I was reading the Food Section of the New York Times and stumbled upon this recipe for a risotto-style pasta dish by Mark Bittman. I love risotto and I love pasta so I figured I’d see how this would all work out.
It was kind of labour intensive for no reason! The pasta didn’t end up like the starchy, creamy goodness of risotto. I’m pretty sure I could have achieved the same results that I ended up with without having to stir the pasta constantly so that it didn’t stick to the bottom of the pan.
Did it taste good? Of course! I made it without the chicken because chicken isn’t my favaourite and just upped the amount and variety of mushrooms that I used. I’m not really that committed to try this one again considering the work involved for little payoff.
Pasta With Chicken and Mushrooms, Risotto Style
2 tablespoons olive oil, more as needed
1 shallot or small onion, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 cups crimini, shiitake or button mushrooms, cleaned, trimmed and sliced
1/2 pound cut pasta like gemelli or penne, or long pasta broken into bits
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine or water
3 to 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
2 boneless chicken thighs, diced
Chopped fresh parsley, optional
Freshly grated Parmesan, optional.
1. Put 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. When hot, add shallot, garlic and mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms soften and begin to brown on edges, about 10 minutes. Add pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is glossy and coated with oil, 2 to 3 minutes. Add a little salt and pepper, then wine. Stir and let liquid bubble away.
2. Ladle stock into skillet 1/2 cup or so at a time, stirring after each addition and every minute or so. When liquid is just about evaporated, add more. Mixture should be neither soupy nor dry. Keep heat at medium and stir frequently.
3. Begin tasting pasta 10 minutes after you add it; you want it to be tender but with a tiny bit of crunch. When pasta is about 3 to 4 minutes away from being done, add chicken and stir to combine. Continue to cook until chicken is done — it will be white on inside when cut — and pasta is how you like it. Taste, adjust seasoning, garnish with parsley and Parmesan if using, and serve.
Yield: 4 servings.
(From the New York Times)
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3 Responses to Pasta With Chicken and Mushrooms, Risotto Style
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Why is this tagged vegetarian? I understand that sometimes bloggers post a recipe such as this and include a way to prepare it both for omnivores and for vegetarians, but you have not done that. Please stop misleading people as to what counts as a vegetarian meal.
Sorry for the confusion, I’ve re-tagged this post. I actually made this without chicken but didn’t specify that in the post.
I actually made this dish and my sister said that it was the best pasta dish I ever made. I used the same noodles in the original recipe; perhaps that is what made the difference. Very creamy and rich. I like how the pasta took the flavor of the chicken stock & mushrooms in a way traditionally cooked pasta cannot. I am tempted to try this with a lighter tasting sauce with lemon instead of the mushrooms and chicken and add cream at the end.