This easy mushroom pasta is packed with amazing umami, garlicky and bright flavors. Make this recipe in 30 minutes for a perfect weeknight meal!
The BEST Mushroom Pasta
This truly is the BEST easy mushroom pasta recipe on the internet! It can be made in 30 minutes from start to finish and features our very favorite mushrooms, but you can absolutely make it your own and use your preferred varieties of mushrooms.
why you’ll love it
30-minute meal: this easy mushroom pasta comes together in 30 minutes, making it an amazing weeknight meal.
Great flavor: you’ll absolutely love the savory umami flavors in this easy mushroom pasta.
Make it your own: we’re recommending 3 varieties of mushrooms, but you can truly use any ‘shroom you’d like — so go ahead and choose your favorites 😀
Featured Ingredients
- White wine: white wine helps deglaze the pan and adds great flavor to this mushroom pasta. We prefer using a dry white wine.
- Garlic and shallot: garlic and shallots provide an excellent flavor base for this sauce that complements the mushrooms very well.
- Mushrooms: the star of the show –> mushrooms, of course! We’re using portabella, shiitake, and button.
- Salt: salt is an important ingredient for cooking down the mushrooms so that the moisture gets drawn out.
- Vegetable broth: vegetable broth helps to add flavorful moisture to the sauce.
- Lemon juice: a little citrus really helps balance out the umami flavor.
- Butter: everything is better with butter 😀
How to Make Mushroom Pasta
COOK PASTA to Al dente
Cook pasta in a large pot of salted water until al dente. Before straining, remove around 1.5 cups of starchy pasta water to thicken the sauce later on. Strain the noodles and set aside.
Saute MUSHROOMS
Heat olive oil in a large pan and add mushrooms and salt. Cook mushrooms down for around 5-7 minutes until they are soft and brown.
DEGLAZE & ADD FLAVOR
Deglaze the pan with white wine and scrape the bottom to release the brown bits. Add garlic, shallot, thyme, and salt and continue cooking.
ADD LIQUID & THICKEN
Add vegetable broth and starchy pasta water and bring to a boil. Then, turn the heat down and let simmer.
Remove around 1/4 cup of liquid from the pan and whisk in cornstarch. Then, add the slurry back into the pan and whisk it into the sauce to thicken.
SEASOn, TOSS & serve
Finally, add butter and lemon juice and toss everything together until the butter melts. Add the cooked pasta and toss everything together. Serve with pecorino romano and freshly chopped parsley.
Mushroom Pasta FAQs
What mushroom is best for pasta?
Any mushroom will be delicious in this pasta! We recommend portabella, shiitake, button and baby bella.
Can you use milk instead of cream in pasta?
In most cases when it comes to a creamy pasta sauce, we recommend using cream over milk.
Tips for the Perfect Mushroom Pasta
Make it creamy: This recipe is also delicious as a creamy mushroom pasta! Simply add 1/4 – 1/3 cup heavy cream to the mushroom pasta sauce in step 11 of the recipe card.
For a thicker sauce: If your sauce isn’t thickening as much as you’d like after you add in the cornstarch, you can add 1 more teaspoon of the cornstarch to water and then into the sauce. Repeat until you achieve your desired texture.
Use your favorite mushrooms: Feel free to use any assortment of mushrooms that you like! We chose shiitake, portabella, and button because we love them. Feel free to use your favorites and make this recipe your own 😀
Storage
Allow the mushroom pasta to cool completely, and then transfer into an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 3-5 days.
Easy Mushroom Pasta Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 oz. dried pasta we used bucatini
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt separated
- 1 large portabella mushroom thinly sliced
- 5 oz. shiitake mushrooms sliced
- 8 oz. button mushrooms sliced
- ¼ cup dry white wine we used Pinot Grigio
- 4 cloves garlic thinly sliced
- 2 medium shallots sliced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ cup vegetable broth
- ¾ cup starchy pasta water
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch*
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- ½ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese or grated parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until the pasta is al dente.
- Before straining the pasta, remove 1.5 cups of starchy pasta water from the pot and set aside for later (we always take a little extra out just in case). Strain the water and set the pasta aside.
- Heat a large skillet with sides over medium heat. Add olive oil.
- When the olive oil is fragrant, add all of the mushrooms to the pan and toss with the olive oil until coated. Sprinkle the mushrooms with ½ teaspoon of the salt and toss.
- Sauté the mushrooms for 5-7 minutes, tossing periodically until they are soft and start to brown.
- Deglaze the pan (with the mushrooms still in the pan) with the white wine and scrape the bottom of the skillet pan to remove any brown bits.
- Add the garlic, shallot, dried thyme, and the rest of the salt to the pan and sauté them with the mushrooms for 2-3 minutes.
- Next, add the vegetable broth and ¾ of the starchy pasta water to the pan and mix all the ingredients together. Bring the liquid to a boil and then turn the heat to low and allow the mixture to simmer for 3-4 minutes.
- Remove ¼ cup of the liquid from the pan and add the cornstarch to the removed liquid. Whisk the cornstarch and water together until it thickens (it should be almost a paste-like consistency).
- Add the cornstarch slurry back into the saucepan and whisk it into the sauce. It should thicken the mushroom sauce almost immediately.
- Finally, add the butter and lemon juice to the sauce and stir until the butter is melted.
- Add the pasta to the skillet pan and toss until all the pasta is covered in sauce.
- Top the pasta with the pecorino romano and fresh parsley.
Tips & Notes
- Feel free to use any assortment of mushrooms that you like. We chose shiitake, portobello, and button because we love them. Feel free to use your favorites.
- If your sauce isn’t thickening after you add in the cornstarch, you can add 1 more teaspoon of the cornstarch to water and then into the sauce.
- To make this a creamy mushroom pasta sauce, add 1/4 – 1/3 cup heavy cream in step 11.
