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My Lemon Pasta Is So Good!
Pasta al limone, or lemon pasta, is one of those dishes that’s so simple, yet so delicious. When I decided to make a version of the Italian dish at home, I wanted it to be just as lemony and creamy as the one I order at my favorite Italian restaurant.
This lemon pasta is just that and when I say it’s super easy to make, I mean it! All you need is a few simple ingredients like spaghetti, garlic, lemon and Parmesan. The most important part is making sure everything is fresh and saving some of your pasta water to get a nice, creamy sauce. It’s great as a weeknight vegetarian meal, or to serve with a pan-seared protein like Pan Seared Chicken, Pan Seared Salmon, or Pan-Seared Steaks.
Lemon Pasta Ingredients
- Pasta: I like to make this dish with a long pasta such as spaghetti or linguini. You can make it with a shorter pasta if that’s what you have. Use a gluten-free pasta if you have an intolerance. Be sure to check out my post on how to cook pasta to get the best al dente texture.
- Oil: I prefer the flavor of olive oil, but you can use any high-heat cooking oil.
- Garlic: Use freshly minced garlic for the best flavor.
- Parsley: Look for a bunch with bright green leaves and avoid any that are starting to yellow and wilt.
- Crushed red pepper: Feel free to leave out if you don’t have any on hand or if you have kids who are sensitive to spice.
- Lemon: I use both fresh lemon juice and lemon zest for this pasta. The heavier the lemon, the juicier it is!
- Cheese: I like to add in some grated Parmesan, but you can omit this to make a vegan dish.
- Salt and pepper: These simple seasonings are all you need.
Popular Additions
- Add veggies. Sauteed broccoli, sauteed spinach, air fryer asparagus, peas or roasted zucchini would all make great additions.
- Make it a complete meal. If you want to include some protein, lemon shrimp, grilled chicken, chicken sausage or pan-seared scallops (if you’re feeling fancy!) are all delicious with this lemon garlic pasta.
- Make it richer. Add 2 to 3 tablespoons butter at the end. Or, to make an even creamier lemon pasta sauce, stir in ½ cup milk or heavy cream.
- Add some crunch. Top with toasted breadcrumbs or pine nuts for some additional texture.
How to Make Lemon Pasta
My Best Lemon Parmesan Pasta Tips
- Use fresh ingredients. This simple dish has the best flavors when you use fresh products. Use fresh rather than dried herbs, use freshly minced garlic and stay away from bottled lemon juice for this recipe.
- Cook the pasta al dente. That’s because you’ll be tossing it with the sauce for a couple minutes so it will continue to cook. If you overcook it, it can become very soft.
- Don’t toss your pasta water! Half a cup is added back to the pan with the lemon and garlic. It contains starch, which will allow the lemon sauce to coat each strand of spaghetti.
Serving Ideas
Recipe Help & FAQs
This lemon pasta is best served as soon as it’s made, but it will keep well in the fridge for 2-3 days. You can reheat leftovers on the stovetop or in the microwave. You may want to add in a tablespoon or two of water when you reheat to loosen the sauce back up.
You can freeze this lemon pepper pasta, but I don’t recommend it since it doesn’t hold up well and gets mushy. If you do want to freeze it, you can do so for up to 3 months. Thaw the pasta overnight in the fridge before reheating.
It’s possible you may have zested some of the lemon’s white pith, which has a bitter flavor. That’s why it’s important to avoid pressing too hard when zesting a lemon.
More Pasta Recipes:
- One Pan Pasta
- Lemon Ricotta Pasta
- Caprese Pasta Salad
- Scallops with Pasta
- Arrabiata Pasta with Shrimp
- Pistachio Pasta
- Hummus Pasta
- Baked Feta Pasta
- Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes
If you try this Lemon Pasta recipe or any other recipe on Feel Good Foodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below! It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe. I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots, share it on Instagram so we can repost on Stories!
This Lemon Pasta recipe was originally published on February 15, 2021, and has recently been updated with new photography, step-by-step images, recipe tips, and ingredient substitutions to help make the recipe. While the recipe remains the same the portions have been increased equally but to serve more.
Lemon Pasta Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound spaghetti cooked (with ½ cup pasta water reserved)
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 3 tablespoons fresh parsley plus more for serving
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon salt plus more for salting pasta water
- ⅓ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese plus more for serving
- Black pepper for serving
Instructions
- Cook the spaghetti in a pot of salted water according to package instructions until al dente. Drain and reserve ½ cup of the cooking pasta liquid.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Add the garlic, parsley and crushed red pepper, and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, cooking pasta liquid and pasta and cook until the pasta is heated through, about 1 minute.
- Turn off the heat, stir in the parmesan cheese until it clings to the pasta.
- Serve with extra parsley and parmesan cheese, if desired.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
I have several lemon pasta recipes and this is, by far, the best. I think the crushed red pepper just adds enough kick to make it fantastic. I did add a tablespoon of butter and cut down a bit on the olive oil.
Yay, love that!! Thanks so much, Christine! So happy you love the recipe!
I was really disappointed in this. I followed the recipe perfectly, but it tasted like nothing. I had to add extra lemon, a pat of butter, chili flakes, salt, and extra Parmesan to taste anything. I understand where the recipe is going but I had to tweak it severely.
Oh no! So sorry to hear it didn’t turn out how you had hoped. I wonder if maybe your lemon was on the smaller size? As for the seasoning, you are always encouraged to add as much as you like to my recipes! Love that you added chili flakes and butter, that sounds so good. Thanks for the feedback, McKenna!
We love this dish, I make it to go with my air fryer chicken thighs. It pretty much gets made every week. We were visiting friends in Arizona and they had a lemon tree with tons of lemons ready to pick. I brought a bunch home and now I want to make anything lemon. Can I make lemon pasta and freeze it? I know it’s better fresh but if I can freeze some using the lemons I got that would be great.
So happy you love this recipe, Sue!! And how lucky to have a friend with a lemon tree with extra lemons, that’s amazing! I haven’t tried freezing this pasta myself but I think it would keep well for up to 3 months. You can also just freeze the lemons themselves, if you prefer doing that and thawing them as needed. Hope you enjoy!!
Thanks, I will try both ways as I have so many and these lemons are huge. I love anything lemon. Thanks for the fast reply.
You’re welcome, Sue! Enjoy!!
Beginner-friendly! Literally have no idea what I’m doing in the kitchen, but even I managed to make do with this recipe.
I made it twice—once with pasta water, then with milk the second time. Personally, I prefer the creamier milk texture, but if you like a thinner dressing then go for the water!
Huge thanks to Yumna Jawad for answering my questions and making this recipe! Nice to have a go-to summer dish with a zingy flavour I can make in a pinch! Also tastes great the next day, though I used closer to 4/5 tablespoons of water to rehydrate the pasta! 🙂
Aww yay, I’m so happy you loved it!! It was my pleasure to answer your questions, Vincent. Thank you so much for your kind words and for reporting back how your pasta turned out! I hope you’ll let me know if you try any of my other recipes!
Hello! Looking to use leftover lemons from pancake day- how much juice and zest do you recommend I use? In the video it looks like a quick squeeze. Should I just add as much juice and zest as I can? Sorry if this is a silly question, I don’t have any experience cooking, and I’m looking to improve. Thank you 🙂
Not a silly question at all, Vincent! I use the juice and zest of 1 whole lemon in this recipe. Hope you enjoy!
Perfect!! And one more thing, it says I should substitute some of the water for milk if I want the sauce to be a bit creamier—how much do you think I should substitute? So so so stoked to try this, thank you tons!
You can replace the entire 1/2 cup of pasta water with milk if you want it to be extra creamy! Or, if you prefer, try 50/50 (1/4 cup pasta water and 1/4 milk) for a sauce that’s a bit creamier but still on the lighter side. You’re welcome, Vincent! I hope you enjoy!!
Could this be made with leftover pasta? What would you do about the pasta water, since it would have been discarded?
Good question. You can make a slurry with cornstarch, if you have it! Mix 1/8 teaspoon cornstarch, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 cup boiling water. You can also add the mixture to the microwave for 2 minutes, stir, and heat for 2 more minutes. Hope that helps!