Frank Prisinzano’s Spaghetti Limone

Frank Prisinzano’s Spaghetti Limone! This recipe only uses lemon juice, grass fed butter, parmesan cheese, sea salt and pasta water. Be sure to watch his YouTube video where he explains everything!

I first learned about this recipe from Emily Mariko on TikTok. Now that I know about Chef Frank Prisinzano and his restaurants in NYC, I will definitely stop in the next time I’m in town. 

Frank Prisinzano’s famous Spaghetti Limone is served at both Frank Restaurant and Lil Frankie’s (I believe) and is a beloved pasta dish that customers go back for time and time again. It’s super simple, only requires a handful of ingredients and comes together in like 15 minutes. You can’t beat that. 

Definitely watch his video so you can get all of his tips. .  especially regarding the quality of your ingredients. I also love his tip on how to finely grate the parmesan cheese. You want dust. I’ll admit that when I first saw Emily make this, I was confused as to why she wasn’t adding pepper and why the huge lemon halves in the pot? I didn’t understand it but after watching the Youtube video and after making this for myself, it all makes sense. I hope you try it! 

As far as I can tell, Frank owns SIX restaurants in NYC and just opened a Specialty Italian Grocery

“Lil’ Frankies Grocery is now open at 21 First Ave. between First Street and Second Street. This is East Village restaurateur Frank Prisinzano‘s personally curated grocery store, steps away from his Lil’ Frankie’s restaurant. Check out the grocery’s Instagram account to look at the shop’s sandwiches (breakfast sandwiches and tartines, too), sauces, meats and cheeses … and coffee and espresso. Lil’ Frankie’s is currently open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Like his other establishments, it’s cash only. (There’s also a QR code scan/Apple Pay option.)”

Print Recipe

Frank Prisinzano's Spaghetti Limone

I highly recommend De Cecco spaghetti. It's more expensive but for a simple recipe like this, it makes all the difference.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time15 minutes mins

Total Time20 minutes mins

Course: Main dish/Pasta

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: Frank Prisinzano's Spaghetti Limone, lemon spaghetti, spaghetti limone

Servings: 6

Author: hipfoodiemom

1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 1 lb. spaghetti
• sea salt, or kosher salt
• 1 to 2 medium to large sized lemons sliced in half
• 3 to 4 tablespoons grass-fed, unsalted butter + more if needed
• parmesan cheese finely grated

Instructions

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add lots of salt, stir, add in the pasta and cook your spaghetti to al dente. Reserve about a cup of pasta water, set aside and turn off the heat. Drain* your pasta and place directly back into the same pot. Add the butter and the juice of one lemon (throw the juiced lemon rinds in the pot too) and some pasta water; start with a 1/4 cup and mix together until the butter melts and everything is combined. Look at the pasta and taste if needed. Add more butter, lemon juice and pasta water as needed. Mix again. You want your pasta nicely coated in the sauce.
• To serve: Serve the Spaghetti Limone with a generous amount of the finely grated parmesan cheese over the top. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

*if you don't mind using two pots, simply move the cooked, wet pasta into a new pot and go from there!