Miso Butter Spaghetti with Scallions Recipe
A 30-minute meal from Milk Street Shorts
Miso and garlic deliver a flavor upgrade to that classic kid food—buttered noodles. The perfect quick meal for the busy back-to-school season.
START TO FINISH:
30 minutes
SERVINGS: 4 to 6
Ingredients:
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, cut into 1-tablespoon pieces, room temperature
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons white miso or red miso
- 1 small garlic clove, finely grated
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 4 scallions, thinly sliced, whites and greens reserved separately
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper
- 1 pound spaghetti or linguine
- Chopped toasted walnuts, to serve
Softened butter mixed with miso, garlic, scallion whites and lemon juice creates a simple, flavorful no-cook sauce for pasta. The heat from the noodles and some of the starchy cooking water melts the butter, creating a silky coating. Use mild white miso, assertive red miso or a combination. Spaghetti or linguine are good here, but short gemelli and casarecce also work. If using a short pasta, start by adding only 2 tablespoons cooking water when tossing the noodles with the butter mixture.
In a large pot, boil 4 quarts water. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, using a silicone spatula, mash and stir the butter, miso, garlic, lemon juice, the scallion whites and . teaspoon pepper.
To the boiling water, add the pasta and 1 tablespoon salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Reserve about ó cup of the cooking water, then drain. Immediately add the pasta to the butter-miso mixture, along with . cup of the reserved water. Toss vigorously, adding more cooking water, 1 tablespoon at a time if needed, until lightly sauced; there should not be any liquid pooled in the bowl. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with the scallion greens and walnuts.
Optional garnishes: Finely grated Parmesan cheese or furikake or chili crisp.
