Tagliatelle ai Porcini Funghi
a classic dish featuring rich and earthy porcini mushrooms with a pop of parsley for brightness and balance.
This recipe is courtesy of Chef Flavio Amilcari of all-day café, restaurant, and enoteca, da Etta, one of my new places to work and play.
They’ve got 10,000 wine labels on the list (a whole wall of Sicily) and a bakery on-premises. Come for breakfast and never leave.
The recipe is simple to execute and always satisfying. Like truffles, porcini mushrooms add elegance and complexity to whatever they touch. Enjoy!
Ingredients
Serves 2
180 g / 6 oz dry pasta (tagliatelle or pappardelle)
200 g / 7 oz fresh, chopped porcini mushrooms *substitute a bag of rehydrated dried porcini mushrooms + 6 oz of mixed mushrooms of your choice.
1 garlic clove
Extra-virgin olive oil
Chopped fresh parsley to taste. At least a handful!
Salt and pepper.
Procedure
In a frying pan, lightly brown the garlic clove (whole or halved) in olive oil (at least 1.5 tablespoons). Add the mushrooms and sauté for 8-10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste and add part of the chopped parsley. Cover and set aside.
Bring water to a boil and add a generous handful of salt. Water should taste like seawater, as a reference. Add the pasta and follow cooking time as indicated on the package for al dente.
Strain the pasta, and conserve some of the water.
Add to the mushrooms. Toss over a low flame with pasta water or a touch of butter or cream until amalgamated.
Garnish with a generous sprinkle of parsley and serve.
Wine Pairing
Porcini mushrooms are renowned for their silky texture. While this recipe contains no cream (unless you finish with butter), each bite will blanket your palate in rich, layered flavors.
You could pair with a lighter weight red (a young Morellino or Sangiovese-based blend) but beware not to mask the taste of the porcini.
I suggest mineral rich Vermentino Toscano or a Vermentino Colle di Luni (a coastal region on the border of Tuscany and Liguria).
Vermentino’s pretty citrus notes and mouthwatering minerality work like the parsley to uplift the weightier qualities of the dish while freshening your palate.
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