Light and Simple Pasta with Lemon Caper Sauce
This caper lemon pasta has so much flavor with just a handful of ingredients. Made with fresh lemon, salty capers, your favorite noodle and fresh herbs, you will love everything about this simple sauce.
If you’re looking for more amazing pastas try my Pasta in a Creamy Mushroom Sauce or Almond Butter Noodles.
❤️ Why You’ll Love Lemon Caper Pasta:
- With no heavy cream or butter, this easy lemon caper pasta is light on little tummies.
- The fresh flavor of capers and lemon is light, refreshing and simple.
- Easily make this vegan by omitting the parmesan cheese.
- Perfect busy weeknight dinner that makes a lot of leftovers for the week.
- Add chicken or shrimp for protein.
- This is one of my favorite pasta dishes when I want something hearty and flavorful but don’t want anything too heavy.
- Ready in less than 20 minutes, making dinner ridiculously easy!
- Great baby led weaning recipe for babies and toddlers.
🍲 Ingredients and Substitutions
Spaghetti, angel hair, linguine or any thin pasta are my personal preference for this dish. You can use any type of pasta you wish.
Olive oil brings out the flavor of the garlic for the sauce.
Garlic because garlic makes everything better.
Capers are the heart and soul of this pasta and pairs well with lemon. Add extra capers if you want more of the salty flavor and acidity that capers bring to the dish.
Lemon for both the zest and the juice. Always take the time to use fresh lemon, it’s totally worth it!
Red pepper flakes are optional for some heat but I LOVE it with this pasta dish.
Parsley stimulates your palate and complements salty dishes. I always add parsley when a recipe calls for it.
Parmesan cheese on top for serving.
👩🍳 How to Make Lemon Caper Pasta
- Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water according to the package instructions until al dente. Reserve about 1 cup of pasta water before draining.
- While the pasta cooks, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add minced garlic to the hot pan. Cook garlic until fragrant but not browned.
- Add capers and 1/2 cup pasta water to the skillet and cook for a minute. Add lemon zest to the pan and stir to combine.
- Pour in the lemon juice and season with salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes (if using). Stir to combine.
- Add the drained pasta to the skillet. Toss the pasta in the lemon-caper sauce, ensuring it is well coated. If needed, add a bit of the reserved pasta cooking water to loosen the sauce.
- Remove the skillet from heat and stir in chopped fresh parsley and grated parmesan cheese. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
- Serve the caper lemon pasta immediately, with an extra drizzle of olive oil if desired and grated Parmesan cheese on top.
🪄 Tips and Tricks
- Make sure to save the cup of pasta water! You will need it to loosen the sauce and it adds a bit of starch to thicken your sauce.
- For babies over 6 months of age, omit the red pepper flakes and cut noodles into smaller pieces.
🗒 Variations
- Add chicken, salmon, or shrimp for protein.
🗒 Best served with
- A side dish of roasted veggies or Air Fryer Green Beans
- Garlic bread
- A simple side salad
👝 How to Store Leftovers
Store leftover pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for up the three days. For best results, when reheating, add a splash of vegetable broth or chicken broth if noodles have dried up.
🤔 Common Questions
This is gluten-free if you use a gluten-free noodle. This pasta recipe is dairy-free if you omit the parmesan cheese.
Lemon Caper Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 ounces spaghetti or linguine
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons capers drained
- zest of 1 lemon
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes optional, for some heat
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 cup pasta water
Instructions
- Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water according to the package instructions until al dente. Reserve about 1 cup of pasta cooking water before draining.
- While the pasta is cooking, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add minced garlic and sauté until fragrant but not browned.
- Add capers and 1/2 cup pasta water to the skillet and cook for a minute. Add lemon zest to the pan and stir to combine.
- Pour in the lemon juice and season with salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes (if using). Stir to combine.
- Add the drained pasta to the skillet. Toss the cooked pasta in the lemon-caper sauce, ensuring it is well coated. If needed, add a bit of the reserved pasta cooking water to loosen the sauce.
- Remove the skillet from heat and stir in chopped fresh parsley and grated parmesan cheese. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
- Serve the caper lemon pasta immediately, with an extra drizzle of olive oil if desired and grated Parmesan cheese on top.
