Pasta with Browned Butter, Yogurt and Herbs
Browned butter brings rich nuttiness, beautifully balanced with strong herbs.
- Makes4 servings
- Cook Time30 minutes
- 8
This dish was inspired by a sauce traditionally spooned over manti, Turkish boiled dumplings typically filled with meat. For rich, full flavor, make sure to cook the butter until the milk solids are deeply browned. Any short, sauce-catching pasta shape works well here, even try filled pastas, such as ravioli or tortellini.
Don’t use tomato paste from a tube for this recipe. Tomato paste sold in tubes usually is double concentrated and will give the dish an overwhelmingly tomato-pasty flavor.
Step 1
In a large bowl, stir together the yogurt, lemon zest, 2 tablespoons of the oregano, 1 teaspoon of the sumac and 1½ teaspoons salt. Set aside.
In a large pot, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil. Add the pasta and 2 tablespoons salt and cook until the pasta is al dente. Reserve ½ cup of the cooking water, then drain the pasta. Add the pasta and the cooking water to the yogurt mixture and toss to coat.
Step 2
Meanwhile, in a 10-inch skillet over medium, melt the butter. Continue to cook, swirling the pan, until the milk solids at the bottom are deep golden brown and the butter has the aroma of toasted nuts, 4 to 5 minutes.
Remove from the heat and whisk in the tomato paste, garlic, ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper, the remaining 1 tablespoon oregano and the remaining 1 teaspoon sumac. The mixture will appear slightly broken.
Step 3
Add the mint, parsley and all but 2 tablespoons of the butter mixture to the pasta and toss to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a serving bowl and drizzle with the remaining butter mixture and sprinkle with additional pepper.
