Lemon Pasta
Spaghetti tossed in a sauce of lemon juice, butter, parmesan and black pepper, ready in 17 minutes.
Before You Start
Keep the pasta water.
Add the cheese off the heat if the pan is very hot.
If your hob runs hot, work quickly.
Serve straight away.
Making Lemon Pasta
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Boil the spaghetti in salted water for 1 minute less than the packet says. Keep a mug of the water and drain.
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Melt the butter with the lemon zest in a wide pan. Add a ladle of the pasta water and the spaghetti and toss for 1 minute.
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Add the lemon juice, then the parmesan a handful at a time, tossing until creamy.
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Add the pepper, salt and parsley and serve at once.
Why It Works
Lemon pasta is a bowl of very little: pasta, lemon, butter and cheese. Without a single clever ingredient it relies on technique, and the technique is a lesson in starch.
Boil the spaghetti for 1 minute less than the packet says and keep a mug of the water. That water is the sauce. The starch in it binds the butter, lemon juice and cheese into a glossy coating instead of a pool of oil.
Melt the butter with the lemon zest in a wide pan, add a ladle of the water and the pasta, and toss over medium heat for a minute. Add the lemon juice, then the parmesan a handful at a time, tossing until the sauce turns creamy.
If your hob runs hot, take the pan off the heat before the cheese goes in, because hot cheese clumps. Finish with a lot of black pepper and some parsley, and eat at once. The sauce tightens as it stands.
Storage and Reheating
Best eaten at once. Keeps in the fridge for 1 day.
What to Serve Alongside
- Green salad
- Roasted asparagus
- Grilled chicken
- Crisp white wine
Still Wondering?
How long does Lemon Pasta take to make?
About 17 minutes in total — 5 minutes of preparation and 12 minutes of cooking. The recipe serves 4.
What are the key tips for making Lemon Pasta?
Keep the pasta water. Add the cheese off the heat if the pan is very hot. If your hob runs hot, work quickly. Serve straight away.
What should I serve with Lemon Pasta?
Green salad; Roasted asparagus; Grilled chicken; Crisp white wine.
How should Lemon Pasta be stored?
Best eaten at once. Keeps in the fridge for 1 day.
Is Lemon Pasta suitable for a special diet?
This recipe is no added sugar. Those labels are checked against the ingredient list, so a dish is only marked when nothing in it contradicts the claim.
How many calories are in Lemon Pasta?
About 506 kcal per serving, with 17 g protein, 69 g carbohydrate and 18 g fat. The figures are calculated from the ingredient list and are an estimate.
What's in a Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list. Treat these as an estimate — brands and cuts vary.
Reader Reviews
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Written and tested by Turab
One person, one kitchen — no test kitchen, no team. How every recipe on this site is checked before it goes up.
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