Garlic Butter Linguine Pasta (Print Version)

Silky garlic butter sauce coats tender linguine, enhanced with fresh parsley and subtle seasoning.

# What You'll Need:

→ Pasta

01 - 14 oz linguine

→ Sauce

02 - 6 tbsp unsalted butter
03 - 6 large garlic cloves, finely minced
04 - 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
05 - Zest of 1 lemon (optional)
06 - 1/2 tsp sea salt
07 - 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

→ Finishing

08 - 1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
09 - 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
10 - Extra lemon wedges, to serve

# How to Make It:

01 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Add linguine and cook according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water and drain the pasta.
02 - Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add minced garlic and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes until fragrant without browning. Stir in crushed red pepper flakes and lemon zest if desired.
03 - Add drained linguine to the skillet and toss to coat in the garlic butter. Gradually add reserved pasta water to achieve a smooth sauce consistency.
04 - Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir in chopped parsley and half of the grated Parmesan if using. Toss well to combine.
05 - Plate immediately, garnished with remaining Parmesan and extra lemon wedges on the side.

# Additional Tips::

01 -
  • Ready in 20 minutes, which means you can have dinner on the table faster than you can order takeout.
  • The garlic butter creates a sauce so silky it feels indulgent, even though it's just three pantry staples working in harmony.
  • Flexible enough to eat plain on a busy weeknight, fancy enough to serve when someone drops by unexpectedly.
02 -
  • The pasta water starch is what turns butter into sauce—without it, you just have buttered pasta, which is fine but not transcendent. This pasta water trick changed the way I cook.
  • Garlic can go from perfect to burnt in seconds, so stay present and keep your heat at medium. There's no fixing burnt garlic except starting over.
  • Reserve your pasta water before draining, or you'll find yourself standing at the sink with drained pasta and no way to save the sauce's texture.
03 -
  • Use a microplane for lemon zest and Parmesan—the results are finer and more elegant than a box grater, and it matters in such a simple dish.
  • If your butter starts to separate or looks greasy instead of silky, it's usually because the heat got too high. Lower it back down and add a splash of pasta water to pull everything back together.
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