Crab Linguine with Truffle Butter? Man oh man oh man! This is a delicious meal that screams decadence and luxury. You would never think that it comes together in less than 20 minutes. This recipe is inspired by the Crab and Chile Chitarra Pasta in Marcus Samuelsson’s The Rise, which calls for tossing spaghetti in uni butter.
For those who are unfamiliar with uni (which was me before making this dish!), it was traditionally considered a delicacy in Japan. It consists of the inside of sea urchins, and is commonly found in Asian grocery stores.
Although uni was not available at my local supermarket, a tiny container of black truffle butter caught my eye. Truffles are fungi similar to mushrooms and have a rich, earthy flavor. I thought they would offer a umami punch similar to that which the uni would provide, so I decided to give the butter a try. Boy am I glad I did. Honestly, I could eat truffle butter by itself. It’s that good.
Mixed with unsalted butter, the truffle butter made a beautiful, silky sauce that I folded linguine into. I added in Italian Calabrian chiles, basil, lump crabmeat, lemon, and freshly ground black pepper. And voila! Lunch was served.
PrintCrab Linguine with Truffle Butter, Basil, and Chiles
Crab linguine tossed in truffle butter and garnished with basil and chiles.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Simple
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 8 ounces linguine
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup black truffle butter, softened
- 1/4 tsp ground turmeric powder
- 4 ounces lump crabmeat
- 8 Calabrian Chile peppers, stemmed and sliced lengthwise
- 4 basil leaves, diced
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp lemon zest
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Place the linguine in a frying pan and cover with water. Add the salt and turn the heat on medium high. Cook until the pasta is al dente, or just tender (about 10 minutes). See note 1.
- Drain the pasta and remove it from the pan, reserving a 1/4 cup of the pasta water.
- To the same pan, melt the unsalted butter and black truffle butter on medium low heat. Add the pasta to the pan and fold in the butter sauce with the reserved pasta water and turmeric. Remove the pan from heat.
- Add the crabmeat, chiles, basil, and lemon juice to the pasta. Toss to combine.
- Garnish the pasta with lemon zest and basil.
Notes
- I like to make pasta this way because it is much faster and requires much less water than the traditional way. For a guide to making pasta in a pan with cold water, check out this post.
Keywords: American, simple, quick
For more simple recipes that pack a flavor punch, check out:
This looks yum! Thanks for the recipe!
xoxo
Lovely
http://www.mynameislovely.com
Of course! Glad you enjoyed the post.
Oh wow, these look amazingly delicious! My sister loves anything with truffle so I am sure she would love these! I had never heard of Uni, so it was great to learn something new, thanks for sharing x
Thank you so much! This was my first time trying truffles and I’m definitely hooked now.
This is such a unique pasta dish. Crab and pasta is the perfect food ? marriage. Sounds delicious ?
Thank you so much 🙂
First of all, I love pasta. Second, I love crab. So I know this pasta tasted good. Thank you for sharing your recipe with me.
Right? Crab pasta is definitely a new favorite of mine!
I have used truffle oil before but, wow, that truffle butter looks amazing! The taste and smell of truffles is so unique and enriching; you have to taste it to truly appreciate it, and in this recipe it adds that special overtone that takes the breath away.
Thanks for sharing!!
Ooh truffle oil is going to be something else I try soon. Your description is right on, and the butter added so much flavor to this simple dish. Thank you for reading!
I haven’t tried crab before but this linguine sounds incredible! Great recipe as per usual x
Thank you so much for the kind words!
These looks delicious! Thanks for sharing!
My pleasure, thank you for reading!
This recipe sounds simply amazing! I’d definitely love to try it soon
Thank you so much!