Anyone can make a Pesto Pasta, but not everyone knows how to make a pesto pasta that’s slick with plenty of pesto sauce without adding tons of extra oil! Here’s how I make it.
Try this with homemade pesto. It’s amazing!
How to make a JUICY pesto pasta with pesto sauce
If you’ve ever made pesto pasta and found that it a bit on the dry side, then tried to salvage it by adding more and more olive oil only to end up with an excessively greasy pasta, you’ll love the technique I’m sharing today:
Add pasta cooking water
It will thin out the pesto so it coats everything nicely and creates a glossy pesto sauce that coats every bit of pasta. The starch in the water emulsifies with the pesto, which simply means the fat in the pesto + starch in the water thickens. Just like when you shake up salad dressings – same thing. 🙂
It’s the “proper” way to make pastas, a technique used in every Italian household and restaurants all over the world. Regular readers here are sick of reading about it – I write about it in every pasta recipe, from Shredded Beef Ragu to classic Bolognese, to Spaghetti Marinara!
And THAT is the secret to making a JUICY pesto pasta that’s slick with pesto sauce without adding tons and tons of extra oil!
Best pasta for pesto
You can make pesto pasta with any pasta your heart desires. And even in today’s recipe video, I say to use your favourite pasta.
But I do have my preferences. My favourite is penne or ziti (which is just penne with a smooth surface). I find it’s the easiest to toss for even distribution and you get the “juiciest” pesto pasta.
Spaghetti and other thin(-ish) long strand pastas are my next favourite. I find that it’s not quite as easy to toss the pesto through and the more you work the pasta, the less saucy it becomes (though you just keep adding pasta cooking water, but there’s only so much you can add).
Twirls and other shapes with “crevices” rate lower just because there’s far more surface area so somehow, I just feel a bit pesto deprived.
Pesto pasta tips
I say that pesto pasta is one of the simplest pastas to make, but I do have a few tips to share – lessons learned from my own mistakes!
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Toss in a bowl, not the pot you cooked the pasta in – basil doesn’t like heat. It turns black. The heat from the pasta is ok – but if you add the heat from the pot, the basil won’t like it.
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Do not toss on the stove! Again – black basil.
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Take out 1 cup of pasta cooking water just before you drain (not earlier, otherwise it’s not starchy enough). Take out way more than you think you need, you might need it. You will be surprised how much the pasta can absorb – I used 3/4 cup for 300g/10oz pasta for the spaghetti in the video (because I kept tossing to film and it kept sucking up the sauce!)
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Salt the water – Pesto usually isn’t (and should not be) seasoned enough such that you don’t need to add any other salt once tossed through pasta. The best way to season Pesto Pasta is to salt the water.
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DO NOT REHEAT leftover pesto pasta! Again – black pesto. 😭 Eat at room temp – that’s the best you can do.
I’m sharing these tips on the assumption that you’re using a homemade pesto (basil or otherwise). I actually haven’t used store bought pesto enough to know if it will turn black from heat.
These recipe steps apply irrespective of what type of pesto you are using – basil, rocket/arugula, spinach etc – there’s a nice list of options in my homemade pesto recipe. The image below is a rocket/arugula and walnut pesto – I love the combination of the spicy rocket and slightly bitter walnuts.
Whatever type pf pesto you use, finishing with a nice sprinkle of parmesan is not optional! – Nagi x
Try these on the side
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Caprese Salad – juicy tomato and pops of tartness from the balsamic glaze are a great match!
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Any salad or steamed vegetables with Italian Dressing or Balsamic Dressing
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Toss some halved cherry tomatoes into the pasta, and/or a handful of spinach or rocket/arugula
And for Pasta Monsters
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Everybody’s favourite everyday Bolognese
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Slow Cooked Shredded Beef Ragu or try this Italian Sausage and Beef Ragu
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Baked Ziti – the mother of all pasta bakes!
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Pasta alla Norma – Sicilian eggplant, tomato and basil pasta
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Browse all pasta recipes
Pesto pasta
Watch how to make it
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JUICY Pesto Pasta!
Ingredients
- 1 quantity homemade pesto (Note 1)
- 300 - 350 g / 10 - 12 oz pasta of choice (ziti, penne and spaghetti are my favourites, Note 2)
- 2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup pasta cooking water
- Parmesan, for serving
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to the boil with the salt.
- Add pasta and cook for the length of time per the packet.
- Just before draining, scoop out 1 cup of of the pasta cooking water.
- Drain pasta in a colander, leave it for a minute.
- Transfer pasta to a bowl (do not use pasta cooking pot, too hot).
- Add pesto and 1/4 cup of pasta water. Toss to coat pasta in pesto, adding more water if required to make pasta silky and saucy, rather than dry and sticky.
- Taste, add more salt and pepper if desired.
- Serve immediately, garnished with fresh parmesan.
Recipe Notes:
- Use 300g/10oz for a really great coating of pesto sauce - 3 large servings, 4 smallish servings.
- Use up to 350g/12oz for "normal" amount of pesto sauce to pasta - 4 standard servings.
- Don't use more pasta for one batch of homemade pesto, the pasta will lack pesto flavour.
- Never toss pesto pasta on a hot stove, heat will make basil black!
- Some people like a squeeze of lemon juice to finish
- Leftovers - store in fridge in super airtight container
- Do not reheat leftovers - will also make basil black. Just bring to room temp then consume - pesto pasta at room temp is so good!
Life of Dozer
Distressed that he’s on the wrong side of the bakery shop door….
Hello. I want to make pesto pasta or pesto salad for kids party. I plan on making the Pesto the previous day and refrigerate it. Can I just toss the refrigerated cold pesto in the cooked pasta when I need it the next day for the party ? Also, once done, can I just keep it out at room temperature for like half a day? Since, the party is outdoors, just wanted to ensure that it won’t turn black. Thank you.
Hi Moni, as long as you cover in oil and refrigerate it will stay fresh, I would heat it up or at least let it come to room temp before serving over hot pasta though. N x
Thank you for your response. Will the Pesto pasta stay good outdoors for like half a day ?
Great idea to use the starchy pasta water, but what if you have a lot of leftover pasta, and no water? Would boiled water with salt and maybe a teaspoon or less flour work? I made pesto pasta with chicken and broccoli last night, and my husband remarked that it was delicious, but a little dry – your website was a great discovery to remedy that problem! TIA!
First time making pesto sauce …nailed it in my new Nutribullet and parmesan grated with my new microplane from your kitchen equipment recommendations. Thanks for another winner Nagi.
Hi Nagi.
We’re vegetarians and tin eats has become a household name – brilliant tips and sauces.
As a thank you I thought I’d pass on a tip re avoiding the horror of ‘black pesto’.
Contrary to heat turning basil black, I make pesto by first plunging the leaves into boiling water for a few seconds then into iced water – drain them and lightly pat dry with paper towel or cloth.
They look damp, limp and reduced in bulk (as spinach does) so I use more basil than the recipe requires and less oil, then blend it. The flavour is richer and the pesto remains green for over a week. I make it in bulk and freeze half in ice cube trays.
When I want to make a pesto pasta sauce I add a mashed avocado with a squeeze of lemon juice – more or less in equal volumes.
The result is a tasty, creamy, not at all oily sauce. I’m sure you could perfect this in ways I couldn’t imagine
I made the orecchiette and sausage– OUTSTANDING– as is usual with stuff I make with Nagi and Dozer. 🥰🥰
I’m going to try this recipe tonight, but I have to use gluten free pasta… Any suggestions? Should I still reserve some pasta water for this?
Hi Lance, I would cook the same way – it’s the starch in the water that causes the sauce to thicken (not gluten). N x
Wow this recipe is incredible. This is the best pesto pasta I have ever tried and I can’t thank you enough for this recipe :). I added a spoon of lemon juice to the pesto sauce and it was great. Beyond delicious! Thank you 🙂
Amazing! I followed the recipe and added a bit of roasted chicken to it. It was soooo good! The next day I heated it up in the microwave and it was yummy. The pesto didn’t turn black on me! Btw, I used Costco’s Pesto.
Sounds perfect Deb! N x
So tasty and versatile. Made this tonight with homemade fettuccine. We devoured it all so no leftovers for tomorrow.
Perfect Heather – sounds great! N x
Hi Nagi,
I have been following your recipes and it is fantastic. I love the tips you put in every recipes as it really helps me in making the dish better.
Thanks again and keep on coming with new recipes.
That’s great to hear, thanks so much Nurul 🙂 N x
Hi Nagi! Do you think ground beef or turkey would go well with this? It’s all I have on hand. I was thinking, cook the beef separately first, then mix it though the pesto and pasta?
Sure could Anna!! Enjoy! N x
i just made this, and it was a huge hit with my family! they really loved the distinct garlic taste and how creamy it was!
I’m so glad you loved it Nabilah!! N x
Nagi, Thank you for the wonderful pesto pasta. My grand children love it. I was having the most difficult time keeping the sauce from getting gunkie, but you provided the ideal answer with using the water. The sauce is totally great. I am going to try some of your other recipes. Great cooking!
You’re forever changed Diane!! N x
Love this ! Your site is my daily go-to.. 🙂 many thanks for all of the wonderfully delicious recipes. …and tips!
I made this last night with your homemade pesto recipe. A surprising consequence of the corona virus is that I didn’t have much of a choice of pasta at the supermarket. I bought bowties & it was delicious. If this scare goes on too much longer I’m going to have to get the pasta machine out & start making fresh pasta!!!!
But then you’ll need FLOUR and the stores are completely out of flour now too!! 😂
Nagi, yet another recipe that we make constantly! We eat this every time i get fresh basil. Using your pesto recipe, it’s one of my kids favourites. Adding the little bit of pasta water makes it a great consistency.
YESSSS!!! Thanks so much for letting me know Leisa!
I just finished cooking this now and my daughter is excited for the green spaghetti. I made your homemade pesto with spinach, a bit of basil paste, and chickpeas instead of nuts. I also used a bit of the chickpea water and less oil.
The only problem was I kept eating the pesto before the pasta was cooked. Everyone seems to like it!
Woah that sounds great BeckBeck!
You’ve done it again Nagi – You’ve taken something I make often and shown me how to do it better! I get the fresh Pesto from Costco usually for convenience but this way means I use less Pesto and actually get a better balanced result.
Thanks again!
Love to know what you think if you get a chance to try it Jason! 🙂 N x
I did try it, that was my verdict 🙂
Quick question though – what would you do if cooking fresh pasta, would you still use the pasta water – I’m assuming there would be less starch as it cooked in about 5 mins x
This is a wonderful recipe in which the basil was the star instead of the olive oil.. I love pasta tossed in pesto but it always seems to be too oily, even when I order it at “authentic” Italian restaurants. I inevitably end up with pasta drowned in a pool of olive oil on my plate. I don’t know if that is a problem that is unique to the US where we tend towards the excessive. I used basil and cashews and I found this pesto to be bright and wonderfully fragrant. I also added a bit of the salted pasta water when tossing and there was no trace of excess olive oil. Absolutely delicious!
Not unique to the States, the pesto pasta here is pretty oily too 🙂 Restaurants tend to finish pasta off with a good drizzle of oil, I find that’s what makes them extra oily. I am really glad you enjoyed this one! N x
Costco has the best pesto.
Thanks for the tip Carroll! N x