a nice touch of heat (optional).
Extra virgin olive oil: I love to serve this lemon garlic pasta with a fruity extra virgin olive oil drizzle for flavor.
Salt and pepper: Usually, there’s no need to add extra salt to the butter sauce since the pasta water is already salted. However, taste and add accordingly!
Jazz up your pasta!
This garlic lemon pasta recipe is super versatile, so feel free to customize it with your favorite protein and veggies! Here’s what I’d recommend:
- Protein: Cooked and drained cannellini beans or peas add plant-based protein and texture. But if you don’t mind keeping the dish meatless, seared salmon, shrimp, or chicken would be great, too.
- Veggies: sautéed broccoli, asparagus, peas, grilled zucchini, artichoke hearts, and roasted cherry tomatoes would all be a great way to add some veggies and color to the dish.
What to serve with this lemon garlic pasta
- Since this pasta is fairly filling, a light side like my carrot salad or lettuce salad would be a great complement.
- If you want to add more protein to the meal, a chickpea salad, cannellini bean salad, or a quick frittata with arugula would be great options for a balanced and meatless meal.
Pasta leftovers
This lemon garlic pasta is best eaten right away, but if you have leftovers, you can keep them in the fridge for 3 days and quickly warm them up in a skillet. However, I’m not a fan of frozen pasta, and I wouldn’t recommend freezing this one.
If you love quick pasta recipes…
These terrific collections of 13 Super Quick Pasta Recipes or one-pot pasta recipes are for you! But you might also want to check my vegan pasta recipes, Italian pasta recipes, or penne pasta recipes for more cooking inspiration!
Below are some of my favorite quick pasta recipes to inspire you!
- Pasta with artichokes
- Tomato basil pasta
- Healthy spaghetti
- Creamy tomato pasta
- Mushroom ricotta pasta
- Penne arrabbiata
- Penne with pesto
- Creamy spaghetti
- Leek pasta
Lastly, I hope you’ll love this luscious lemon garlic pasta. If you have any questions, let me know! Leave a comment, send me a message, or rate it. I would love to hear from you!
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Lemon Garlic Pasta
Ingredients
Pasta
- 8oz (225 grams) Linguine or spaghetti (or your fav pasta shapes)
Lemon Garlic Sauce
- 2 tablespoons (40 grams) unsalted butter
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- ⅛ teaspoon chili flakes (optional)
- ¼ cup (60 ml) pasta cooking water
- ¼ cup (30 grams) grated parmesan cheese, plus more to serve
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice (approx juice from ½ lemon)
- 1 lemon zest
- fine salt, to taste
- freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 10 basil leaves, shredded (optional)
- Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
Instructions
Pasta
- Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and cook pasta per packet instructions.
- When the pasta is nearly done reserve ½ cup of pasta cooking water (you need it for the sauce), and stop cooking and drain the pasta when it's al dente.
Lemon garlic sauce
- When the pasta is about 4 minutes away from being done, add the butter to a skillet over medium-high heat. Once it melts, add garlic, chili flakes and cook for about 60 seconds until it's fragrant and smells nice.
- Add only ¼ cup of the reserved hot pasta pasta water (keep the rest aside), then the lemon juice, the zest, grated parmesan and a few grind of freshly ground black pepper. Stir until emulsified and smooth, taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking if needed. Turn the heat off.
- Now the pasta should be ready and al dente, drain add it to the skillet along with the fresh basil leaves. Toss until well combined and juicy, and add an extra touch of hot pasta water if needed.
- Serve with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and freshly grated parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
first time looking for meatless Italian recipes. I love the lemon garlic pasta. My husband and I can’t wait to make it. We have to limit our animal based protein so we would love to try more of your recipes. We love Italian style recipes best.
That’s great to hear, Marian! I hope you’ll love my meatless recipes. : )
Best wishes x
Really nice. The lemon really adds a deliciously fresh flavor. Nice spin on a classic dish.
I’m so glad it turned out very nice, Claudia.
Thanks so much for sharing your feedback. x