Porcini Butter Spaghetti with Sage & Parmesan

Step 1 of 6: Prepare the porcini mushrooms

 

Pour hot water over the dried porcini mushrooms and leave to soak for about 20 minutes. Then remove them, squeeze out lightly, and roughly chop. Strain the soaking liquid through a fine sieve or coffee filter and set aside about 150 ml for the sauce – a large part of the distinctive porcini aroma is in it. If you are using fresh porcini mushrooms, clean them carefully and slice them. Water should be avoided as much as possible so the mushrooms develop intense roasted flavours when fried. Set aside a few particularly nice slices for plating later. Meanwhile, finely dice the shallot, chop the garlic, and have the sage leaves ready.

Step 2 of 6: Cook the spaghetti

 

Cook the spaghetti in plenty of salted water for about 2 minutes less than the package instructions so that it is still clearly al dente. Before draining, reserve at least 250 ml of pasta water. The starch it contains will later give the sauce its creamy texture. Then use the pasta straight away and do not rinse it.

Step 3 of 6: Fry the porcini mushrooms until golden brown

 

Heat a large stainless steel pan over medium heat until hot, then add the olive oil. Place the porcini mushrooms in batches into the pan and fry for 2–3 minutes at first without moving them. As soon as they release easily from the base of the pan, carefully turn them and fry for another 1–2 minutes until golden brown. Transfer each batch of fried porcini mushrooms to a plate, then fry the next batch. Let the pan heat up again briefly between batches. Finally, return all the porcini mushrooms to the pan except for those reserved for plating. Add the shallot and garlic and sweat for 1–2 minutes until fragrant. Deglaze with 2–3 tbsp porcini soaking liquid and loosen the flavourful browned bits from the base of the pan. Let the liquid reduce briefly. If you are using fresh porcini mushrooms, simply replace the porcini soaking liquid with 2–3 tbsp pasta water.

Step 4 of 6: Build the sage butter

 

Reduce the heat to low to medium. Add about half of the cold butter to the pan and let it melt slowly. As soon as it starts to foam lightly, add the sage leaves and fry them in the butter for about 30–60 seconds until crisp. Then remove the sage leaves with tongs or a slotted spoon and set them aside on kitchen paper for plating. The infused butter stays in the pan and forms the base of the sauce. It should smell lightly nutty, but not become too dark.

Step 5 of 6: Finish the pasta

 

Add the spaghetti directly from the cooking water or well drained to the pan. Add a ladle of pasta water and, if needed, a little more porcini soaking liquid, then toss everything vigorously. Gradually work in the freshly grated Parmesan while tossing continuously. Then stir in the remaining cold butter in small pieces. Together with the pasta water, Parmesan, and mushroom stock, this creates a glossy, creamy emulsion that coats every strand evenly. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a little more pasta water. If it is still too thin, toss the pasta for another 30–60 seconds until it reaches the desired creamy consistency.

Step 6 of 6: Plate up

 

Using kitchen tongs, loosely twist the porcini butter spaghetti into nests on prewarmed plates. Arrange the reserved porcini mushrooms on top and place the crisp fried sage leaves over them. Finish with freshly grated Parmesan and, if you like, a little finely grated lemon zest. Serve immediately while the pasta is wonderfully creamy.