Tomato-Butter Pasta
Updated Feb. 18, 2025
- Total Time
- 25 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- Kosher salt
- 1pound wavy or ridged pasta (like cavatappi or rigatoni), or a long noodle (like fettuccine)
- 2pounds large, ripe tomatoes (about 2 to 3), halved horizontally
- 4tablespoons cold unsalted butter
- 1large garlic clove, peeled
- ¼teaspoon red-pepper flakes, plus more for serving
- Black pepper
- Torn basil leaves, for serving (optional)
- Finely grated Parmesan, for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
573 calories; 14 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 95 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams dietary fiber; 9 grams sugars; 18 grams protein; 833 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, using the large holes of a box grater, grate the cut ends of the tomato into a large bowl. Discard or compost skins. Grate the butter into the bowl as well. Using the small holes of the box grater, grate the garlic into the bowl. Add the red-pepper flakes, and season generously with salt. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Step 3
Return the drained pasta to the pot, along with the bowl of grated tomato and butter. Set over medium-high heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens slightly and glosses the pasta, 2 to 3 minutes (the sauce will thicken as it sits). Add pasta water as needed to emulsify the sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with more red-pepper flakes, black pepper, basil and Parmesan as desired.
Private Notes
Comments
In Italy we make versions of this pretty much every day in summer, with either olive oil (south) or butter (north), minus the raw garlic which Italians find indigestible. Easier to start heating the sauce in a pan, then transfer the under-cooked pasta with a slotted spoon, incorporating some water--no colander needed. Here leftover pasta is never saved much less eaten cold; it goes right to the dog.
It seems the author (and many readers) are conflating "al dente" with "under-cooked." Here in Italy, al dente is ready to eat. If you cook the pasta al dente and then cook it 2-3 minutes longer, it will be mush. The recipe should have said to cook the pasta 2-3 minutes less than al dente.
To avoid over-cooking the pasta: instead of cooking it al dente and then adding it back to the pot, cook the pasta until it’s done, reserving some of the cooking water. Drain the pasta and immediately transfer it to a big bowl. Add the sauce, the Parmesan cheese, and a little of the reserved pasta water. Stir vigorously, using a whisking motion. Add more cheese and more water if needed, and stir again. The sauce forms beautifully in less than 30 seconds and the pasta will be perfect.
Instead of grating the butter and tomatoes I stuck the garlic/red pepper/salt in a large bowl, cut the butter into cubes, and put the deskinned tomatoes in a blender. I then dumped the butter/tomatoes into the bowl and followed everything else as written. It was delicious!!
My favorite recipe on this site and my favorite meal period. I look forward to making this dish all year and it’s the first thing my family asks for once I start bringing home good tomatoes from the market. Thank you for the recipe.
Heat sauce in pan and then add noodles by the spoonful without draining. Use 3 garlic cloves