Easy Lemon Pasta (No Cream!)
A bright and flavorful lemon pasta dish that's quick to make and doesn't require any cream. Perfect for a light lunch or dinner!
Ingredients
Pasta
- 12 ounces spaghetti (or another long pasta)
Sauce
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic (grated or minced)
- 1 spicy red chili (chopped - or red pepper flakes)
- 1 large lemon (the grated zest and the juice (about 4 tablespoons or 60 ml))
- 1 cup reserved cooking pasta water (scoop it out just before draining the pasta)
- 0.5 cup parsley (chopped)
- 0.5 cup grated parmesan (or more to taste)
- 0.5 teaspoon salt (+ black pepper to taste)
Instructions
- Cook Pasta: Boil spaghetti in salted water, 2 minutes less than package time.
- Make Sauce: Sauté garlic, lemon zest, and chili in olive oil on low heat for 30–60 seconds.
- Add Lemon Juice: Turn off heat and stir in the lemon juice.
- Combine: Save pasta water. Drain pasta, add to skillet with 1 cup reserved water. Cook 1 minute while stirring.
- Finish: Turn off heat. Stir in parsley and parmesan. Adjust salt and add more water if dry.
- Serve hot: topped with lemon zest.
Notes
Adjust the amount of chili to your spice preference. For a richer flavor, add a knob of butter along with the parmesan.
Nutrition
Calories: 350kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 12g | Sodium: 300mg