Pappardelle Pasta with Portobello Mushroom Ragu
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A quick and easy vegetarian pasta recipe — pappardelle with portobello mushrooms and rosemary.
A meaty portobello mushroom sauce combined with ribbons of pasta noodles make this a very satisfying plate, and you can make it on the fly.
The sauce is much like a traditional ragu or Italian meat sauce, except it’s meatless.
It’s perfect with dishes like soft, cheesy polenta as well as over pasta – of course!
Portobellos with pasta
Portobello mushrooms have abundant earthy, woodsy flavors that match up perfectly with piney, aromatic fresh rosemary.
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Thick ragus and tomato sauces like this one are best mates with pappardelle — the flat, wide strands coil and curl easily around a fork, catching all the juices and chunky bits of sauce.
Yum!
What are portobello (or portabella) mushrooms?
Portobello mushrooms (or portabellas) are actually overgrown, giant cremini mushrooms.
It’s true!
Portobellos became all the rage in the 1990s, when mushroom growers realized the potential in allowing white button mushrooms to mature a few extra days.
First they’re marketed as “baby” portobellos called “cremini” before growing into the oversized beauties we call portobellos.
Tips for preparing portobello mushrooms:
- Choose firm mushrooms with unbroken caps.
- Wipe the mushrooms gently with a towel if they seem dirty — don’t soak them in water or they’ll become soggy.
- The underside of the mushrooms, or the gills, should be tight, dry and light brown in color.
- 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.
Is pappardelle the same as egg noodles?
Pappardelle is a pasta cut into wide, long noodles.
You can find it as fresh egg pasta, and it’s also available as a dried egg pasta and durum wheat pasta without eggs.
The nice, chunky size of the pasta makes it ideal to pair with rich, hearty sauces like this mushroom ragu, or with creamier sauces like the sauce in Pappardelle al Limone.
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Pappardelle Pasta with Rosemary Portobello Mushroom Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons (45 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 shallots, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
- 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
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
- 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 1/2 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. Scoop out and reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water, then drain the pasta.
- Add the garlic, rosemary, chili, tomato paste, vinegar and butter to the mushrooms. Add 1/3 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.
Can you substitute basil for the rosemary? Trying to use what’s growing in my garden.
Yes, you certainly could. But since basil is more tender herb than rosemary I would stir it at the end when you toss the sauce with the pasta. Fresh thyme would also be really good!
Stellar dish! Hubby and I love it so much! Didn’t change a thing. Recipe is perfect!!
Absolutely delicious! Will be making this many more times!
Simple and nice. The recipe is detailed, with very clear steps to follow. Easily accessible simple ingredients that make an amazing pasta dish. This will be an essential item in my comfort food list!
Excellent recipe! I added some of the rosemary with the portabello mushrooms. I decreased the amount of tomato paste to 1.2 tablespoons that ensures that it isn’t too tomato-y and retains the earthiness of the portabello. I also added a dash of red wine along with the balsamic vinegar. Dee-lish!
This was delicious!! Used four large portobello mushrooms and reduced to almost dry, added the pasta water and the remaining ingredients and it turned out great.
Seriously outstanding:)
Very good recipe, didn’t have shallots so substituted them for onions but worked just as well. Thank you for the new addition!
Is there any difference what pasta to use, fresh or dried? What did you use? I am going to make it at the weekend and need to know what it is better to buy.
Hi Sam – You can use either fresh or dried pasta. I make this with dried. But if you choose fresh pasta, be sure to cook it for just a few minutes!
I’ve made this several times including last night. It’s a fun recipe. Mine does not look like the picture (Ha! Do they ever?). I did try to increase the sauce, which may be the problem. But mine was a dense heavy-on-the-tomato sauce. How do you make yours turn out more-mushroom, lighter sauce? Thank you!
Hi – I know what you mean about the sauce! I would suggest adding just an additional teaspoon of tomato paste if you’re doubling the sauce to avoid the extra tomato taste.
Loved this recipe. Totally delicious. My husband had two servings and he is a fussy eater.
It’s a little late in the game to be asking this question as I’m going to start preparing this recipe in just a few minutes, but when you say “2 shallots,” about how many cups are you talking? I just bought two huge shallots at the grocery store and am concerned about overdoing it.
Yes, since shallots can vary in size, measure about 1/2 cup sliced!
how long do you cook FRESH pappardelle pata??
hi Julie – Fresh pappardelle should only take a few minutes to cook. Drop them in boiling water and taste after 2-3 minutes.
Not sure what I expected, it has more tomato flavor than how I usually prepare mushroom pastas, but yay for a new discovery! Easy and delicious.
This was AMAZING!! I actually had some fresh homemade rosemary pappardelle that I picked up from the farmer’s market and used that for the rosemary flavor instead of adding fresh rosemary to the sauce. Can’t wait to eat the leftovers!!
I made this twice in the past two weeks. Absolutely delicious and easy!! Will make again and again!
This was amazing! I added roasted pine nuts as a topping for an extra crunch – it would have been lovely without it as well, I’ll be making this exact recipe again!
This was one of the best pasta dishes I have ever made! Thank you for sharing!!!
I made the sauce as written. Delicious! The rosemary!! Used homemade pasta. Bookmarked it for next dinner party.
This was delicious and soooo easy! I added some white cooking wine and it gave it just the right amount of kick!
Absolutely fabulous (made with shiitake and king oyster mushrooms)
Seasoning, texture, taste were perfect. I seved it on pasta and parmesan polenta, both amazing. Thank you for this recipe <3
Yay! So glad you enjoyed it Marion.
Oh my…YES!
Our house was filled with some seriously intoxicating smells that left my mouth watering exuberantly with each passing moment. This has become a staple.
Bravo! Bellissimo!!
Grazie!!
Very tasty.
My changes: I chop my mushrooms tiny as I don’t love the texture of them. I use regular gluten free pasta or any pasta I have on hand.
Personally for next time I will double the sauce as it just barely covers all the pasta and I prefer saucier.
Oooh this sounds amazing! I’m going to make this simple yet savory recipe tonight! Sounds delicious!!
Wow! So delicious and easy to prepare. I will be making this again very soon. Thank you for sharing.
Wow!!!! I can’t stress how amazing this recipe is. I will definitely make this over and over.
I’ve made this 5 times in the last month… so freakin’ delicious!
I want to make this for dinner tonight, do not have pappardelle pasta. What can I Subtitute?
You could use rigatoni, shells or fettuccine!
Delicious and filling with a nice kick.
Hi I tried it a few weeks ago and my family loved this recipe! Thank you
My question is I would like to make this for a dinner party tomorrow, so is it possible to prepare the sauce earlier or the entire dish say a few hours before serving and then heat it up?
Hi Komal – So glad you loved the recipe! Yes, you can make the sauce ahead of time. Follow the directions through step 5 (but don’t make the pasta). Cover the sauce and refrigerate. When you’re ready to serve, boil the pasta and warm the sauce in a skillet. Add the pasta water and pasta and serve.
I loooooved this recipe! Thank you so much for sharing. I’ll definitely be making this again.
Y.
We love this dish – I’ve made it 3 times and each time I am blown away! Tonight when I made it, I had to use dried Rosemary (I mistakenly thought I had fresh rosemary in my fridge), I cut it down to 1 teaspoon – it was fine and did the job – but fresh rosemary is soooo much better…I’ll be better prepared next time 😉 I’ve been going through your other recipes, and can’t wait to try many of them!!!
Hi,
I picked up mini bella mushrooms instead. How do you recommend cutting the smaller mushroom to substitute those into this recipe? Also, can I substitute balsamic vinegar with cabernet red wine?
Hi Anthony – You can leave the mini mushrooms whole if they’re less than 1 1/2-inches round, or just slice in half. If you want to use red wine instead of the balsamic, add 2 tablespoons at the end of step 2 and let it bubble and evaporate for a few seconds before adding in the garlic, rosemary, chili, tomato paste, rosemary and butter. Hope that helps!
Wow! I’ve made a lot of pastas and this is over the top! I added peas and pancetta. I used thyme instead of rosemary due to personal preference but otherwise followed the recipe. Such a great combination of flavor. Thank you for the recipe!
Love the addition of pancetta! So glad you enjoyed the pasta 🙂
Followed the recipe almost to the letter and it was delicious! The only thing I changed was cutting the red chilli flakes by half. That was plenty of spice for us. But we both really enjoyed it and will make it again. Thank you!
This recipe looks good but what could I substitute for the rosemary? I’m not a huge fan.
Thanks
Hi Terrance – I suggest thyme or even fresh oregano.
I, too, am not a rosemary fan. But fresh in this recipe is a must. It is so subtle and awesome
Just made this and my husband and I both loved it! It had amazing flavor and was quick and easy to make!
This recipe is such a find! It’s delish and looks like the cover of Bon Appétit! Had an empty bottle of balsamic, so used a splash of red wine. Divine!
My mother came to visit for the weekend and I made this for dinner for us. It not only was super easy to put together, but was absolutely delicious and full of flavor. It’s hearty, yet didn’t feel too heavy. Robust flavor, but doesn’t require a myriad of ingredients and spices. It was a big hit and a recipes I will continue to come back to not only for myself, but for when I have guests as well.
Amazing! So happy you and your mom enjoyed this!
This was excellent! The only change I made was to use sun dried tomatoes instead of tomato paste. Will definitely make it again.
So happy you liked it Deb! Love the sun-dried tomato swap 🙂
Divine. I had to use white mushrooms because that’s what I had… next time I’ll be prepared. A new favorite!
Going to try this tomorrow night. Looks delicious. My only question is, with the pasta, how can the amount of carbs be 8 g? That’s impossible.
Hi Ed – Regarding the amount of carbs, keep in mind the nutrition facts are calculated based on 4 servings of a total of 8 ounces of pasta (2 ounces per serving). I use Nutritionix for my recipes, but you can always use another calculator as they can differ in accuracy. I hope you enjoy the pasta!
I wondered the same about the carbs?????
Hello!
Am I able to make this without the butter?
Thanks!
Hi Emma – Absolutely! Just leave the butter out. You can add an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil to each plate instead.
I know this is supposed to be vegetarian and the mushrooms are a good meat substitute but my husband is really wanting me to add meat to this. Any suggestions?
Hi Lauren – Yes! Try some crumbled bulk Italian sausage meat in there – cook about 1/2 pound or so in a separate pan and add it in Step 4 along with the pasta. Hope you both enjoy!
Absolutely delicious.. I have made it twice and wouldn’t change a thing!
Can’t wait to make this. Always looking for a good vegetarian recipe and this was looks delicious!
I am making tonight for second time. Amazing! Love, love, love it and how simple it is to make.
So happy you’re enjoying this recipe Sue! It’s one of my faves too.
Don’t change a thing, it’s excellent! The mushrooms become the meat and it’s very satisfying. Thank you for posting the recipe, I’ll be making this one again and again.
Delicious and easy!!
Yay! So glad you enjoyed it 🙂
I just made this dish, and OMG! It was so, so good! Definitely a keeper!
This was delicious! Made it for my fiancé tonight – we’ve been together 5 years, and he said it was by far the best thing I’ve ever made. Thank you for the recipe! I wouldn’t change a thing. 🙂
Jennifer I’m so glad to hear that! You made my day. I wish you both many more delicious meals together 😉
If I’d rather use dried rosemary, what quantity would you recommend?
Hi Emilie – Try 1/2 – 1 teaspoon dried rosemary (taste to see how you like the flavor).
That sauce sounds incredible, what a perfect pasta dish!
Can’t wait to prepare this delicious dish tonight for my Vegan Son! You make dinner so much more fun and simple with your amazing recipes 😉
Awesome! Tell me how he likes it xo
Yet another great easy recipe. Great comfort food
Thanks David!
Looks delicious!