What Is Mushroom Pappardelle?

Our Mushroom Pappardelle is not like your typical tomato pasta sauces. This hearty pasta recipe is a meatless dish featuring golden pappardelle egg pasta in a rich tomato sauce loaded with Baby Bella mushrooms. While most mushroom sauces are known for having a heavy cream base, this mushroom sauce recipe boasts a rich tomato base. The addition of shallots, balsamic vinegar and fresh thyme only add to the big flavors of this mushroom sauce.

Why You’ll Love This Mushroom Pappardelle

Mushroom lovers are going to love this mushroom pasta sauce. Not only is it super tasty, it is easy to create. It makes for a great Meatless Monday meal or a weeknight pasta. Earthy and mild, mushrooms are the perfect partner to tangy, bright tomato. Pappardelle is made of rich egg pasta with a thick ribbon shape—the perfect pasta noodles for a chunky pasta sauce such as this.

The Ingredients You Will Need To Make This Mushroom Pappardelle

Extra Virgin Olive Oil: A great olive oil is at the heart of so many Italian dishes. We start this mushroom sauce by heating up the oil for sautéing the shallots and mushrooms.

Shallots: Unlike onions, shallots bring a sweet, sharp flavor but without the heat. Chopped shallots melt into the hot oil to create a mild sweet fragrance—just one of the many layers of flavor in the final sauce.

Baby Bella Mushrooms: Baby Bellas are actually the same as crimini mushrooms. These mushrooms are just smaller with a firmer texture. They boast a more heightened flavor than your standard button mushrooms. This is why they are perfect for cooking down and incorporating in sauces, where they will better retain their shape and flavor.

Pappardelle Egg Pasta: Egg pasta is more sturdy, but also richer with a golden hue. These pasta noodles are great for heartier ragùs and chunky sauces. DeLallo Pappardelle comes packaged in dried pasta nests making them excellent for portioning.

Fresh Thyme: Skip the dried stuff and go for fresh herbs when you can. Fresh thyme has a minty, earthy, almost lemony flavor that really complements the acidic tomato and bright balsamic. This fresh herb brings a subtle fragrance to the final dish.

Red Pepper Flakes: Add a little or a lot to spice up your mushroom sauce. Just a touch of hot red pepper flakes will not make your dish super hot, just add another dimension of flavor.

Tomato Paste: Because tomato paste is condensed tomato, the flavor is super rich and tangy. Tomato pasta allows you to pack in a lot of tomato flavor with a ton of sauce.

Balsamic Vinegar: Darkly sweet and tangy, balsamic vinegar isn’t just for salads. Add this traditional vinegar to a number of sauces, stews and reductions for a remarkable depth of flavor in a small footprint.

Butter: Butter rounds out and softens the flavors of the bright ingredients. It also adds a creaminess to the final mushroom sauce alongside the grated cheese.

Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese: Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese is the perfect finish to this earthy, robust mushroom sauce. In particular, this hard Italian cheese adds a complementary nutty, salty flavor to pasta dishes. This is why it is used so often as a final sprinkling.

How To Make Mushroom Pappardelle

Prepare the mushrooms: Begin by cleaning and prepping the Baby Bella mushrooms. Choose only firm, dry mushrooms that are light in color. Slimy mushrooms should be discarded.

1. Sauté the mushrooms and shallots: Heat the oil first, and then, add the shallots. Once soft (but before they become brown), add the mushrooms. Mushrooms will cook down as the liquid evaporates. This takes about 8 minutes. The resulting flavorful oil and mushrooms are the base of your mushroom sauce.

2. Cook the pasta: Use a large pot to cook the pasta. This helps prevent sticking. Once the salted water is boiling, add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions. The resulting texture should be what we call al dente: tender but with a firm bite. Avoid soggy pasta noodles. This happens when pasta is cooked too long. Drain the pasta, saving 1/2 cup of hot pasta cooking water for finishing the sauce.

3. Create the sauce: While your pasta cooks, add the thyme, red pepper flakes, tomato paste, vinegar and butter to the mushroom pan. Add hot pasta cooking water to the pan (a little at a time) while stirring. This will help the sauce to come together. We recommend about ¼ cup to start.

4. Combine sauce and pasta: Once the pasta is cooked and drained, add it directly to the saucepan. If left to sit, noodles will begin to stick. Gently stir the hot pasta in with the sauce to coat. Add a generous sprinkle of Parmigiano-Reggiano to the final dish.

What To Serve With Mushroom Pappardelle

Serve up this sauce with a meat for added protein. Baked chicken or braised beef really complement that earthy mushroom flavor. Even without the protein, Mushroom Pappardelle is a hearty pasta dish. Its warm and earthy flavors are inviting and the perfect match to a light, crisp, leafy green salad. We always recommend a fresh crusty Italian bread for scooping up that sauce.

Don’t Have Pappardelle? Here Are The Best Pasta Alternatives

If you do not have pappardelle egg pasta in your pantry, substitute with another sturdy pasta shape. Mushroom sauce is thick and chunky, so be sure to use a pasta noodle that will hold up to its hearty presence. Rigatoni and Penne Rigate are hollow tube-shaped pastas that can scoop up sauces and ingredients. You can also try other long ribbon-like cuts of egg pasta. No matter what you choose, make sure it is a thicker, more sturdy pasta cut that can stand up to this chunky mushroom sauce.

Best Mushroom Pappardelle

• 3 tablespoons DeLallo Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 shallots, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
• 12 ounces Baby Bella mushrooms, sliced
• 1 (8.8-ounce) DeLallo Pappardelle Egg Pasta
• 2 teaspoons fresh chopped thyme
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons DeLallo Tomato Paste
• 1 teaspoon DeLallo Balsamic Vinegar
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Freshly grated Imported Italian Parmigiano-Reggiano, for serving

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots to the pan and cook, stirring frequently, until they are soft but not yet browned.
2. Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook until they become tender and their liquid evaporates, about 8 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package instructions for al dente texture. Drain, reserving ½ cup hot pasta water.
4. Stir in garlic, thyme, red pepper flakes, tomato paste, vinegar and butter to the mushrooms. Add ¼ cup of the reserved hot pasta water to the pan. Cook and stir until the mixture becomes saucy about 10 minutes. Add the hot pasta to the pan and toss gently to coat. Add more hot pasta water to the pan for desired consistency.
5. Serve sprinkled freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.

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