The premise of a one-pot meal is always compelling. But after reading the reviewers comments from this NYTimes Cooking recipe, I decided numerous changes were necessary. It seems the original was bland (not our MO at all!), and using just one pot wasn’t the best approach.
It ended up being a deeply satisfying pasta, brimming with rich umami flavor. Once the leek, shallots, and mushrooms are caramelized and sticking to the pot, they’re deglazed to lift all the extra depth from the bottom of the pan. Using half a lemon as the original recipe suggested didn’t do such a great job of deglazing so I also dribbled in a couple tablespoons of white wine as well.
This recipe leaves the choice of mushrooms up to you: Cremini and shiitake are a good combination, but you could even use rehydrated porcinis. However, a mere 6 ounces is truly not enough, so increase the amount to at least 12, and up to 16 ounces. To round out the meal, add a green salad or side of a green vegetable such as broccolini.
Creamy Mushroom and Leek Pasta
Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 leek, white part only, finely sliced
- 1 large (or 3 small) shallots, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 12-16 oz. mixed mushrooms, such as cremini, shiitake or oyster, sliced
- 1 lemon, halved
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 8 oz. short pasta, such as orecchiette, cavatappi, gemelli or penne
- 2 cups vegetable or chicken stock
- 1 Tbsp. white miso
- 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- ½ cup chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- ½ to 1 cup whole-milk ricotta
- ½ to 1 tsp. red-pepper flakes
- ½ cup chopped parsely, more for garnish
Directions
- Heat a wide, deep 12-inch skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high. When hot, add 3 tablespoons of olive oil, leeks and shallots, reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring constantly, until softened and lightly golden, 5 minutes. Remove to a side dish. (In my photos, I neglected to do this before adding the mushrooms.)
- In the meantime, cook the pasta until al dente.
- Add remaining tablespoon of olive oil, garlic and mushrooms to hot pan. Cook, undisturbed, for 2 minutes, then stir and cook, undisturbed, until the mushrooms start to caramelize and stick to the bottom of the pan, another 2 to 3 minutes. (This allows the water from the mushrooms to evaporate, encouraging caramelization.) Return the leeks and shallots to pan with mushrooms. Add the juice of one lemon half to deglaze the pan and stir to combine. (White wine seems to do a better job of deglazing.)
- Drain the pasta and add it and 1 cup of the stock with miso mixed in to the pan; stir well. Add more liquid if necessary, a bit at a time. (I did not need to use any more, but if you included more pasta, you may need to do so.) Stir in the red pepper flakes.
- Cook for about 1 minute, turn off the heat and add the butter and parsley. Squeeze in the juice from the remaining lemon half and stir until butter is melted and dispersed. Season with salt and pepper.
- To serve, top with ricotta, more red-pepper flakes (to taste), and more chopped parsley.
Accounting for Taste 