Turkey and Courgette Spaghetti
A light Italian pasta where turkey mince and courgette simmer into a soft tomato sauce, then the spaghetti finishes in the pan so the starchy water turns everything glossy.
- Total
- 37 min
- Prep 10 · Cook 27
- Serves
- 1
- Difficulty
- Easy
You'll practice: Searing · Cooking al dente
- Savory
- Italian
- Light
- Stovetop
- Oven
Instructions
-
Fill the large pot with 2 l water, add 1 tsp salt and set it over high heat to come to a rolling boil.
~7 min
Salting the water seasons the pasta from within as it hydrates, and a rolling boil keeps the strands moving so they do not stick.
-
While step 1 cooks
While the water heats, peel and finely chop the onion. Trim the courgette and cut it into 1 cm dice. Grate the parmesan.
~6 min
-
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in the large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the turkey mince and cook for 5 minutes, breaking it up with the wooden spoon, until no pink remains and the edges start to brown.
~5 min
Cooking the turkey until no pink remains and the edges brown ensures it is safely cooked and builds a savoury base for the sauce.
Searing Get the pan hot before adding the mince and leave it undisturbed briefly so a brown crust forms; crowding or stirring constantly steams the meat grey.
-
Add the onion and courgette to the pan with 0.5 tsp salt and 0.5 tsp black pepper. Cook for 6 minutes, stirring, until the onion is soft and the courgette begins to soften. Pour in the canned tomatoes and simmer for 8 minutes, stirring now and then, until the sauce thickens slightly.
~14 min
Simmering the tomatoes evaporates water and concentrates flavour, thickening the sauce so it will cling to the pasta.
-
Add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook for 9 minutes, until just shy of al dente. Scoop out 250 ml of the cooking water with the ladle, then drain the spaghetti in the colander.
~9 min
Cooking the spaghetti just shy of al dente leaves it firm enough to finish in the sauce without turning mushy.
Cooking al dente Boil until the pasta is firm to the bite with a faint white core, then finish in the sauce; overcooking before the finish makes it soft and starchy.
-
Add the drained spaghetti and 150 ml of the reserved cooking water to the sauce. Toss over medium heat for 2 minutes until the sauce clings to the pasta, loosening with more cooking water if it looks dry. Take the pan off the heat, stir in the parmesan and serve.
~2 min
Finishing the pasta in the sauce with starchy water emulsifies the fat and starch, making the sauce glossy and cling to every strand.
Grate the parmesan finely and add it off the heat, so it melts into the sauce instead of clumping.
Cooking al dente Boil until the pasta is firm to the bite with a faint white core, then finish in the sauce; overcooking before the finish makes it soft and starchy.