(Made) 30-Minute Miso Mushroom Bucatini

• servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 lb dried bucatini

1 ½ lb shitake, maitake (hen of the woods), chanterelle, and/or oyster mushrooms (chopped or pulled apart into bite size pieces)

1/4 cup yellow miso paste

2 tbsp minced garlic

1/2 cup butter

2 cups pasta water

1/2 cup pecorino romano (grated)

1/2 cup parmesan (grated)

1 cup heavy cream

1 scallion (finely chopped)

4 tsp olive oil

salt + cracked black pepper

Directions

Cook the Mushrooms

Set a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat.

Add the mushrooms to the hot skillet. (Do not add oil!). Sauté the mushrooms for about 5 minutes until they develop brown charring. TIP: Make sure not to overcrowd the pan to prevent the mushrooms from steaming. Depending on the size of your skillet, you may have to cook the mushrooms in batches.

When the mushrooms looks about done, add about 1-2 tsp of olive oil to the mushrooms and season them with salt and black pepper. Sauté the mushrooms for one last minute and then transfer them to a bowl.

Cook the Pasta

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Generously season the water with kosher salt and then cook the pasta al dente.

Reserve two cups of pasta water and set aside.

Make the Miso Mushroom Sauce

While the pasta water is still hot, add the miso to a cup of pasta water and whisk until all the miso paste has dissolved.

Set a large skillet over medium heat and add the butter. Once the butter has melted, add the minced garlic and sauté for about 30 seconds. Then add in the sautéed mushrooms, miso-pasta water and heavy cream. Bring the sauce to a gentle boil and then reduce the heat to low. Simmer the sauce for about 2 minutes until it thickens.

Then turn off the heat and add the grated pecorino. Stir until the pecorino is melted into the sauce.

Then add the cooked bucatini to the sauce and stir until the pasta is well coated. TIP: The sauce may thicken further once you add the bucatini. If so, add additional pasta water to thin out the sauce.

Plate the pasta and garnish with grated parmesan and scallions. Serve immediately. Enjoy!