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Brown Butter Tomato Pasta

Brown butter tomato pasta, served on a blue speckled plate.
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Inspired by Marcella Hazan’s iconic 3-ingredient tomato sauce, this version leans into brown butter for a deeper, toastier flavour. As the butter cooks, the milk solids caramelise, giving the sauce a richness that balances the acidity of the tomatoes.

Take your time with the butter; that’s the foundational flavour of the dish. From there, it’s simply a matter of letting the sauce reduce until thick, glossy and just starting to catch slightly at the edges.

  • Author: zenak
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 1 hour
  • Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
  • Yield: 4 1x

Ingredients

Scale
  • 75g unsalted butter
  • 4 garlic cloves, smashed 
  • 2 x 400g tin good-quality crushed tomatoes
  • 30g fresh basil sprigs, reserve some of the leaves for serving
  • 1 tsp sugar (optional, depending on how sweet your tomatoes are)
  • 400g dried pasta of choice (I like spaghetti for this)
  • grated parmigiano reggiano, to serve

Instructions

  1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. It will bubble at first, then as the bubbles die down, the milk solids will sink and caramelise. Once the butter turns golden brown and smells nice and nutty, add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
  2. Add the tinned tomatoes, basil sprigs and sugar. Swirl 100ml water around the empty tins to catch every last bit of tomato, then pour it into the pan. Season generously with salt and pepper and stir to combine.
  3. Bring the sauce to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 45 to 50 minutes, or until thickened.
  4. Just before the sauce is ready, cook the pasta in plenty of well-salted boiling water until al dente. Drain, reserving some of the pasta cooking water.
  5. Remove the basil sprigs from the sauce, then tear the reserved basil leaves and stir them through.
  6. Add the drained pasta to the sauce, along with a ladleful or two of pasta water. Cook, tossing constantly, until the sauce clings to the pasta and the liquid is mostly absorbed, around 1 minute. If it looks too dry, add more pasta water; if too wet, keep tossing to tighten the sauce.
  7. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then divide between bowls and serve with plenty of freshly grated parmigiano reggiano.

Find it online: https://zenaskitchen.com/brown-butter-tomato-pasta/

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