Caramelized Fennel Pasta 

By Carolina Gelen

Published Aug. 2, 2024

Caramelized Fennel Pasta 
Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Cyd Raftus McDowell.
Total Time
40 minutes
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(394)
Comments
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When thinly sliced fennel is thoroughly caramelized, it goes from a crisp, peppery, raw salad element to a delightfully decadent pasta sauce base. Those anise-y, licorice notes mellow as the natural sugars in the fennel caramelize. This recipe calls for pasta to be boiled until al dente (slightly undercooked) in salted water, then cooked a few minutes more with the caramelized fennel for perfectly tender pasta. To preserve most of those caramelized bits stuck to the bottom of the pot, it also calls for splashes of white wine, which capture and release them, and add pleasant acidity to the sauce. To complete the dish, the pasta, caramelized fennel and freshly chopped fennel fronds are showered with Parmesan and tossed until coated and the sauce becomes silky and glossy. 

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 8tablespoons cold unsalted butter
  • 3whole fennel bulbs, trimmed, bulbs and green stalks thinly sliced, fronds finely chopped
  • Salt
  • 1cup pinot grigio
  • 12ounces long pasta, such as spaghetti, linguine or fettuccine
  • 1⅓cups/5 ounces finely grated Parmesan
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

761 calories; 34 grams fat; 20 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 10 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 79 grams carbohydrates; 8 grams dietary fiber; 9 grams sugars; 26 grams protein; 891 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a large pot over medium heat, melt 6 tablespoons of butter. Adjust heat to high and add the thinly sliced fennel bulbs and stalks. Season with a big pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the fennel is soft and golden brown with dark brown edges, for 25 minutes. As you’re cooking the fennel, deglaze the pot with ¼ cup of wine every 6 minutes or so, whenever you see dark spots developing on the bottom of the pan. Adjust heat as needed.

  2. Step 2

    Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta for 3 minutes less than what the package directions call for, until al dente. Reserve 2 cups of pasta water then drain the pasta.

  3. Step 3

    When the fennel has thoroughly caramelized in the pot, add the chopped fennel fronds, the pasta and 1 cup of pasta water over medium heat. Sprinkle half of the grated Parmesan over the pasta. Toss everything to combine, then add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, 1 cup of pasta water and the remaining grated Parmesan. Toss everything for 1 to 2 minutes, until the sauce is glossy and coats the pasta. Serve immediately.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
394 user ratings
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Comments

Niko Khan

I have in my hands two fennel bulbs. On my kitchen scale one comes in at 2.2 ounces, the other at 9 ounces. Can you give your recipes in weight?

Justin BR

My family loved it. Caramelization took closer to 35 minutes, despite being on high on my hottest gas burner. Next time I think I'll serve it with some fennel sausage.

Michele

We loved this…such depth of flavor. Hard to believe that the simple ingredient list can result in this. It is important that you take the time to truly caramelize the fennel. It took longer than 25 minutes…maybe 35 or 45 or more. I did not set a timer, just watched it. Halved the recipe for 2. Still had leftovers but had to make myself stop eating it. Yum!

Lydia

I feel like the butter is doing some really heavy lifting with this recipe. I made it as written up until I tasted it and added more salt, pepper, and herbs de province but next time I plan to add the following: onion and garlic. It needs more flavor. This is very one sided and fattening with all the butter. It was tasty after I added the herbs. Otherwise it came out somewhat bland. Fennel can only do so much.

Erin

I loved this recipe. I halved it and made the following changes based on comments from others: added 1/2 tsp crushed fennel seeds to butter before adding fennel, added one crushed garlic clove and 1/2 tsp red chile flakes to fennel before final deglaze, and added 150 g baby spinach at the very end, stirring in until just wilted. I removed the garlic before adding the pasta, fronds, etc. Next time, I will add more spinach; there’s a lot of cheese and butter and the spinach helps offset some of the richness plus the texture is a nice addition. The key to this dish (besides the butter and cheese!) is to ensure good caramelization - look for an amber colour with some darker bits and a delicious, nutty and garlicky ( if used) smell.

PJ

Not great for the effort and an absolute pain to clean very cheesy pot and utensils. Wouldn’t make it again.

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