This Farfalle with Salmon, Lemon, and Peas is a delicious pasta recipe with chunks of tender salmon, and garden peas in a to-die-for creamy lemon sauce!
This quick weeknight dinner is an old family favorite, I’m not sure why I’ve never posted it here before. The dinner comes together in the time it takes the pasta to cook, and the flavor is wonderfully lemony. I love salmon, and this is one way to make a half a pound stretch to feed four. The ingredient list is short: farfalle (or bow tie pasta,) salmon, frozen peas, cream, lemon, and a dash of Parmesan cheese. A little salt and pepper is all you need to finish off a wonderful family meal that is hearty but manages to be light and bright at the same time. You can thank the fresh lemon juice and zest for that.
This is a homey meal that has a restaurant ‘feel’ to it. I think it’s the heavy cream that’s responsible, which also means that this is not low calorie dish. But the cream does so many good things for this pasta, I think, once you taste it, you’ll agree the calories are worth it. For one thing the cream allows you to add as much lemon as you need to get great lemony flavor. With anything short of heavy cream, the sauce would curdle with the addition of the acidic citrus juice. This is also a kid pleaser and a great way to introduce fish to picky eaters…my girls grew up loving ‘pink fish’, and this has been one of their most requested meals over the years.
You can use leftover cooked salmon, but I usually buy a small piece and poach it especially for this dish. I put the fish in a saucepan and add water, almost to cover. I bring it to a boil, then cover tightly and turn off the heat. The salmon cooks to perfection in about 10 minutes. I drain it, remove any skin, and gently break it apart with clean hands. The fish flakes naturally into large pieces which retain their integrity in the sauce. You want to be able to see and taste that beautiful salmon, so don’t break it up too much.
Farfalle is the perfect pasta shape for this, it retains a bite, and the lemony cream sauce nestles in the crevices of the bow. I think pasta shapes like this are so much better for creamy sauces, everything just mixes together better and doesn’t clump like strand pasta can.
Ingredients
- 2 good rounded cups farfalle, (bowtie pasta) uncooked
- 1/2 lb salmon fillet or leftover cooked salmon
- juice and zest of 1 large or 2 small lemons
- 1 cup frozen peas (no need to defrost)
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 3 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese, or more to taste
- salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
- If your salmon is not cooked, place it in a saucepan and almost cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, then cover tightly and remove from the heat. Let it poach for 10 minutes. Drain and remove the skin, then gently pull the fish into large flakes with clean hands. Set aside.
- Cook the pasta to just al dente. I usually cook it a couple of minutes LESS than the package tells me to, this way the pasta retains some bite. Drain.
- While the pasta is cooking, heat the cream in a large saute pan. Add the frozen peas, the flaked salmon, the lemon juice, zest, and the salt and pepper to taste and heat everything through. Add the cooked pasta and a good sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. Mix everything well and make sure the sauce is good and hot. Take the time to give it a taste, and adjust the salt and pepper, and maybe add more lemon or cheese if it needs it. Serve with extra cheese.
This dish makes comfort food out of my favorite fish — gotta love it!
31 Comments
Renee
September 27, 2016 at 5:19 pmDon’t know what I did but I seem to be the only one who couldn’t make it right! The cream curdled as soon as I put the lemon in. I threw away the first batch and tried again. Curdled again.
Sue
September 27, 2016 at 7:21 pmCream should not curdle when you add lemon, Renee, I’m confused. Is it possible the cream was past it’s fresh date? And was it regular cream, not half and half?
Amy
July 1, 2017 at 6:08 amtry lower heat, mine curdled the first time (still taste okay, just looks ugly) and was delicious next time made on low heat. Hope it helps!
Tracie
September 27, 2016 at 8:50 amReally wonderful and easy dish. I’m making it again tonight for the second time. Wouldn’t change a thing! Thanks! Can’t wait to try more of your recipes!
bill
June 24, 2016 at 6:57 pmmade it! But, just slapped it together without measuring anything. Came out great! Will add this to list of keepers.
Sue
June 24, 2016 at 8:18 pmI’m totally a fan of slapping it together :)
Cory
February 9, 2016 at 5:53 pmI just made this with leftover grilled salmon, and it was delicious. However, I found that I had to use much more than the 1/3 cup liquid as published. I was using half and half, and just kept on adding more and more (I didn’t measure). I usually dislike leftover salmon, but I will most certainly use this recipe again.
Sue
February 9, 2016 at 6:21 pmThere is always a little leeway in recopies to allow for variation for whatever reason, I’m glad you liked this Cory.
Cory
February 9, 2016 at 7:07 pmOh I agree! My pasta must have been extra thirsty :-)
Amber
November 15, 2015 at 6:55 pmI just made this! Just finished eating it about 5 minutes ago and had to leave a comment on how delightful it was. Creamy, yet light. Poached the salmon per the instructions. Only thing I left out was the zest. Either because I don’t have a zester or because I’m too lazy and just used bottled lemon juice…take your pick. Very good, though! I’ll be making again.
Tammy Wexler
August 5, 2015 at 10:05 pmYay, Sue!! Made this tonight with leftover salmon that had a little balsamic glaze on it, and it was great! Used half & half instead of heavy cream and added (at Jenna’s suggestion) dill! FABulous! Keep ’em coming! xo
Sue
August 6, 2015 at 5:47 amThanks so much for the feedback Tammy — I’m interested that you used half and half, I would love to do that, but I was afraid that the lemon would curdle it, so I guess I’m going to try it that way next time!
Louise
February 16, 2015 at 7:39 pmThis sounds great. How many people do you think it serves as a main course – assuming there is also a salad? I have to make a light lunch for 50 people – don’t want it to be too expensive – and thought this would work. Is it ok to serve an hour later room temperature? Or does the cream sauce get thick and yucky at room temp? thanks!
Sue
February 16, 2015 at 8:32 pmAs the recipe is written, it would serve about four, I just added that to the post, thanks, Louise. I allow about 1/8 lb of salmon per person. Not sure about the room temperature…if you could have it in chafing dishes that might be better, but as long as you don’t refrigerate the pasta, the sauce should be ok for an hour.
Amanda
February 4, 2015 at 1:25 pmAnyone tried this with plain unsweetened almond milk in place of heavy cream?
Birthe
February 2, 2015 at 4:49 amNice and easy! What more do you want? ;)
Abbe+@+This+is+How+I+Cook
January 21, 2015 at 6:17 pmI am so partial to farfalle. I think those bow ties just taste better because they are so cute. Love this dish, Sue! Lemon, salmon, peas and cream. One just can’t go wrong!
John@Kitchen+Riffs
January 21, 2015 at 10:15 amI love this dish! I make something really similar, but never thought to use lemon. I will, though. :-) Thanks for this.
Laura (Tutti Dolci)
January 20, 2015 at 10:24 pmI love these light and bright flavors, the perfect meal to enliven a cold January day!
Kitchen Belleicious
January 20, 2015 at 7:30 pmwhat a wonderful light and flavorful dish. The green peas add a nice touch of color and I love that sauce.
Joanne
January 20, 2015 at 5:38 pmCreamy pasta is one indulgence worth the calories. Plus, I figure the salmon and peas infuse it with so much health, they pretty much cancel each other out!
Sue
January 20, 2015 at 7:53 pmOf course :)
Tricia @ Saving room for dessert
January 20, 2015 at 5:15 pmOh I bet that salmon is tender – I love to poach chicken that way too. Beautiful dish that has it all! Very nice Sue :)
Sue
January 20, 2015 at 8:15 pmI do my boiled eggs that way too!
MoniQue
January 20, 2015 at 12:08 pmI Have always made it with smoked salmon..I prefer yours.
Not a big ss fan here…
Sue
January 20, 2015 at 2:37 pmNice idea, though, to make it with smoked salmon, then it’s a complete pantry meal…
Sippitysup
January 20, 2015 at 10:02 amThis is my partners favorite pasta. He’s mad for peas. GREG
Sue
January 20, 2015 at 10:16 amMad for Peas… sounds like a good blog name :)
Ann-Marie
January 20, 2015 at 7:57 amI am going to make this tonight! YUM.
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers
January 20, 2015 at 5:51 amWhat a beautiful pasta and a great way to add more salmon to the weekly meals. I’ll be making this :)
Angie@Angie's+Recipes
January 20, 2015 at 3:20 amThis is my kind of healthy comfort treat, Sue.