Portobello Mushroom Pappardelle
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This is a quick and easy vegetarian pasta recipe — mushroom pappardelle pasta in a savory sauce (ragu!) thick with chunky portobello mushrooms and rosemary. The meaty-tasting portobello mushroom sauce combined with ribbons of al dente cooked pasta noodles make this a very satisfying plate, and you can make it on the fly!
I would describe the sauce as inspired by a traditional ragu or Italian meat sauce, only it doesn’t use any meat at all.
Portobello mushrooms with pasta
Portobello mushrooms have abundant earthy, woodsy flavors. I love the way they match up with the piney, aromatic fresh rosemary, garlic cloves and red pepper. The caps are big and meaty, which means portobellos are great for stuffing, as well as roasting with garlic and herbs.
And with pasta, a thick mushroom ragu is a best friend with pappardelle — the flat, wide strands coil and curl easily around a fork, catching all the juices and chunky bits of sauce. Yum!
I used to work in a produce market in high school, I still remember learning that portobello mushrooms (or portabellas) are simply the adult versions of cremini mushrooms. It seemed pretty interesting! They’re cultivated a bit longer, until they’re 3-4 inches in diameter.
How to prep portobello mushrooms:
- Choose firm mushrooms with unbroken caps. The underside of the mushrooms, or the gills, should be tight, dry and light brown in color.
- Wipe the mushrooms gently with a towel if they seem dirty — don’t soak them in water or they’ll become soggy.
- Yes, you can eat the gills of portobello mushrooms. But if they look very dark in color and moist (verging on slimy) you can feel free to remove them or they might make the sauce murky.
- If the gills are moist and/or turning black, scoop them out with a spoon and discard before slicing and cooking over medium-high heat.
Portobello Mushroom Pappardelle
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons (45 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 medium shallots, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced (about 2 ounces each)
- Kosher salt
- 3 (350 g) portobello mushroom caps (10 -12 ounces), sliced into 1-inch pieces
- 8 ounces (225 g) pappardelle pasta, fresh or dried
- 1 garlic clove, finely sliced
- 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 2 tablespoons (30 g) tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons (30 g) unsalted butter
- 1 chunk (50 g) Parmigiano Reggiano or Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Put the oil, shallots and a pinch of salt in a large skillet and place over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the shallots are softened, but not browned.
- Add the mushrooms to the pan. Cook the mushrooms for a few minutes until they take on some color, then stir and add ½ teaspoon salt. Continue cooking until the mushrooms become tender and their liquid evaporates.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and add 2 tablespoons kosher salt. Cook the pasta until al dente, according to the package directions. Scoop out and reserve ¾ cup of the pasta water, then drain the pasta.
- Add the garlic, rosemary, red pepper, tomato paste, vinegar and butter to the mushrooms. Add ½ cup of the pasta water and stir over medium heat until the mixture becomes saucy. Add the pasta to the pan and toss gently with tongs to coat with the sauce, adding more water if it seems too dry. Taste for seasoning.
- Shave curls of Parmigiano cheese over the pasta with a vegetable peeler and serve.
Karen’s Notes and Tips
- Any leftover pasta and sauce will keep up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
- The sauce coats up to 8 ounces of pasta. If you’d enjoy larger servings or are cooking one pound of pasta, add one more shallot and 1-2 additional portobellos. Increase the sauce by doubling the tomato paste, balsamic vinegar and butter. Add up to 1 cup of the pasta water.
Nutrition per serving
Nutrition facts are calculated by third-party software. If you have specific dietary needs, please refer to your favorite calculator.
Hey, I’m Karen
Creator of Familystyle Food
I’m a food obsessed super-taster and professionally trained cook ALL about creating elevated dinners with everyday ingredients. Find simplified recipes made from scratch and enjoy incredibly tasty food! Read more about me here.
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Love this recipe added broccoli and it was delicious. Has just the right amount of spice.
Love this recipe it has just the right amount of spice. This was my second time making it I didn’t have portobello this time so I used regular button mushrooms and added some broccoli. It was still delicious.
What a phenomenal recipe! I’ve made this so many times and it just gets better and better.
Lauren, I’m so happy you let me know that this pasta is a go-to for you. Yay!
Hi Karen, I made the mushroom ragu with parpaddella tonight. I made one adjustment. In stead of using a lot of pasta water I added some red wine. It came out delicious and will be a regular on my go to menu.
Thank you!,,
Ooohh – red wine sounds fantastic! Thank you for sharing that Judi!
Had tons of portobello caps because they were on sale this week ant my local store and was looking for a recipe to use up about half of them. I was intimidated in the first read through of the recipe but it was so much easier than I thought and the sauce is gorgeous. Definitely making this again!
This is going on my favorites list! Quick, easy, and delicious! We’re plant based so I replaced the butter with vegan butter and left off the parm. Thanks for the recipe!
I’ve had this recipe in my “want to try” list waaayy too long. This was delicious! The best thing I’ve tried in a long time. Simply outstanding!
Wow! Thank you for sharing a photo of your pasta – I’m seriously craving it now! I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe, Korenia
Wow! Amazing! It tastes so fresh and rich but not overpowering. Will definitely make this again!
Love this recipe. Made it once before and got rave reviews. Making it again tonight. Making it double because most everyone want more than one helping. Thanks for a great recipe.
Any Ideas for subbing tomato paste? I’m allergic to them. Thx
Hey Carol – That’s a tricky one! If you’re okay eating peppers, try using the same amount of pureed roasted red peppers (jarred are fine, be sure to drain them), adding a teaspoon of miso paste to the puree if you have it.
My family loved this recipe & thankfully I doubled it after reading Kathleen’s review. I will definitely be making this again. I had everything prepped so it came together quickly.
Thanks for a wonderful meal.