30 Minute Sauteed Leek Pasta with Tahini
This craveable, sauteed leek pasta comes together in no time - just 30 minutes - with 5 ingredients! Tossed with creamy sesame tahini, a bit of nutritional yeast and lemon zest, this low effort, naturally dairy free pasta recipe is a winner.
Ingredients
- 1 pound leeks about 2-3 large leeks, well washed
- 1 pound your favourite dry pasta gluten free if needed
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons tahini
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- half lemon zest only
- salt to taste...be generous!
- freshly cracked pepper
Instructions
- Cook pasta al dente, according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup of pasta cooking water. Slice leeks into ¼ inch (½ cm) slices.
- In a large nonstick skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat and add leeks. Cook, stirring often, until golden, soft and translucent, about 15-20 minutes. If leeks are browning quickly, turn heat down a notch but keep it lightly sizzling.
- Turn off heat, season generously with salt and pepper. Set aside.
- When pasta is done, rinse and drain and return to pasta pot. Add tahini, lemon zest and nutritional yeast and toss, adding enough pasta water to create a glossy, creamy sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
- Divide pasta into 4 bowls, top with leeks. Serve with more nutritional yeast (or vegan parm and chile flakes.
Notes
A note on leeks: I often use Japanese leeks, as pictured here, because you get a LOT of usable white + light green part. The goal of this pasta is a lot of leeks...you probably want 3-4 cups of sliced leeks so that when they cook down, you get a decent amount per serving.
If your leeks are mostly the dark green part you would otherwise compost, you could slice it up and then blanch in boiling water for a minute to soften them up before sautéing for a lower waste option
Leftovers reheat nicely with a big splash of water in a skillet.