Pasta Funghi made in the Thermomix® is our standard way to use up freshly foraged mushrooms. The trick: cook the mushrooms for 6 minutes without flour first so the liquid evaporates. Then add the flour and toast it for 2 minutes at 120°C in reverse direction. That binds the sauce until it is velvety, with no lumps.
We make Pasta Funghi almost every week now, because the mushroom season in the woods here is long. The recipe works with all edible mushrooms: button mushrooms, porcini, chanterelles, oyster mushrooms. Only the order of steps matters.
Pasta Funghi with Mushrooms, Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 12 ✓
- 100 g Parmesan
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 shallots
- 40 g olive oil
- 500 g mushrooms or other mushrooms of your choice
- 1 tbsp plain flour (Type 405)
- 120 g dry white wine
- 120 g vegetable stock
- 200 g double cream
- 500 g pasta
- 1/4 bunch flat-leaf parsley
- pepper
Instructions 0 / 8
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1
Grate the Parmesan.
Cut Parmesan into pieces, place in the mixing bowl and chop for 10 sec / speed 10, then set aside.
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2
Chop the aromatics.
Peel garlic, peel shallots and halve them, place in the mixing bowl and chop for 5 sec / speed 5, then scrape down with the spatula.
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3
Sweat.
Add olive oil and cook for 3 min / 120°C / speed 1.
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4
Prepare the mushrooms.
Clean mushrooms, slice them, add to the mixing bowl and cook without the measuring cup for 6 min / 120°C / reverse direction / speed 1.
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5
Cook the mushrooms.
Add flour and cook for 2 min / 120°C / reverse direction / speed 1.
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6
Make the sauce.
Add wine, stock and double cream and cook for 8 min / 100°C / reverse direction / speed 1.
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7
Cook the pasta.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the packet instructions. Wash the parsley, shake dry and pick the leaves.
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8
Serve.
Divide pasta and mushrooms among plates and serve garnished with pepper, Parmesan and parsley.
Variation: Add some chicken breast to the mushrooms and simply cook it along with them.
Video
Nutrition per serving
Why sweat first, then add flour
Mushrooms are 90 per cent water. When heated, they release liquid. If you add flour too early, it clumps immediately in the mushroom liquid. The sauce turns grainy instead of creamy.
We therefore cook the mushrooms for 6 minutes at 120°C in reverse direction first. The water evaporates through the open lid hole (measuring cup removed). Only then does the flour go in and can form a clean roux with the olive oil.
The 2-minute toasting time for the flour is not optional. Raw flour tastes floury. Toasted flour develops a nutty flavour and thickens better. At 120°C in reverse direction the flour toasts without burning.
Which mushrooms work best
The recipe is designed around button mushrooms because they are available all year. But we use it for all the mushrooms we gather in the woods:
- Porcini: intense flavour, less liquid than button mushrooms, reduce the cooking time to 5 minutes
- Chanterelles: firm texture, very little liquid released, 4 minutes is enough
- Oyster mushrooms: mild flavour, lots of water, cook for 7 minutes
- Shiitake: rich and savoury, remove the stalks (too tough) and use only the caps
With wild mushrooms: clean them thoroughly, but do not wash them. Mushrooms absorb water like a sponge. A brush or a slightly damp cloth is enough.
Why reverse direction is essential with mushrooms
Reverse direction stops the blades from chopping the mushrooms. At speed 1 in reverse direction the Thermomix® stirs only, it does not cut. The mushroom slices stay whole and do not turn to mush.
This applies to every step after slicing the mushrooms: 6 minutes cooking the mushrooms, 2 minutes toasting the flour, 8 minutes cooking the sauce, always reverse direction. Without reverse direction you end up with mushroom puree instead of mushroom pieces.
Sauce: white wine or stock
The sauce is made from white wine, vegetable stock and double cream. You can leave out the white wine and use 240 g of stock instead. The flavour will be less complex, but still very good.
Dry white wine is important. A sweeter wine makes the sauce sugary. We usually use Pinot Gris or Chardonnay, whatever is open.
The double cream goes in right at the end, together with the wine and stock. 8 minutes at 100°C in reverse direction reduces the liquid slightly and thickens the sauce.
Cooking the pasta at the same time
While the sauce is running in the Thermomix®, cook the pasta separately according to the packet instructions. The Thermomix® cannot cook the pasta because the mixing bowl is too small for 500 g of pasta plus water.
We usually use penne or fusilli because the sauce clings well in the ridges. Spaghetti works too, but the sauce slides off more easily.
Drain the pasta, do not rinse it. Hot pasta absorbs the sauce better than cold pasta.
Chicken as a protein addition
If you want to add meat: cut 300 g of chicken breast into cubes and add them together with the mushrooms at step 4. 6 minutes at 120°C in reverse direction will cook the chicken through.
Pork does not work well here because it becomes tough at 120°C. Chicken stays juicy.
Storing leftovers
The mushroom sauce keeps for 3 days in the fridge in a sealed container. Store the pasta separately, otherwise it soaks up the sauce and goes soggy.
Freezing does not work well with cream-based sauces. The cream separates on thawing. If you want to cook ahead: freeze the sauce without the cream, then stir in the cream when reheating.
Goes well with: Parmesan and rocket salad.
To reheat: warm the sauce in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring as you go. Not in the microwave, which makes the mushrooms rubbery.
More Italian Thermomix® recipes: Ravioli in the Thermomix®, Spaghetti Carbonara, Pesto Rosso.
