Garlic Butter Linguine Dish (Printable version)

Linguine coated in garlic butter sauce, finished with fresh parsley and optional Parmesan and lemon zest.

# Needed ingredients:

→ 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, for serving

# How to make it:

01 - Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add linguine and cook according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water, then drain the pasta.
02 - Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add minced garlic and sauté for 1–2 minutes until fragrant but not browned. Stir in crushed red pepper flakes and lemon zest if using.
03 - Add drained linguine to the skillet. Toss to coat in garlic butter. Gradually add reserved pasta water to achieve a smooth sauce that evenly coats the linguine.
04 - Season with sea salt and black pepper. Stir in chopped parsley and half of the Parmesan cheese if using. Toss thoroughly to combine.
05 - Serve immediately garnished with the remaining Parmesan and lemon wedges on the side.

# Expert Suggestions:

01 -
  • It's ready in under 20 minutes, which means you can feed people without the stress.
  • The butter and garlic create a sauce so silky it feels like you've done something way more ambitious than you actually have.
  • It's flexible enough to eat alone on a quiet night or impress at a casual dinner without anyone knowing how easy it was.
02 -
  • Don't let the garlic brown or it turns bitter—if you're not paying attention, the difference between fragrant and ruined is about 30 seconds.
  • The pasta water is essential, not optional, because it's what transforms melted butter into an actual sauce that clings to the noodles instead of pooling at the bottom of the bowl.
  • Cook this dish right before eating because pasta gets starchy and gummy as it sits, and there's no real way to fix that once it happens.
03 -
  • If your sauce seems too oily, you added too much pasta water or your heat was too high—add a squeeze of lemon juice or a pinch more salt to emulsify it.
  • The moment the pasta comes out of the water is the moment you have to work quickly, because warm pasta absorbs sauce and cool pasta just sits in it.
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