This smoked salmon pasta is full of flavor and comes together in just 20 minutes! Smoked salmon is tossed with fresh basil, cherry tomatoes, and creamy lemon garlic sauce. You only need 1 pot and a couple of ingredients to make this easy and delicious dinner.
Ingredients
Below you will find information about the ingredients and how to prepare the recipe. For the measurements and detailed instructions scroll down to the printable recipe card.
Here´s what you need to make this easy dish:
- smoked salmon – ready-to-eat protein with tons of flavor, I used cold-smoked salmon for this recipe (this is what I prefer) but you can also use hot-smoked salmon
- small-sized pasta – I like to use bow ties
- heavy cream – as a creamy base of the sauce
- parmesan – makes the sauce cheesy and adds a ton of flavor, freshly grated parmesan tastes best
- fresh basil – you could also add dried but fresh adds a lot of flavor and this dish does not have a lot of ingredients
- cherry tomatoes – add freshness to this pasta and cut through the richness
- lemon juice – adds a citrusy note and refreshing flavor to the creamy sauce
- garlic – must be fresh, don´t substitute garlic powder, it´s important to chop it with a knife and not a garlic press – this way you can add lots of garlic flavor without it being harsh
- butter and olive oil for cooking the garlic, you can use just butter or just olive oil
What you could also add:
- saute some shallots before adding garlic
- chopped sun-dried tomatoes and fresh spinach (something a la Tuscan salmon!)
- sauteed zucchini
- capers and fresh dill
How to make smoked salmon pasta step by step
STEP 1: Cook the pasta al dente according to the package instructions (10 minutes for my pasta). Towards the end of the cooking time, reserve about 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta on a colander and set aside.
STEP 2: While the pasta is cooking, prepare all the other ingredients: chop the garlic finely with a knife (don´t use a garlic press or the garlic flavor may be too harsh), juice the lemon, grate the parmesan, tear the salmon into smaller (bite-sized) pieces, cut tomatoes in half, tear basil leaves into smaller pieces.
Note: it´s important to chop garlic with a knife and not a garlic press – this way you can add lots of garlic flavor without it being harsh.
STEP 3: To the same pot you´ve cooked pasta in, add olive oil, butter, and garlic. Cook for 30 seconds or until the garlic is fragrant, don´t let it brown.
Add 1/4 cup of pasta cooking water and cook for 1 minute.
STEP 4: Add cream and bring to a boil.
STEP 5: Add the cooked pasta, parmesan, lemon juice, salmon, tomatoes, and basil. Toss everything together, season to taste with salt and pepper. Add more reserved pasta cooking water if the pasta is too dry.
Note: I prefer cherry tomatoes firm and crunchy in this recipe. If you´d like them softer, cook them for 1-2 minutes in the cream sauce before adding other ingredients.
Enjoy!
Storage
This pasta tastes best freshly prepared but you can reheat that. My problem with reheating it is that the salmon kind of breaks down too much when stirring it, the tomatoes are too soft, and the pasta absorbs the sauce and is not al dente. That said, it really can be quickly reheated but it´s just not soo good when freshly made. When reheating it, do it slowly, over low heat, and try to not stir too often. You can keep it in the fridge for up to 3 days.
More easy pasta recipes
- Pasta Puttanesca
- Parsley Pesto Pasta
- Pasta with Sausage and Peppers
- Creamy Chicken Orzo
- Lemon Broccoli Pasta
- Caprese pasta
- Chicken Fajita Pasta
- Roasted Vegetable Pasta
Did you make this recipe? RATE THE RECIPE or tell me in the COMMENTS how you liked it! You can also add a photo of your dish. It would make me very happy and will help other readers. Thank you!!
Smoked Salmon Pasta
Ingredients
- 10 ounces (340g) bowtie pasta
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup pasta cooking water reserve 1/2 cup
- 1 cup (240ml) heavy cream
- 1/3 cup grated parmesan small holes of a box grater
- 3-4 teaspoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 7 ounces (200g) smoked salmon
- 20 cherry tomatoes
- 1 twig basil leaves
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the pasta al dente according to the package instructions (10 minutes for my pasta). Towards the end of the cooking time, reserve about 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta on a colander and set aside.
- While the pasta is cooking, prepare all the other ingredients: chop the garlic finely with a knife (don´t use a garlic press or the garlic flavor may be too harsh), juice the lemon, grate the parmesan, tear the salmon into smaller (bite-sized) pieces, cut tomatoes in half, tear basil leaves into smaller pieces.
- To the same pot you´ve cooked pasta in, add olive oil, butter, and garlic. Cook for 30 seconds or until garlic is fragrant, don´t let it brown.
- Add 1/4 cup of pasta cooking water and cook for 1 minute.
- Add cream and bring to a boil.
- Add the cooked pasta, parmesan, lemon juice, salmon, tomatoes, and basil. Toss everything together, season to taste with salt and pepper. Add more reserved pasta cooking water if the pasta is too dry.
- Enjoy!
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