This is a recipe that produces good pasta out of ingredients almost everyone has. The technique matters more than the ingredient sourcing — specifically, building the sauce from pasta water rather than from cream, and adding the cheese off the heat to prevent it from breaking. Total time start to finish is 15 minutes if you boil the water while you grate the cheese.

Ingredients

Serves 4.

  • 1 pound dried spaghetti or linguine
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 2 lemons (zest and juice)
  • 1 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (about 3 ounces, weighed before grating)
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • Optional: ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
  • Optional: red pepper flakes

Instructions

  1. Salt the water aggressively. Bring 4 to 5 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Add 2 tablespoons kosher salt — the water should taste seasoned, not just salted. This is the recipe’s only salt source for the pasta itself.

  2. Cook the pasta. Add the spaghetti and cook to 1 minute less than the package’s al dente time. Reserve 1.5 cups of pasta water before draining.

  3. Bloom the garlic. While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the sliced garlic and cook gently for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until the garlic is fragrant and just beginning to turn golden at the edges. Do not let it brown — burnt garlic is acrid.

  4. Add the lemon. Add the lemon zest to the skillet, then the juice. Stir; the mixture will sizzle briefly. Remove the skillet from the heat.

  5. Combine. Add the drained pasta to the skillet along with ½ cup of the reserved pasta water. Toss the pasta to coat. Return to medium heat for 30 seconds, stirring, to let the pasta absorb some of the sauce.

  6. Finish off the heat. Remove the skillet from the heat completely. Add the grated Parmesan in three additions, tossing constantly between each addition. The sauce will emulsify into a glossy coating on the pasta. If the sauce looks dry, add more reserved pasta water 2 tablespoons at a time, tossing between additions.

  7. Season and serve. Add freshly ground black pepper and, if using, the chopped parsley and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Taste; the sauce should be bright and savory. If it tastes flat, add a splash more lemon juice; if it tastes too acidic, add a tablespoon of butter and toss.

  8. Serve immediately. Transfer to plates or shallow bowls. Top with additional grated Parmesan at the table.

Notes

The pasta water is the most important ingredient in the sauce. The starch released by the pasta during cooking is what allows the butter, lemon juice, and cheese to emulsify into a coating sauce. Reserved pasta water from a fresh, well-salted pot is essential; stored leftover pasta water from a previous meal will not work.

If the sauce splits — looks broken, with butter pooling separately — the most common cause is too much heat when the cheese was added. Remove from heat, add a splash of fresh pasta water, and toss vigorously to re-emulsify.

Per-serving nutrition (approximate)

  • Calories: 590
  • Protein: 22 g
  • Carbohydrate: 86 g
  • Fat: 18 g

(Calculated from USDA FoodData Central per-ingredient values, summed across the ingredient list, divided by 4 servings. Actual values will vary with specific ingredients and portion size.)