Caramelized Shallot Pasta
This Caramelized Shallot Pasta is about to blow your tastebuds away! Deeply caramelized shallots blend with tomato paste, anchovies, and Calabrian chilies to make a rich sauce bursting with umami. Lemon-garlic breadcrumbs and a mountain of freshly grated parmesan cheese make this 30-minute pasta recipe even more special!
“Jenny, you’ve done it again!! This pasta was SO GOOD. It’s the rich sauce, and those lemon breadcrumbs for me. The breadcrumbs add this perfect lemony buttery CRUNCH to the pasta. Who knew pasta needed a crunch? This pasta is so fun, flirty, and sure to impress. 10/10 will absolutely be making this again. Thanks for a perfect date night dinner!” – Andrew, So Much Food reader
Table of contents
You’d Never Guess That This Decadent-Tasting Pasta Takes Just 30 Minutes to Prepare
I’m huge on entertaining, especially during the holidays. I would say that we have guests for dinner, on average, at least once a month and double that during the holiday season. Everyone needs impressive, but low-effort recipes to whip out when you have company coming!
Enter: this caramelized shallot pasta. It’s an incredible recipe that has glitz, glam, and flavor while still feeling approachable. This is a one-skillet pasta recipe where we build layer upon layer of flavor in a single pan, resulting in a dinner that’s bursting with rich and vibrant flavors throughout.
Rich and bold sauce? Check. Crispy garlicky-lemon bread crumbs for texture? Check. Mounds of cheese? Check, check, check. This simple shallot pasta checks all the boxes for an impressive meal.
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The Main Ingredients You’ll Need
You can find the full list of ingredients, quantities, and method in the recipe card at the end of the page.
- Pasta. I love bucatini for this recipe, but spaghetti or any other strand pasta would work great. I recommend buying high-quality bronze-cut pasta.
- Shallots. Shallots caramelize so beautifully! They have a delicate, sweet flavor that’s almost like a cross between a red and yellow onion. They’re the star ingredient of this dish, so for that reason I don’t recommend substituting them.
- Garlic. Don’t be shy here! I love slicing the garlic instead of mincing it so you get beautiful caramelized pieces in every bite.
- Olive oil + butter. The combination of butter and olive oil is so flavorful. Stirring a couple of tablespoons of butter in at the end makes the sauce rich while balancing out the acidity of the tomato.
- Tomato Paste. Use a high-quality tomato paste for best results.
- Anchovies. Again, with so few ingredients, use high quality anchovies here! You could swap in 1 tablespoon of anchovy paste. This doesn’t make the pasta taste fishy, it just adds tons of umami flavor.
- Calabrian Chilies. My favorite chilies for Italian pasta recipes! They are so fruity with a nice heat. I buy them by the jar at Trader Joe’s (labeled “bomba paste”). You could swap in crushed red pepper flakes to taste.
- White Wine. Use something dry and bright here. If you prefer cooking without alcohol, you could skip the wine and just add more pasta water.
- Parmesan. Buy a wedge and grate it by hand, it makes a huge difference!
- Fresh breadcrumbs. If you don’t have stale bread lying around, just use panko breadcrumbs.
- Lemon zest. A little lemon zest in the breadcrumbs really brightens the dish.
- Basil. The basil adds so much fresh flavor!
How to Make Caramelized Shallot Pasta
- Caramelize the shallots. The trick to caramelizing shallots is to slice them thinly and to let them cook undisturbed so they can develop some color and become nice and jammy. This will take about 10 to 12 minutes over medium heat, FYI. I’ll stir my shallots every couple of minutes to encourage even cooking, but otherwise I leave them alone and work on other components of the recipe (i.e. boiling the pasta and making the breadcrumbs).
- Boil the pasta. Salt the pasta water to season the actual noodles, too! I always cook my pasta 1 to 2 minutes shy of what the box recommends so they turn out perfectly al dente.
Jenny’s Tip: Reserve at least 1 ½ cups of the pasta water before draining! This starchy water is the secret to making any pasta sauce extra creamy and getting the sauce to cling to the noodles.
- Make the lemon garlic breadcrumbs. The garlic and breadcrumbs are toasted in a buttered skillet until golden, then mixed with a little lemon zest. That’s it!
- Cook the anchovies and tomato paste. This is an important step to build flavor! Add the minced anchovies to the caramelized shallots, and stir as they cook to break them down. Add the tomato paste and Calabrian chilies, and let the mixture cook until the tomato paste has darkened in color.
- Deglaze the pan with wine. Once the wine has mostly evaporated, add some of the starchy pasta water and simmer to thicken.
- Bring it all together. Stir the al dente pasta and a pat of butter into the shallot sauce and toss to combine. Top with Parm and the crispy breadcrumbs and dive right in!
Jenny’s Tips for Making This Recipe
Finish cooking pasta directly in the sauce. Always pull your pasta at al dente and cook the pasta in the sauce. It’ll absorb all those flavors better!
Don’t underestimate the power of anchovies! If you’re scared or anxious about cooking with anchovies, trust me, the flavor is so packed with umami. Anchovies, when cooked into a sauce, do not taste fishy at all. They add salt and a rich savory flavor that only enhances the sauce.
Don’t skip the breadcrumbs. Having a texture contrast like crispy, buttery breadcrumbs on top makes this shallot Pasta extra special. The lemon adds a punch of citrus which brightens the whole dish.
Use the right pasta. I always use bronze-cut bucatini because the surface of the pasta is a little rougher from being extruded. This roughness really helps the sauce cling to the noodles!
Mind your salt. Keep an eye on how much salt you add to this dish. We’re using lots of salty elements like salted butter, anchovies, olives, and Parmesan. Taste at the end before adding salt, but feel free to be generous with the pepper!
Side Dish Suggestions
What’s a dinner without sides and dessert? Here are my favorite sides to serve alongside this shallot anchovy pasta for a show-stopping meal.
If you do give this recipe a try, be sure to let me know! Leave a comment with a star rating below. Be sure to subscribe to my weekly newsletter and never miss a new recipe! You can also snap a photo & tag @JENNYGOYCOCHEA on Instagram. I LOVE hearing about & seeing your SMF creations!
More Quick Pasta Recipes to Make Next
- Truffle Mushroom Pasta
- Pink Sauce Pasta
- Roasted Tomato Orzo
- Tomato and Burrata Gnocchi
- Lemon Shrimp Pasta
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Caramelized Shallot Pasta Recipe
Ingredients
Caramelized Shallot Pasta
- 10 oz bucatini pasta
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, divided
- 5 shallots thinly sliced
- 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons chopped Calabrian chilies
- 3 anchovy fillets, finely minced
- 1/2 cup chopped castelvetrano olives (optional)
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 1/2 cups reserved pasta water
- 1 cup freshly grated parmesan
Lemon-Garlic Breadcrumbs
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 garlic clove, grated or finely minced
- 2/3 cup fresh breadcrumbs (or panko)*
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
Instructions
- Boil the pasta until al dente. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the bucatini until al dente (about 1-2 minutes shy of package instructions). Reserve 1 1/2 cups of pasta water and set aside. Drain the pasta and set aside until ready to use. I always cook my pasta while my sauce is cooking vs cooking it ahead of time.
- Caramelize the shallots. Melt 1 tablespoon butter and olive oil in your skillet over medium heat. Add all the thinly sliced shallots and toss to coat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until the shallots start to turn golden brown. Add the thinly sliced garlic and continue to cook until the shallots and garlic are caramelized.
- Build the sauce. Add the minced anchovies and olives, and cook while stirring to break them down into the shallots and garlic. Add the tomato paste and Calabrian chilies to the skillet and stir to incorporate. Cook, stirring often, for 3-4 minutes, until the tomato paste has darkened in color. Add the wine to the skillet and stir to bring to a simmer. Once most of the wine has evaporated, add the reserved pasta water and bring to a simmer.
- Make the lemon garlic breadcrumbs. Melt the butter in a separate small skillet over medium heat. Grate 1 clove of garlic into the butter and cook for 1 minute. Add the breadcrumbs and toss well to coat in the butter. Cook, stirring often, for 4-5 minutes or until the breadcrumbs are golden brown. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon zest.
- Finish the pasta. Add the pasta to the sauce along with the remaining butter and stir to emulsify the butter as it melts. Squeeze in a little lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the parmesan cheese and stir to melt. Divide into bowls. Top with breadcrumbs, basil, and more parmesan.
Notes
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Rate & Review This Recipe
Jenny, you’ve done it again!! This pasta was SO GOOD. It’s the rich sauce, and those lemon breadcrumbs for me. The breadcrumbs add this perfect lemony buttery CRUNCH to the pasta. Who knew pasta needed a crunch? This pasta is so fun, flirty, and sure to impress. 10/10 will absolutely be making this again. Thanks for a perfect date night dinner!
Thank you so much Andrew! So happy you loved the recipe. Thank you for being such a loyal reader! <3