Pasta with porcini mushrooms is a must in autumn in many regions in Italy.

Autumn has come and its bounties like porcini mushrooms, are ready to be enjoyed with a good plate of pasta. I really love porcini and other mushrooms and when fall arrives, I can’t wait to buy some fresh porcini. But it’s not always easy to find it. So I usually resort to frozen or dried porcini mushrooms. They are as good as fresh and last much much longer.

This is a dish you can easily find in any restaurant in Italy but there are some place like Tuscany, Piedmont, Marche or  Umbria, where you will find some of the best. The central regions in Italy are known for their mountains and forests where porcini grow.

In fact, there are a lot of small towns where autumn is widely celebrated with fairs and festivals. Some are tied to the medieval period some are not. Many celebrate porcini along with chestnuts and wild boar.

On Monte Amiata, near Siena there are two small medieval towns called Piancastagnaio and Abbadia San Salvatore. Both are famous for chestnuts (the first actual is named after chestnuts) and porcini. There is a big fair in Piancastagnaio in late October that celebrates chestnuts and its called Crastatone (roast chestnut).

Abbadia San Salvatore on the other end celebrates the fall with the “festa d’autunno” on the second and fourth weekend in October. That fair is dedicated to porcini mushrooms, castagne and wild boar. All three ingredients are extremely local and there are a lot of super tasty traditional recipes you can try. In that area the most famous pasta is called Pici.

How to make pici pasta?

Pasta with porcini mushrooms taste best when you use home made pasta. Pici, a thick spaghetti, are also called “lombrichi” in some parts of Tuscany because they actually resemble earthworms. This simple pasta is made with only water and flour. You can find soft wheat flour pici, as well as durum wheat pici. The choice is, as usual, very local. I like better those with durum wheat and usually make them with whole durum wheat flour.

For 4 servings you will need

• 400gr of flour
• around 200gr of water

The water amount varies depending on the flour of your choice so you will need to eyeball it by looking and feeling the texture of the dough.

To make pici:

• You can mix the water and flour and let it rest for at least 30min.
• then work the dough on the counter until it gets smooth and elastic
• divide the dough into smaller pieces and flatten them into around 0.5 centimeter thick with a rolling pin
• cut stripes from the flatten dough and roll each stripe until you get a 25/30cm “worm”. The thickness should be around 0.5 cm or even less (they’ll expand when cooked)

You can freeze them for month, dry or keep in the refrigerator for a couple of days.

How to select the ingredients

I always like to remind people that a great dish is made of great ingredients. When you buy high quality ingredients it does not matter how good you are, the dish will always come out good.

In this case porcini may be a hard to find delicacy in many places, especially fresh. I have to say that it’s hard to find fresh porcini even here in Italy some times. They are very weather dependent and some times they are so rare that those sold in Italy are actually harvested in eastern Europe.

What if I cannot find fresh porcini?
Simple enough, if you can buy frozen or dried. They are as good as fresh but usually easier to find and last longer.

What if I cannot find porcini at all?
This dish can be made with any mushroom you can find. The taste will be different, but it will still be amazing. If you can find very expensive dried porcini you can use just 10gr of them and then add white or brown button mushrooms. When it comes to dried porcini, a little goes a long way.

What if I cannot make home made pasta?
Use the pasta you can find, I always recommend to use the best quality you can get your hands on. This time is no different. Be it long or short pasta they both go well with the porcini sauce. You could also use potato gnocchi.

Ingredients to make pasta with porcini mushrooms (4 servings)

• 50gr of fresh or frozen porcini (if you cannot find fresh or frozen use 200gr of button mushrooms)
• 30gr of dried porcini
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
• 500gr of fresh home made pici or 380gr of dried pasta
• salt and pepper to taste
• parsley and pecorino or parmigiano to garnish
• chili flakes to taste (optional)

How to make pici pasta with porcini

Step 1
Put the dried porcini into a small bowl and add some boiling water. Let it rehydrate for 30/40 minutes. Overnight is ok too.

Step 2
Bring the water to boil enough water to cook the pasta. Use a large pot that can easily hold all the pasta and still have room for the water to rise without overflowing. Boil the pasta according to the directions if you  use store bought. Fresh home made pasta cooks in around 5minutes.

Step 3
Crush the garlic with the back of a large knife then squeeze it to mash. You can also use a garlic press that makes it easier.
Cut the mushrooms into the shape you prefer.

TIP: if you do not like the taste of the garlic, use a whole clove and remove it before serving the pasta.

Step 4
Add the oil to the pan and add the garlic and chili flakes. Let the oil infuse for a couple of minutes then add the mushrooms, salt and pepper. Cook for a few minutes until tender. Don’t throw the water of the dried porcini, add it to the pan to give the recipe a deeper flavor.
TIP: you can add some of the water to the pasta while cooking to infuse the pici or other pasta with the porcini flavor.

Step 5
Drain the pasta and put it directly into the pan with the mushrooms. Add some of the cooking water to make it silkier. Add some chopped parsley and the dish is ready.