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Lemon-Caper Tuna Spaghetti
Recipe

Lemon-Caper Tuna Spaghetti

Quick & Easy

Fast spaghetti tossed with a bright lemon-caper tuna pan sauce emulsified with pasta water.

Why smarter

18 minutes is realistic: water to boil and pasta cooking run while draining tuna and prepping lemon; sauce warms in the pan in 2 minutes, then emulsifies with pasta water in 1–2 minutes before plating.

Chef tip

The glossy sauce comes from tossing hard with starchy pasta water; keep the heat moderate so the lemon stays bright. Shortcut: Use canned tuna (drained); capers from a jar.

Ingredients

# Ingredient Text Amount Unit Ingredient Name Notes
1 200 g spaghetti 200.000 g spaghetti
2 160 g canned tuna 160.000 g canned tuna
3 2 tbsp capers 2.000 tbsp capers
4 1 lemon 1.000 lemon

Method

  1. Bring a pot of well-salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti until al dente; reserve 150 ml pasta water, then drain.
  2. While the pasta cooks, drain tuna. Zest the lemon and squeeze 2–3 tbsp juice.
  3. In a pan over medium heat, warm 2 tbsp olive oil. Add capers and tuna; stir 1–2 minutes to heat through.
  4. Add drained spaghetti to the pan with lemon zest and 2 tbsp lemon juice. Add a splash of pasta water and toss vigorously to emulsify; add more pasta water as needed until glossy and saucy.
  5. Taste and adjust with more lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Serve immediately.