Sue Kreitzman’s Lemon Butter Angel Hair Pasta

I love this recipe. My husband and I have some variation of it at least once a week. We are vegetarian, so vegetable stock instead of chicken and I increase the amount of pasta to a third of a pound to feed us both. Sometimes I toss in garlic right after the angel hair, usually I add leftover veg—roasted tomatoes, cooked broccoli, caramelized onion, or I wilt greens that failed to get into a salad.

I cook some fairly complicated dishes without any problem. This seems so simple, and yet it's been an epic fail for me twice. First of all, this Italian girl never makes two ounces of pasta! That's not even a snack! Lol. So I've had to modify the recipe. You can't just double or triple it; too much butter, etc. I went by someone else's amounts and covered it as some suggested. Some say not to cover it. I found a much similar recipe that had better reviews, so I think I'll give that one a go instead.

This recipe gives new meaning to comfort food. Easy. Fast. Cheap. I had some ricotta so placed pasta on a little bed of it for creaminess. Next time I might add a little extra broth

Really digging the ingenious notion of "risotto-ing" strand pasta. Glad I read the many comments beforehand too--I can see how this could go sideways given like risotto it all depends on a delicate balancing act while cooking to allow the liquid to magically combine at the right rate with the pasta starch and all that so the degree of evaporation/incorporation and starch softening comes together for just the right timed landing. With that in mind, I kept a careful eye, used a wide skillet, didn't cover it with a lid, erred on the side of too little liquid at first (just covered the pasta), made sure the stock was plenty hot and stayed that way, stirred regularly, and adjusted heat as I went to have the visual progress I was going for. I let when the pasta was the right texture be my guide for when to stop, and luckily the liquid had thickened to a gentle sauce and otherwise disappeared by then. (And I did scale up: used 4Tb butter, 8oz spaghetti not angelhair, and had on hand 4 cups hot stock and used 3 of those 4 cups...took about 12 minutes bc I used a robust spaghetti). It really is beautiful how the stock-y starch water becomes a clinging creamy-velvety texture to coat the pasta. Like many others I used markedly less lemon and would cut back even more next time. Lovely pantry-based comfort dish for 1! Happy to have it in my back pocket.

Such a quick, simple, tasty recipe.

I made this for dinner last night with a green salad and oven fried chicken. It was so delicious and comforting. The comments below were spot on. I browned the angel hair nests before adding the broth and treated it more like a risotto. It didn't need much stirring and it did really well uncovered on a low simmer. The total cook time start to finish wasn't more than 20 minutes. I was cooking for four people and the ratio that worked for me was 8 oz of pasta: 3 Tbsps butter: 3.25 cups stock (with another quarter cup up on reserve): 1.5 juiced lemons. It might be different with Meyer Lemons, but I think 3 would have been way too much.

This is just such a perfect recipe. It's blissfully comforting as-is, and wide open to riffing and experimentation as well. As printed, it's fast to put together, deeply satisfying, and easy to make when I come from work exhausted but needing real food. On a day off when I just feel like messing around in the kitchen, it's really fun to play with. I've added extra broth plus a can of white beans and maybe chopped spinach or kale to it, I've cooked strips of chicken breast or thigh along with the pasta, I've switched the angel hair for orzo, and I've added cheeses and cream to make a new favorite riff on mac n cheese. I am so happy to have happened upon this recipe.

Yummy dish! This is going into the monthly meal plan. I appreciate the suggestion from another comment to cover the pasta with liquid and add more if needed. I used spaghetti noodles and it came out beautifully.

I never crave pasta but have been strangely craving it lately and saw this recipe which was right up my alley since I prefer simpler pastas with few ingredients. I used Trader Joe's veggie broth because it's what I had readily on hand. This was so easy and really, really delicious. I added tons of Parmesan at the end.
The veggie broth took longer than 10 minutes to absorb but it might be my burners. I ended up uncovering the pot and kept cooking until the liquid was absorbed.
I'll definitely be adding this to my quick weekday dinner rotation.

I doubled the recipe but used 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 of olive oil. I made it in a big skillet with a lid. After adding the stock I brought it up to a boil and then reduced to a simmer and added fresh broccoli. I covered the skillet to let the broccoli steam. It looked a little soupy as it was getting to the 10 minute mark so I upped the temp so the liquid would reduce. When is was close to reduced I added a half pound of small shrimp and continued cooking until they were warmed through. I used a whole lemon and a little zest and topped it with good parmigiano reggiano. It was very creamy and delicious! We had no problem eating the whole thing!

I love this idea and have made it several times in different quantities. Best with angel hair and chicken stock but spaghetti and plain water work fine too. Especially if there's no stock on hand, I saute some garlic in the butter before adding the pasta. I brown the pasta a bit in the butter before adding liquid. I have added lemon zest along with the juice and used other citrus (yuzu!) when I had it around. I use a small pot and don't bother with the lid, just keep it simmering and stir occasionally. The serving size as is makes a nice snack or light dinner for one. When quadrupling the recipe to serve two hungry people I used two cups of liquid and two whole lemons, had some extra hot liquid on hand in case I needed it, but did not. When scaling I think the key is to *just* cover your pasta with liquid to start, you can always add more if needed.

Sorry but was not impressed. Pretty tasteless despite adding fresh parsley and basil from my garden as well as top quality parmigiano.

This sounds delicious but what if I want to make a full 16 ounce box of angel hair to feed my family of 5? Do I do 8x all ingredients including the stock?

Ok, I usually make the recipe according to directions first, before altering it. I did make a double batch to start as there were 4 of us & 😋 hungry. I have to say as is, it is pretty good. The only problem was that there were no seconds and it could have used some meat..This is also the fastest recipe I have made this year twice in under 45 minutes.. the second batch was even better. Again, doubling the recipe and cooking according to directions. I added a 1 cup of cooked/ shredded roasted chicken and added 1/4 cup of stock, dashes of garlic and onion powder, along with pink Himalayan salt. Gave it an extra 2 minutes to cook, served with Parmesan cheese & garlic bread 🥖.. delicious 😋 no leftovers and clean up was swift !!! 😂

Creamy, comforting pasta for a day when I was feeling under the weather. I followed a reviewer’s suggestion about cooking this like rissoto; warmed the stick in a separate pan and ladled into the pasta a little at a time. This worked, but it could have used one more ladle of broth over 1 cup — the pasta was quite toothsome! Noted for next time. But even being a tiny bit under done, the pasta delivered.

This really is a simple, delicious, and filling dinner. While I love cooking large, fancy meals, it is so nice to have a few quick, reliable dinners up my sleeve. This pasta is a keeper!

Cooking the pasta in chicken broth reminded me too much of chicken noodle soup.

I did 2 things not according to recipe. I browned the pasta in the butter till I got a nutty smell before I put in the stock and I took the lid off halfway into the ten minutes and occasionally stirred. I did not mess with the temp. Delish and simple. Thank you💞

So yummy! Even better if you brown the pasta a bit in the butter, then add lemon zest at end with the lemon juice!

I thought this was delicious! I quadrupled the recipe and had it at a rolling boil for about 40 minutes, uncovered.

I’ve made this many times since January 2018. Love it. So easy and quick. I use a 10” skillet with a lid and never cook longer than about 8 minutes. Creamy and delicious. It’s my go to quick meal - better than ramen and healthier. I always use a whole Meyer lemon (my neighbor has a tree). So good.

I've found that the only tweak here is to keep the broth at a steady boil, not at low and use without a lid. This recipe relies on the same principal as a risotto (having the starch absorb the liquid), so I don't know how/why the cooking method doesn't involve a watchful eye, stirring, and med-high temps. That said, when it's good, it's amazing!

I had some of the same problems as other cooks. Too much liquid that didn’t cook off in 10 minutes. Two things: (1) I don’t think it needs a lid and (2) I think it could be cooked more like risotto, adding water as it is absorbed, maybe starting with 1/2 cup then adding more as needed. Still, the butter and lemon are good with the pasta. I will make it again.

Tried this tonight and added shrimp and snow peas. Everyone really enjoyed this. Will be making this again and try more variations.

i made this once, exactly as written, and found it good-ish. i liked the taste, but it took me much longer than 10 minutes on low for the broth to absorb, which resulted in very soft angel hair. doubled this with a friend last night for a quick meal before the movies, and it didn't work at all--pulled the pasta out when it was truly done to try and reduce all the liquid (again, still so much after the 10 minutes!) and stuck the pasta back in to try and capture that creamy, starchy consistency--ended up with a solid, globby mess. my friend is a nice person so he dutifully ate it, but...what am i missing? is my pasta potentially too thin? my one cup of broth too big and brothy? hmm...

I would guess that the cooking time and pasta/liquid ratio will be need to change for different thickness noodle. Earlier in this thread we wondered about linear scaling of liquid to weight of noodles. Logic says that it should be linear but cooking experience makes one wonder if it works that way when you are several times larger than the recipe quantity. When i made this, i only scaled by a factor of 1.5 and it worked just fine. That being said, i wasn't "wowed" by the recipe. It tasted good and it was easy but it wasn't a revelation for me. My $.02.

This went south in a hurry and I don’t know why. First, I tripled the recipe so it was 6+ ounces of pasta, 3 cups of broth and 4+ tbs butter. I only had thin spaghetti (#9) so maybe that was the problem. I don’t know. The pasta never absorbed the broth. I yanked the pasta out of the furiously boiling liquid after 15 minutes and plated that while I reduced the broth/butter mix. I also had a sad looking leek that had to be used up so I had sautéed that alongside the pasta - and once it softened I added the lemon juice and let it simmer.

After the broth/butter combo reduced I added the leek/lemon and let it further reduce. The end result was good. (One of us is a painfully fussy eater and he loved it.) I must try this again with angel hair pasta.

OMGosh! This is awesome! I get home late so many weeknights and don’t want fast food/takeout and don’t feel like a cold salad...I’ve already made this twice in a week & have shared with co workers! We’re hooked! Thanks for a quick comfort food!

Although we were a tiny bit skeptical as we put these few ingredients together, it was amazing. How could pasta without cheese taste that rich? We made two servings and found it was so filling, we didn't finish it all. What a great find for a quick, but delicious meal.

I would never break the pasta, love twirling—but yummy combination of flavors. So much can be done with pasta and whatever is in the fridge!

I just made it today with a little more pasta ( I think 8 oz), 3-3.5 tbsp of butter and I kind of want to say 1.5 cups of broth? Plus I had a chicken breast that I just grilled and stirred together and besides my mistake of adding a little too much pepper, it was absolutely wonderful!

I had this tonight, most excellent, on my list now for a really simple no fuss, no prep meal, delightful, looking forward to pimping it a bit but a fantastic base, thanks.

I followed this technique exactly, but first I sauteed some mushrooms and finely chopped onions in the butter, then added the pasta. This is the creamiest, most delicious pasta dish I have ever cooked! Thank you, I'll be making this again and again.

I had some herb butter that I need to use up and it was ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!!!
I'm definitely going to make this again!!!

Yum! Can't wait to make! Would vegetable stock work for a vegetarian version of this dish?

I made this as is and am completely pleased! Used homemade turkey stock since I had it handy and did top with a little parm as I had it, too. Can’t wait to make it again and again

So, I just made this with gluten free (Jovial) spaghetti. It came out GREAT! So creamy and flavorful. Thanks for the recipe/method!

Used 8oz of angel hair, 3 meyer lemons , 6TB butter and 3 1/2cups of chicken broth. Very creamy texture. The fresh cracked pepper and grated parma add another dimension.

I've been doing this method for years, using orzo to make a sort of 'pilaff.' I saute a little onion or shallot in butter/olive oil before adding the orzo. When it starts turning golden, add chix stock (or vegetable stock,) S&P. You can add any herb or sauteed veg's (done with the onions) you like too - I often use mushrooms and/or sometimes throw in a handful of peas with the broth, and sometimes stir in some grated parm at the end, depending on what else I'm serving. Quick, easy side dish.

I think that I will try this again on Sunday with less butter. It didn't seem greasy or anything- I just think it would still be good with less so I will check it out. I toasted the noodles until quite brown before adding "stock" (better than bouillon). Also added a sprinkle of Habanero powder just because. I found that juice from 1/2 lemon (about the size of an average grocery store lemon) was a bit too acidic- maybe because store bought lemons aren't as juicy. I'll measure the volume of juice next time for reference.

Any idea how much liquid to use for 16 oz of angel hair? Sounds so yum.

I was so excited to try this recipe that I used linguine so I could try it tonight! I will buy angel pasta next time as the linguine did take a bit more time to cook. I did double the recipe to serve two. I used vegan butter and homemade veggie stock and it was great, but I did end up having to cook uncovered for a bit to reduce the liquid the rest of the way. I'll reduce the stock by about 1/4 cup next time. I also used only 1/2 of a real lemon for the juice, and I should have used the whole lemon for 2 servings. Finally, I sprinkled some fresh parsley on top before serving. It was excellent! It will be in rotation for those nights I work late. Thanks for such a wonderful and quick recipe!

This “old” recipe was actually used in my Spanish household growing up - my mother used this same technique but used “Fideo” and made a spicy version of this. Was delicious!

Will this recipe work substituting olive oil for the butter, or sharing the amount half and half? Thanks

Will it work with gluten free pasta?

I use this same basic approach with my raviollies but in a larger quantity ofwhat ever type 'gravy' I'm making. The advantages are: you avoid the inevitable 'broken open' raviollies and water soaked leaky packets, the raviolies don't get stuck together draining them, and they take on wonderful added flavor instead of salt water. Ditto for my tortolinis.

Isn't the key step to actually brown the pasta in the butter to give it a nutty flavor and the golden browned color of the finished dish. The browning of the pasta isn't in the recipe.

Why do you have to click one more time to get the rest of the recipe? Why not put the directions on the same page as the ingredients?

I hate twirling pasta. (I know you break up the angel hair into shorter lengths) but could you suggest how this would work with, say, farfalle, rotini, or penne(because those are the pasta shapes I keep in the kitchen)