Tangy, briney, and peak stand-over-the-stove-eating-out-of-the-pan goodness.
This low-key puttanesca is a marriage of steamy, sticky noodles, and a silky, olive-oil-heavy, garlicky sauce made with loads of fresh vegetables (yes, vegetables). A knob of butter gets melted into the noodles / sauce to turn up the sauciness, and then, for its final act, the whole thing gets jazzed up with lemon and capers and maybe olives, if you like. It can be topped with some fresh parsley, but also, a little more lemon, salt, and pepper because no, sorry, we don’t quit.
It’s zippy and buttery and fresh all rolled into one. I love it so much.
Plus! Like all good recipes in my life right now, it’s stupidly easy to make.
First up: roast some veggies.
Golden brown = flavor.
Now pulse up your veggies with a can of diced tomatoes, some garlic, lemon, and olive oil.
Voila! A chunky, happy, puttanesca sauce.
Toss on noodles, stir in butter and capers, and tinker for flavor.
THE DELICIOUS END.
It almost makes me a little teary looking at it. Vegetables at their finest, really. It’s so good.
And if you’re into this, you’ll also be into these very summer-forward pasta masterpieces:
- Instant Pot Chicken Cacciatore
- Farmer’s Market Pasta with Walnut Pesto
- The Best Easy Italian Pasta Salad
- Garlic Basil Chicken with Tomato Butter Sauce
- Healthy Baked Pesto Rigatoni
Can I freeze leftover puttanesca sauce?
Yep! We’d recommend just making sure it’s stored in an airtight container that’s safe for the freezer.
What can I substitute for capers in puttanesca sauce?
We’d suggest replacing the capers with more olives.
Can puttanesca sauce be made vegan?
With our version of puttanesca sauce, you’ll need to replace the butter with olive oil or vegan butter.
With more traditional versions of puttanesca sauce recipes, you’ll need to omit the anchovies as well to make the sauce vegan.