Greens are greener at the moment and in season so what better way to celebrate than making a quick pasta dish that tastes good and gives you time out of the kitchen to enjoy these summer evenings. This courgette pasta recipe is easy to make and is ready in 30 minutes. Zucchinis are mild in flavour and this lemon pasta enhances its flavour.
How to make courgette pasta
To make this creamy courgette pasta, start by cooking your pasta in salty water.
Whilst this is cooking, slice your courgettes then cook them in oil to release water and caramelise them. Once cooked, take them out of the pan. In the same pan add cook your shallots and garlic then add in your lemon juice and white wine vinegar.
By now your pasta will have cooked. Drain it but keep around 1/2 cup of the pasta water aside.
To finish off your pasta, put your pasta and courgettes into the pan. Add in your grated cheese and a bit of pasta water with some seasoning. Mix and then add more water to loosen the mixture, emulsify it with the cheese and make the dish silky.
Why is cooked pasta water important
Cooked pasta water is also known as liquid gold. In this recipe the pasta water emulsifies the cheese and oils and allows the ingredients to stick to the cooked pasta. This in turn ensures every bite is flavourful. You do not need a lot of pasta water. Just enough to give it that silky consistency.
The liquid gold aka pasta water is also a starch which makes this recipe and any other pasta recipe creamier, smoother and well glazed.
Alternative ingredients for this Courgette Pasta
This courgette pasta recipe tastes nice on its own as well as with added protein. It has becoming a regular dinner dish in the summer for us. Sometimes I add chorizo or prawns to it. For chorizo, I cook this off first then fry the courgettes in the chorizo oil. I like using the Unearthed chorizos when making this dish. They have a lot of flavour yet are not too oily.
For the prawns version, I add in the prawns once the onions and garlic have cooked for a couple of minutes. I also add in some chilli flakes at this stage.
If you want to add in more vegetables, peas are a good option as they paid well with the lemon flavours.
Tips for making this easy creamy Courgette Pasta
- If you do not have white wine vinegar swap it for normal white vinegar
- The water the pasta is boiled in is known as “liquid gold” and is key to add that extra flavour and loosen the pasta
- Frozen courgettes could work but may be a bit soggy. If using frozen courgettes, cook them for longer
- Using a hard cheese like Parmesan or Grana Padano works best in this pasta. The flavour and texture goes well with the ingredients unlike that of a melty cheese like red leicester or cheddar
- Any pasta shape works for this recipe. I like the spagetti because the ingredients are simple and they stick to it well.
- You can grate the zest of the lemon onto the pasta too for that added citrus taste
Courgette pasta
Ingredients
- 200 grams spaghetti
- 2 courgettes or zucchini
- 2 baby shallots
- 1 small red onion
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 40 ml white wine vinegar
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 70 grams Parmesan or Grand Padano
- 25 grams butter
- Olive Oil
- Salt & Pepper
- Chilli flakes optional
Instructions
- Chop your courgettes. You can either slice them round or cut in quarters like I have. You want them thin.
- Bring a large pan of salted water to boil and cook the spaghetti according to package instructions.
- Meanwhile in a large frying pan, add some oil then fry the courgettes until caramelised. This takes about 5 minutes.
- Once the spaghetti is cooked, reserve about 1/2 a cup of the cooked pasta water and then drain it.
- Take the courgettes out of the pan and add in some butter and oil to fry the diced onions and shallots and garlic. Cook for 5 minutes on medium heat.
- Add in the juice of a lemon and the white wine vinegar and cook for a couple of minutes.
- Add in the courgettes, drained spaghetti , Parmesan, 2 tbsps of the pasta water and some salt & pepper and cook on low heat.
- To loosen the mixture more add in additional pasta water but stir at the same time to ensure it doesn’t get runny.
- Serve with some extra Parmesan and sprinkle of chilli flakes
If you love this dish, you have to try my delicious vegan pumpkin gnocchi. Not only is it tasty, the pumpkin shaped gnocchi’s are adorable.
