Tagliatelle con Porcini
Ten days after the autumn rains begin to fall, our thoughts in Italy turn to porcini. You have to know either where to forage them, or know someone who knows in order to get the finest crop. Occasionally, you can find a van by the side of the road selling them, or you can ask your greengrocer, who will perhaps have some snuffled away under the counter. We appreciate however that you are likely to be using dried porcini and so this recipe caters to that. Should you happen to get hold of fresh porcini, lucky you!
Whilst dried porcini are less succulent, their flavour is more intense, so they work well in a pasta sauce or in risotto.
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
350g Tagliatelle
75g Dried Porcini
Rind of 1 lemon
2 cloves of garlic
6 sage leaves
1 crushed peperoncino / half a teaspoon of chili flakes
3 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil – plus a little more to finish. We use Almanacco from Frantoio Viola in Umbria. This refined, elegant monocultivar Frantoio works perfectly with the earthy mushroom thanks to its decisive artichoke and chicory character.
Flaked sea salt and freshly milled black pepper
METHOD
Begin by soaking the porcini in 450ml of hot water for around 20 minutes. Cut the lemon rind away from the fruit and slice finely. Then drain the porcini and reserve the water to one side – it is full of flavour. Rinse the porcini and roughly chop. Strain the porcini liquid through a sieve (ideally lined with muslin).
Add the olive oil to a pan and cook the garlic, sage and peperoncino gently for about 4-5 minutes until lightly coloured. Then add the porcini and cook for a further few minutes until they are soft. Then add the porcini liquid and simmer for just a minute or two until the majority of the liquid has been absorbed. Add the lemon rind and check for seasoning.
Meanwhile, cook the tagliatelle in a pan of well salted water for around 5 minutes or as indicated. Drain and add to the mushrooms, turning well to coat each ribbon with the sauce. Serve immediately
Grated parmesan is of course optional, but we’ve noticed that Italians often don’t put parmesan on mushrooms.