| By: Jason Berger |
Ingredients
Yield: 1 serving (I’m sure we all have our own ideas of how much pasta is a serving, so I defer to you)
Prep & Cooking time: ~15-25 minutes
1 Italian sausage, hot or sweet
Red pepper flakes, optional
Handful of spinach
3 white button mushrooms, optional
¼ white onion, finely diced, optional
2-3 T tomato paste
1 serving of rigatoni or other medium noodles
Cooking Instructions
Technique without mushrooms (<15 minutes)
Cover a serving of rigatoni with cold water, bring to boil, reduce to a simmer
Once simmering, add salt
As the water heats up and if you decide to include an onion, finely dice the onion and allow it to sweat in a stainless-steel pan
Crumble a sausage into a stainless-steel pan and sear, breaking it further into small chunks. If you wish, add red pepper flakes
Drip water onto onions as needed to prevent them from darkening as the sausage cooks
Add tomato paste to pan, toss to coat
When noodles are a minute or two shy of al dente, add them to the pan and vigorously toss
Add spinach
Add pasta water as needed and continue tossing until an emulsified sauce forms
Technique with mushrooms (25 minutes)
Bring just enough water to coat rigatoni to a boil, add rigatoni once a boil has been reached and hold at a simmer
Add salt
While the water heats, thinly slice mushroom caps (I freeze the stems for stock) and if you decide to include it, finely dice the onion
Sautee mushrooms in a stainless-steel pan with a large splash of water
Once the mushrooms stop absorbing water and begin to release their own liquid, season with salt and pepper and add a drizzle of olive oil
Add onion, season with salt
Drip with water if onions begin to darken at any time during the cooking process
When mushrooms are golden brown, crumble a sausage into the pan and sear, breaking it further into small chunks. Add red pepper flakes if desired
Add tomato paste to pan and toss contents to coat
When noodles are a minute or two shy of al dente, add them to the pan and vigorously toss
Add spinach
Add pasta water as needed and continue tossing until an emulsified sauce forms
Notes
Because of how long mushrooms take to cook, there are two techniques to follow. Without mushrooms, prepare the sauce while the noodles and water come to a boil together. This saves a couple of minutes. With mushrooms, bring water to a boil and then add the noodles. This buys you a few extra minutes of waiting, during which time the mushroom will begin to cook. The goal is for the sausage and tomato paste to be ready at the same time the noodles are.
A few notes for the curious or skeptical reader: Cooking noodles in a small amount of cold water may seem improper, but the water temperature doesn’t matter in the end and the paucity of water leads to a higher concentration of starch, which in turn provides for a creamier sauce. Cooking mushrooms in water may seem insane, especially when scores of chefs warn you about waterlogging your mushrooms during cleaning. However, mushrooms absorb a lot of liquid as they cook. Mushrooms have a cell structure that traps in water and air as they heat up; water turning to steam and expanding, allows it to escape, leaving behind space for liquid to be absorbed. Pretty cool, right? Go google hyphae and chitin. You’ll be more impressed the next time you look at a decomposer. Anyway, if you cook mushrooms in oil, they will soak up a needless amount of fat. Cooking mushrooms in water until they stop absorbing it, and then adding just enough oil to prevent food adherence to the pan, is a superior technique.
Lastly, this general technique works well when layered with alcohol. Add a splash of white wine after sautéing everything (just before adding the noodles) for a bright acidity that layers nicely with the heavy savory flavor of tomato paste, the only other acidic ingredient. Or, try a splash of vodka, which adds warm heat without spice. If you’ve added vodka, you’re only a dash of tempered cream away from pasta alla vodka.
A final remark:
An astute reader may notice that the image is garnished with a basil leaf, which isn’t included in the recipe. That’s because you shouldn’t do it. While it’s shameful to admit, I felt my picture wasn’t attractive enough and needed some fresh color. I grabbed a basil leaf and added it. The floral aroma of basil perfumes the entire dish and clashes with the spicy flavor base from the sausage. I’ve never done this before, and I don’t plan on doing it again.
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