Garlic Butter Pasta, a simple dish with the sublime taste of a melted butter sauce infused with the flavours of gently sautéed garlic.
- Speedy pasta recipe.
- Simple ingredients. You only need pantry basics for this quick pasta dish.
- Garlic butter magic. The fragrance of garlic as it is gently heated in butter is hard to beat.
This Garlic Butter Pasta shows how the best tasty dishes are the simplest. It was inspired by a brilliantly simple recipe I was introduced to as a student, pasta smothered with melted butter and finished with a good sprinkling of garlic salt.
Ingredients
- Garlic.
- Parsley. Curly or flat-leaved fresh parsley.
- Pasta. I love to make this dish with fusilli pasta as each pasta has large surface for that amazing garlic butter sauce to cling to.
- Butter. If you have a choice, go for unsalted butter. Since unsalted butter has a higher smoking point than salted, you are less likely to risk burning the butter when heating it with the garlic.
- Salt and Pepper.
See the Recipe Card below for quantities and the full recipe.
How to Make Garlic Butter Pasta
- Prepare the garlic and parsley. Finely chop a small sprig of parsley to give about 4 teaspoons of finely chopped parsley. Peel and crush 2 to 3 cloves of garlic using a garlic press. Alternatively, finely chop the garlic.
- Boil the water. Put about 6 to 8 pints (4 to 5 litres) of water in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add a generous amount of salt. The amount will vary according to the type of salt used but as a guide about 1 ½ tablespoons of coarse grain salt. The saying goes that the water should be as salty as seawater.
- Cook the pasta. Add the fusilli pasta to boiling water and cook for a couple of minutes less than indicated on its wrapping, then start testing the pasta. Aim for an al dente texture, meaning that it still has a little bit of texture to bite into, and under cooked rather than overcooked. The pasta will continue to cook when added to the butter sauce. While the pasta is cooking prepare the butter sauce.
- Melt the butter. Over a low heat, melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a large saucepan or sauté pan. Take care not to overheat the butter, if you see any signs of bubbling or small specks forming in the butter remove the saucepan from the heat.
- Fry the garlic. Add the crushed garlic to the melted butter, stirring it in well. Over a very low heat, fry the garlic just until the aroma of the garlic is released (about 1 minute) and then remove the saucepan from the heat.
- Drain the pasta, set aside some pasta water. Remove and keep aside about 1 ladleful of pasta water. Drain the pasta.
- Combine all ingredients. Over a very low heat, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of the reserved pasta water to the melted butter sauce, stirring in rapidly so that the water combines thoroughly (emulsifies) with the melted butter. Take the saucepan off the heat and, stirring in gently, add the cooked pasta, 2 teaspoons of chopped parsley and salt and pepper to taste. If the pasta needs a little more cooking for your preferred texture, add a little more of the pasta water stirring it in well and cook over a gentle heat.
- Ladle the pasta onto serving dishes. Sprinkle with the remaining chopped parsley. I will sometimes top with a knob of soft butter for an extra buttery finish. Is there such a thing as too much butter?
More Quick Pasta Recipes
Pasta is always a good fallback when cooking in a hurry. This Smoked Salmon and Crème Fraiche Pasta dish is another super easy pasta recipe, with finely sliced smoked salmon and a delicious lemony crème fraiche sauce.
📋 Recipe Card
Garlic Butter Pasta
A simple dish with the sublime taste of a melted butter sauce infused with the flavours of gently sautéed garlic.
Equipment
- garlic press
- cutting knife
- large saucepan
- saute pan or second large saucepan
- spoon for stirring
- ladle
Ingredients
- 2 to 3 cloves garlic
- 4 teaspoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley curly parsley has a slightly stronger taste so you may wish to use a little less
- 6 pints water
- 16 oz fusilli pasta
- 10 tablespoon butter preferably unsalted since unsalted butter has a higher smoking point than salted.
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Prepare the garlic and parsley. Finely chop a small sprig of parsley to give about 4 teaspoons of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley. Peel and crush 2 to 3 cloves of garlic using a garlic press. Alternatively, finely chop the garlic.
- Boil the water. Put about 6 to 8 pints (4 to 5 litres) of water in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add a generous amount of salt. The amount will vary according to the type of salt used but as a guide about 1 ½ tablespoons of coarse grain salt. The saying goes that the water should be as salty as seawater.
- Cook the pasta. Add the fusilli pasta to boiling water and cook for a couple of minutes less than indicated on its wrapping, then start testing the pasta. Aim for an al dente texture, meaning that it still has a little bit of texture to bite into, and under cooked rather than overcooked. The pasta will continue to cook when added to the butter sauce. While the pasta is cooking prepare the butter sauce.
- Melt the butter. Over a low heat, melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a large saucepan or sauté pan. Take care not to overheat the butter, if you see any signs of bubbling or small specks forming in the butter remove the saucepan from the heat.
- Fry the garlic. Add the crushed garlic to the melted butter, stirring it in well. Over a very low heat, fry the garlic just until the aroma of the garlic is released (about 1 minute) and then remove the saucepan from the heat.
- Drain the pasta, set aside some pasta water. Remove and keep aside about 1 ladleful of pasta water. Drain the pasta.
- Combine all ingredients. Over a very low heat, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of the reserved pasta water to the melted butter sauce, stirring in rapidly so that the water combines thoroughly (emulsifies) with the melted butter. Take the saucepan off the heat and, stirring in gently, add the cooked pasta, 2 teaspoons of the chopped parsley and salt and pepper to taste. If the pasta needs a little more cooking for your preferred texture, add a little more of the pasta water stirring it in well and cook over a gentle heat.
- Ladle the pasta onto serving dishes. Sprinkle with the remaining chopped parsley. I will sometimes top with a knob of soft butter for an extra buttery finish. Is there such a thing as too much butter?
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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