Your favorite pasta is finished in a fresh lemony garlic sauce! It's an easy recipe and filled with bright, vibrant flavor. You'll have quick dinner on the table in just 20 minutes!
I've made lemon garlic pasta recipe more times than I can count! Including when my folks visited; even my Dad (who is not a pasta fan) loved it!
The flavors are bright, lemony and fresh. It's very savory and creamy enough. It's a simple pasta dish and only takes 20 make! This is a fantastic weeknight meal the whole family will love!
🗒️ Ingredients and additions
You'll only need a handful of simple ingredients. For the exact measurements, please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- spaghetti, penne, angel hair pasta or linguine pasta - really you can use any kind of pasta you have in the pantry. There's no hard/fast rule here.
- olive oil - the oil will incorporate into the sauce, use the best you have on hand.
- whipping cream, or heavy cream
- fresh lemons, you'll use the juice and zest - because the lemon is such an essential part of this dish it really needs to be fresh lemon juice.
- garlic cloves - depending on the size, you'll need 5-8 cloves.
- parmesan cheese - Romano or even cream cheese would work in this recipe.
- basil or parsley for garnish
Adding grilled shrimp or sliced chicken is a delicious addition to this recipe. The addition of a couple tablespoons of butter to the sauce makes it even more rich and creamy.
⏲️ Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. For the complete directions just scroll down to the bottom!
- Put a large pot of salted water on the stove to boil. When boiling, drop the spaghetti in and cook to al dente. While it's cooking, add the chopped garlic, pepper and red pepper flakes to olive oil over low heat.
- Slowly sauté the garlic.
- Next, add the lemon zest and whipping cream. Stir to combine.
- When the pasta is done, remove the sauce from the heat and add the lemon juice. Transfer the cooked pasta to the lemon butter garlic sauce mixing well to combine.
- Top with shredded parmesan cheese.
- Mix the buttery lemon garlic sauce really well with the pasta adding reserved pasta water if needed. Garnish with chopped parsley or basil.
🙋♀️ FAQ's
Obviously yes because it's part of this recipe! 😋 The addition of starch will counteract potential curdling. Add the lemon juice at the end when you're adding the pasta.
Heat can cause a sauce to curdle. Be sure the garlic is cooked on low heat. you can even pull it off the heat when you add the cream. Stir well to incorporate. Using half and half (not heavy cream) may also cause the sauce to seperate.
Yes - heat about ½ cup of heavy cream until it's reduced by half and then slow whisk the curdled sauce into the reduced heavy cream.
Of all the times I've made this it's only curdled once. And you know what? We ate it anyway. It's just not as pretty, but it really didn't effect the taste.
Deb's tips
When you zest the lemon include only the yellow skin, the white pith is bitter.
This Lemon Pasta Recipe is a great 30 minute meal, quick and easy to make for weekdays, but it's also perfect for a fancy meal with company. Really all you need to go along with this meal is a great green salad and this crockpot foccacia. A perfect meal!
Storage
Refrigerate - This creamy pasta will keep 3-4 days refrigerated. Store in an airtight container. It doesn't freeze well.
Reheat in the microwave or in a pot on the stove. Adding additional water or a small amount of cream will help rehydrate the pasta so it doesn't taste dry.
Related recipes
This delicious lemon garlic pasta is one of my favorite delicious recipes to make for easy weeknight dinner, but it's also fancy enough for company! It's really a lovely meal!
- Another simple pasta recipe from the blog are Pasta Puttanesca. This is another easy meal using pantry ingredients. It's affordable and delicious!
- One of our favorite quick and easy meals is teriyaki noodles. The homemade sauce is amazing and this is so good!
Love this meal? Please be sure and comment below and leave a five-star rating! If you're on Instagram I'd love it if you tag me with #bowlmeover or @bowlmeover so I get to see your delicious plate of pasta!
Lemon Garlic Pasta
Equipment
- Food Tongs
Ingredients
- 13.5 oz package spaghetti
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh garlic
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ¾ cup whipping cream
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 cup parmesan cheese
- basil and fresh parsley for garnish if desired
- pasta water add as needed
Instructions
- Start by boiling a large pot of salted water on the stove. When it reaches a rolling boil, drop the pasta noodles in the boiling water and cook pasta according to package instructions to just al dente.
- While the pot is heating and the pasta cooks prepare the sauce. Chop the garlic and place in a large skillet over low heat with olive oil. Don't allow the garlic to brown, this will make it bitter. Add the red pepper flakes and black pepper. Slowly sauté the garlic for about 10 minutes, along with the spices.
- Next add the lemon zest and whipping cream. Continue to stir the creamy lemon sauce and the flavors will slowly combine and the sauce will begin to thicken.
- When the pasta is done, turn the heat off from the sauce. Add in the lemon juice. Stir to combine, then begin transferring the cooked noodles to the sauce. Mix the hot pasta with the lemon cream sauce. Mix well to combine. Save a cup of the pasta water and if needed, add to the pasta for creaminess.
- Top the noodles with the shredded parmesan cheese and mix again. Garnish with parsley & chopped basil.
Notes
- Use Meyer Lemons when available. They are sweeter and less acidic. If you're using regular regular lemons, you may need to reduce the amount of lemon juice.
- Salt the pasta water well.
- Cook your pasta just short of al dente.
- Cook the garlic on LOW, otherwise it will burn. You cannot hurry this process.
- Save some of the pasta cooking liquid to add to the sauce.
- Toss the pasta really well - work the sauce through the pasta to ensure it's well distributed.
- Garnish with basil and parsley.
Holly says
Super great! Nice, light, and lemony. One of my favorites now!
Debra Clark says
That's wonderful! I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe, Holly. It's incredible how easy and just how good this simple recipe is. Thank you for sharing and supporting the blog!
Kirst says
I never leave comments but this simple delicious recipe needed to be given a five star rating and I will send it on to my young adult kids. Packs a Flavour punch. Quick simple and tasty. Thank you 🙂
Debra Clark says
Isn't it just amazing? It's so simple, but perfect. It's always been a go-to recipe. Glad it was a hit with your family Kirst! Have a great day and thanks for supporting the blog!!
Dayna says
I made this today for lunches this week. Wanted something different and I'm so glad I tried this!! I added a little spinach and and used Turmeric spaghetti! I also baked a chicken breast with Kinders buttery steakhouse seasoning to add in and the flavors are perfect together. I think this will be a good cold noodle dish too. Thank you!!!
Amy says
I’ve made this sauce 2 times within the last 2 weeks. It is absolutely amazing. I took the lazy way out and used already minced garlic, but we couldn’t tell at all. We added ravioli to it! Thank you for the amazing recipe. Definitely going to be on our rotation!!
Kristin says
This recipe was outstanding! The entire family loved it! Will be making it on the regular for sure 🙂
Bowl Me Over says
Wonderful Kristin - I'm so happy you enjoyed it!!!