Think salmon sashimi and pesto with noodles and you get a good idea what this salmon and pesto spaghetti is all about. When my younger daughter announced earlier today that she wanted to go on a pasta and pesto diet for the rest of the summer, I decided to humor her.
Why not? That’s less work for me and there are so many variations of pasta with pesto that I’ve been dying to try anyway. I’ve made pasta and pesto with smoked salmon, pasta and pesto with bacon and plain pasta and pesto with no meat nor fish. I’ve been meaning to try another no-meat-nor-fish version by throwing in some barely cooked asparagus but that’s something for another day.
What I had was a small piece of salmon and that was what I used. I made the pesto from scratch in less than 10 minutes while boiling the pasta. Preparation was fast and easy, labels I prefer during the summer when no one wants to stay in front of a hot stove longer than necessary.
If you have 15 minutes to make dinner but you don’t want to short change your family by opening a can, here’s a pasta recipe where the only cooking involved is boiling. You’ll have to adjust the amount of ingredients depending on how many persons you intend to feed. I only cooked a small batch tonight because there was still leftover pork steak stew from lunch.


Salmon and pesto spaghetti
Print PinIngredients
- 150 grams spaghetti
- 100 grams fresh salmon (thawed if frozen)
- 1/4 cup pesto (or more)
- grated cheese for garnish
Instructions
- Cook the spaghetti according to package directions.
- While the pasta cooks, slice the salmon as thinly as you can without breaking the flesh.
- Make the pesto if you’re in the mood for home made. Otherwise, just measure the amount you need.
- Drain the pasta without rinsing in cold water and place in a large bowl. Add the sliced salmon.
- Reserve about two tablespoonfuls of pesto and pour the rest over the salmon and spaghetti.
- Toss gently. The heat of the newly cooked pasta will partially cook the salmon so that the edges turn opaque. If you do not like raw fish, heat a tablespoonful of pesto in a small pan, add the salmon and cook just until the flesh turns opaque. Then, add to the pasta and toss with the rest of the pesto.
- Transfer the salmon and pesto spaghetti to a serving bowl or platter, garnish with grated cheese and drizzle the reserved pesto.
That looks delicious, Connie. I will cook this one of these days.
now im new to this kind of dish.
pero i had pasta with tuna or sardines before.
but i guess, pesto makes the difference.
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Good day Miss Connie,
Yum! I miss making my own pesto, also tried it with the friend sardines hot & spicy variety and it was oh so good! makes for a yummy comfort food..Hope to do a pesto one of these days, but with salmon..thanks a lot for sharing your recipes!
Good day to you!
Can I use grilled leftover salmon from last night’s dinner?
Thanks.
Why not? The salmon will be fully cooked though so the texture will be different. But should be delicious nonetheless.
looks so appetizing!!
Hmmmm looks yummy hi ask ko lang kapag gumawa ako ng home made pesto anong nuts ang gagamitin ko thanks….
Traditionally, pine nuts. But no nuts is still good.
thank you… pwedeng magrequest sana makapag post ka kung pano gumawa ng pesto sauce para yun na lang ang gagayahin ko bilib kasi ako sa mga recipe mo… :) palaging yummy…
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