One-Pan Lemon Pasta
A light summer pasta: capellini cooked in the pan with olive oil, garlic, chilli, lemon zest, lemon juice and basil.
One-Pan Lemon Pasta
Ingredients
- 250 g capellini (or thin spaghetti)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 untreated lemons (zest and juice)
- 5 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 1 handful fresh basil leaves
- salt
- grated parmesan or mozzarella, to serve (optional)
Method
Peel the garlic and chop it roughly.
Wash the lemons and pull off zest strips or finely grate the peel — only the yellow part, the white pith underneath is bitter. Then squeeze the juice.
Bring some water to the boil in a kettle and keep it hot.
Heat the olive oil and butter in a wide pan. Add the garlic, a pinch of salt and the chilli flakes, fry briefly, then lay the raw pasta into the pan.
Add the hot water in small splashes and keep moving the pasta so the strands do not stick together. Careful: the first splash of water hitting the hot oil can spit.
Capellini need only three to four minutes, thicker spaghetti accordingly longer. When the pasta is almost al dente, add the lemon zest, the lemon juice and the basil leaves.
Stir well, let it stand for another minute and serve hot. Garnish on the plate with basil and chilli.
Tip
A light summer dish that still tingles on the tongue an hour later. If the acidity is too sharp for you, balance it with mozzarella or grated parmesan — an extra pinch of salt helps too.