Before you start to tell us that you don’t like fishy flavors, hear us out: we have served this dish to people who didn’t even realize they were eating fish. This pasta dish is a true marriage of Mediterranean flavors and it’s the bottarga that brings them all together, with its umami flavor. So umami.
Nota bene: you can make it now and eat it later! One reason we love this recipe and use it as a go-to dish for guests is because you can stop after step 2, put it in the fridge, and start with step 3 the next day. Just make sure to let the sauce return to room temperature.
Ingredients
SERVES: 4-5 people
TIME: 30 minutes
1 bag Spaghetti or Linguine Faella (500 gr/1.1 lbs)
1/2 Whole Mullet Bottarga (60gr/2 oz)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Sardegna, 6 tablespoons
Rinds of 2 lemons, zested
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 cup of finely chopped parsley
Chili peppers, 1 teaspoon or to taste
Salted Capers, rinsed (25 gr/0.8 oz), optional
Sea salt
Preparation
- Peel away the outer layer and finely grate the bottarga.
- In a serving bowl, mix bottarga, EVOO, capers, and lemon juice + zest, garlic, parsley, and chili pepper.
- Cook the pasta in salted boiling water until al dente (approx. 8 minutes).
- Drain the pasta, saving 1/2 cup of pasta water.
- Put the pasta inside the serving bowl and stir all the ingredients together. To increase the creaminess, pour (one teaspoon at a time) some pasta water and a splash of EVOO and continue stirring.
- Serve immediately and finish by grating more Bottarga on each plate.