Tagliatelle with Lemon

Even if my refrigerator is otherwise empty, I always have lemons and garlic hanging around so this recipe for tagliatelle with lemon was the perfect thing to make after returning from vacation; it was a huge hit!

My husband and I loved the flavor and simplicity of the pasta and I appreciated the ease and speed of preparation. The pasta was light and fresh yet the chile pepper gave it a little pizzazz and kept it from being boring—I could almost picture myself on the Amalfi coast.

Next time I make it, I may add a little more garlic. I used an entire red Fresno pepper since they’re not very spicy. I had some Parmesan bread crumbs leftover from a different pasta dish that I sprinkled atop my bowl of pasta for a bit of crunch.

A cinch to throw together with just a few ingredients, tagliatelle with lemon is the ideal recipe to keep in your back pocket. It’s easy enough for a weeknight meal and elegant enough to serve to a guest.

I used fettuccine rather than tagliatelle and increased the pepper to about 3/4 of a pepper. Trust the recipe and you’ll be rewarded with a bowl of silky, bright noodles decked with flecks of red and green. I was a bit hesitant after adding the cooked pasta into the lemon juice and pasta water as it looked like a pile of noodles swimming in too much liquid. Have no fear! After a few twists of the wrist, while adding the parmesan, the dish magically transformed into pasta with a creamy sauce that evenly clings to each noodle. 

I added all of the lemon zest to the pasta at the end along with the parsley. I think next time, I’ll kick it up a notch and add the whole pepper, and an extra clove of garlic. I enjoyed this with a simple green salad and crusty bread.

Tagliatelle with lemon is a classic. Lemon pasta is soothing and a fine meal on its own, but is also good paired with a variety of things–grilled shrimp, chicken, steak. If you serve this on its own, it’s a light meal. The recipe is easily adaptable, and you can add as much lemon as you like to adjust the flavor.

I use small organic lemons, so I add an extra half lemon because I like to taste a little tang with the pasta. The slight heat from the hot pepper makes a pleasing flavor match, and again, should be adjusted to your liking. The Parmesan is a perfect complement to lemon.

A key part of this recipe is to add the starchy pasta water to the fat and keep the mixture moving. I agitate the pan with one hand while swirling the pasta water and olive oil mixture with tongs, a wooden spoon, or a long wooden fork with the other hand. In any case, keep the mixture moving and it will create a beautiful creamy sauce that adheres to the pasta. It’s like magic, and it is super satisfying to see the mixture transform into a creamy sauce.

I like to make this in a “pasta pan”–that is, a large pan that has some depth to allow enough room to add the pasta directly to the pan with your sauce. You may be surprised at how much pasta water the pasta will absorb, so make sure the pasta is not fully cooked when you transfer it to the saucepan.

This tagliatelle with lemon was exactly what I hoped it would be. It was so quick and easy to put together and had wonderful flavor. The garlic and chile pepper gives it a nice flavor and just a little “bite” and the lemon really brightens it up. The butter makes the sauce silky and rich. Definitely add additional Parmesan at serving. 

I served this as a main dish, but it would be a wonderful side with grilled roasted chicken or fish. As a main dish, I think I might add some crisped prosciutto the next time. My husband seems to think he hasn’t had a meal unless he has some kind of meat. Served with an arugula salad and sourdough focaccia bread, this meal can be on the table in no time. 

Let me start out by saying that I love all things lemon. If there’s a recipe featuring lemons, I’ll probably choose to make it. After reading the paragraph prefacing the recipe, mentioning the Amalfi Coast, it was a done deal. Memories came flooding back of the days we spent on the Amalfi Coast before the pandemic hit.

However, knowing that we would never find Amalfi lemons here, I had to use the lemons that grow in our back yard. We are lucky enough to have a Meyer lemon tree. Now, I love Meyer lemons, so I was happy to be able to make this recipe using lemons whose flavor I adore. But here was the problem. The amount of juice and zest you get from a Meyer lemon doesn’t begin to compare to what you get from an Amalfi lemon.

The first time I made this recipe, I figured that I had to follow the recipe as written, using the zest and juice from 1 lemon. There was nowhere near enough of either to give this the taste I had hoped for. I decided that I wanted to play around with this recipe. Our Meyer lemons aren’t terribly large. Looking at them, and comparing them to the photo I had of the Amalfi coast lemons, I decided to use 3 of our lemons, to approximate 1 of the lemons we had in Amalfi. The difference was amazing.

The finished product was bright, lemony, and surprisingly fresh and light. Not only was dinner delicious, but we also had some pasta leftover, and it had really absorbed the lemon flavor. It seemed to be more lemony than it was the first night. Delicious! This is so easy to throw together, and such a lovely dish, that it will be made often.

This dish made, with flying colors, my list of go-to recipes for quick (AND scrumptious) dinners. Ribbons of supple egg pasta tossed in butter and garlic are satisfying, while the lemon keeps them light—perfect when you want to be saying “That hit the spot!” in less than 30 minutes.

In fact, this effortless recipe saved me exactly on such evening of “after-five work creep,” and I was left with less time and energy for meal prep. It made sitting down to dinner happen fast, leaving me with more time for winding down and savoring the day’s end meal and a little wine.

This tagliatelle with lemon is perfect as a light, weeknight dinner.  It was quick and easy to throw together, just right after a busy workday. Sautéed shrimp or chicken would make a great accompaniment. Next time, I’ll add some extra chile for a little more heat, and a bit more of the pasta water.