To make the creamy mushroom sauce you’ll need to:
- Sauté the mushrooms in a skillet in a combination of butter and olive oil,
- Once browned, remove the mushrooms from the skillet,
- Sauté the shallot and garlic in the remaining butter and olive oil,
- Add the pasta cooking water and scrape up any tasty bits from the bottom of the pan,
- Add the cream and parmesan cheese and whisk until smooth and creamy,
- Season with salt and black pepper to taste,
- Return the cooked mushrooms to the sauce and stir to combine.
Once the creamy mushroom sauce is ready, add the cooked pasta and gently toss the noodles in the mushroom sauce until well coated, and top with additional parmesan cheese and fresh herbs to serve!
Which mushroom is best for pasta?
When it comes to mushroom pasta, there are so many different types of mushrooms to choose from. While I used classic cremini white mushrooms, you can use any mixture of mushrooms; portobello, shiitake, chanterelle, morel, porcini, and oyster mushrooms would all work particularly well. For the best results, pick a mushroom that is a similar size or cut into a similar shape and thickness as your selected pasta to ensure they fit together nicely in every bite. And, if you’re using dried mushrooms, be sure to rehydrate them well before using them in the recipe as they act like sponges for flavor in the sauce.
Which pasta is best with mushroom sauce?
In Tuscany, the pappardelle noodle is traditionally served with mushroom pasta sauce made from wild porcini mushrooms and cream in a dish known as pappardelle ai funghi e panna, however, you can truly use any cut of pasta for mushroom pasta.
I personally think long-strand pasta pairs best with mushrooms and, therefore, opted to use fettuccini noodles but pappardelle, linguine, tagliatelle, and spaghetti would all work well in this recipe. From a nutrition perspective, all cuts of pasta are equivalent sources of complex carbohydrates and can (and should!) be consumed in a healthy diet.
