Spicy Spaghetti With Caramelized Onions and Herbs Recipe (2024)

What brands of dry pasta are “quality”?

Scallions with their greens can stand in for one onion. Fresh dill (I always seem to have some left over) can play a role instead of basil. A tin of smoked mussels can step in for anchovies (though you won’t be mashing them). And, absolutely, do consider some good vinegar a worthy substitute for, or addition to, lemon. If you do have lemon, take the time to add a teaspoon of its zest.

For a higher-end grocery store brand, De Cecco. For a "splurge" brand, Martelli.

I cooked this last night and it was delicious. I make garlic spaghetti all the time but this version will be my new favorite. The onions and olives were a yummy addition to the garlic. Great flavors. I didn't have anchovies so, I used capers.

Barilla high protein and fiber pasta made with legume flour (yellow box) is fantastic. It's virtually impossible to overcook, giving you al dente pasta every time. Plus it has more nutrients than regular semolina pasta. Great for picky kids, too.

I'm a chef, previous owner of 8 restaurants in 5 countries. For me, the best thing about this recipe is Melissa Clark's long-waited-for-by-me advice to do what we want and what we can do with switched-for ingredients. Brava, at last!

second rustichella. de cecco is a good option. I do not like barilla - it tends toward gluiness.

I couldn’t find moraccan olives so I opted for , kalamata olives. I also used anchovy paste, added juice of 1 lemon to the mix and skipped the butter. I would make this again.

I really don't like anchovies...so I cut them from the recipe. On a whim, I mashed up some cherry tomatoes, added a little salt, and used that as a substitute for the anchovies...I thought it was nice and added something nice to the dish.

And like Melissa said, worth the $5-$6 you spend. It really does taste “meaty”

For a higher-end grocery store brand, De Cecco. For a "splurge" brand, Martelli.Barilla tends towards gluiness

We are vegetarians, so the anchovies were omitted. I was skeptical about using olives but I was proved wrong. Wonderful result and easy to make. Instead of using the lemon wedges, I squeezed a half lemon directly into the onion/garlic/basil/parsley mixture. One cup of pasta water was the perfect amount. A generous helping of grated parmesean cheese made it even better. The leftovers heated up great.

Loved it. Would add more (additional) greens next time. And perhaps some bread crumbs!

Had some extra time on Sunday so I made the pasta to go with this; fairly thick linguine worked well. Added a heaping tablespoon of capers in addition to the olives, as well as four anchovy filets. I'll tone down the anchovies and capers next time, though -- too much of a good thing! Should've trusted the recipe as written.

The "Feel free to play around with the basic formula...." remark is something I've preached here many times. Recipes like this should be treated as a suggestion, not a command. Use some imagination, and make it your own creation. Try other herbs, such as fresh oregano, chervil, chives, etc. Even a few leaves of arugula mixed in will work well.

Everyone loved this recipe and a good vegetarian choice. You could have a fried sausage on the side for carnivores. I sautéed chopped broccoli di rape on the side with olive oil and garlic but everyone ended up mixing it in with the pasta, so it could be a good addition to the recipe.

Really good. I now caramelize a bunch of onions early in the week and refrigerate — take that step out of the process and the only real prep is chopping up some olives and parsley, and boiling the pasta. Fast dinner! Liberally salt the water you cook the pasta in and you'll have to add less when you combine it with the onion mixture. Also: Don't skip the squeeze of lemon at the end; that's what *really* makes it pop.

Made for Shabbat dinner. Bland and salty. Do not make again

a delicious and straightforward pasta recipe. The caramelizing took about 20 minutes longer for me, but with such a great payoff. Will make again....just not on a weeknight.

Why is the pasta cooked and drained long before the sauce is finished??? Why am I the only one asking this?

Guys- This, made according to the recipe, is soul-satisfying goodness. Especially, if you listen to the new Brandie Carlisle while making it.

Added chicken, left our anchovies and olives; still delicious

Delicious! We will definitely make this again. I added a couple cups of chiffonade kale to the onions and added Asiago to the Parmesan cheese but otherwise followed the recipe. This recipe is a winner!

Cutting to the chase, I used Pasta Abruzzese di semola di grano duro linguine. About 8 oz for a side dish for 2 of us. To the onion, just softened, I added the kernels of two ears of corn. Later I used one anchovy mashed with the garlic and all basil. Delicious. Yes, I changed the recipe but I had the corn and it's time to pick the basil and it worked...

Have made this as well as it's "red sauce" cousin, Caramelized Shallot Pasta. It's easy to adjust the quantities for 16 oz of pasta. The carmelizing requires a watchful eye. Kalmata olives seemed sufficiently flavorful. I thought it was delicious--I used parmesan when I first made it and then toasted some panko for the leftovers. I liked the panko more than the parmesan, but would recommend both.

We like this recipe a lot and have added it into the dinner rotation. It’s nice to have some interesting pasta dishes that don’t have meat in them and this is a go-to. I love the unique flavors of the onions and lemon and chili flake and Parmesan all together. It’s a bit deceiving though, the onions take quite awhile to cook down so it’s not one of the fastest recipes you’ll make!

We make this dish a lot. Family favorite. That said, If you allow more time for the onions to really cook down and carmelize, you are going to come up with a much richer dish. Sometimes I add shallots thinly sliced as well.The lemon added at the finish (or some other acid) is essential to balance out the sweetness of the onions.

Melissa never disappoints! This was delicious. Don’t scrimp on the garlic or onions, or fresh parsley.I also added a pound of sea scallops sautéed in butter, so I dumped them in at the end and didn’t need the extra butter. Like others I added some cherry tomatoes too. A definite keeper.

Why do so many recipes call for 12 oz. pasta when it comes in a 16 oz. box?

More anchovies. Capers are great too.