Linguine with oyster mushrooms

I love refashioning recipes to make them kosher. Keeping kosher can be difficult at times, but especially when you’ve tasted all the flavors of the world. When I’m missing or craving a certain food that I have not eaten in 20 years, I start experimenting — and I believe that I have done one heck of a job making a copycat linguine with clam sauce using oyster mushrooms and anchovies. Both of those ingredients give a beautiful umami flavor.

The mushrooms have a great texture when sautéed. Mushrooms generally can take the place of seafood if cooked correctly, but it’s the anchovy that really gives this dish its flavor.

This recipe is pareve. I’ve served it both hot and cold, as a side to a fish meal and many times as a main dish. To serve it cold, let it rest covered in the refrigerator overnight and add a little olive oil and some fresh lemon juice before serving.

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Ingredients:
1 pound linguine pasta
4-5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1-2 pints oyster mushrooms (each pint makes about 1 cup of raw mushrooms)
1 cup finely diced shallots
3 medium-sized cloves of minced garlic
2 2-ounce cans of whole anchovies in olive oil
1 teaspoon pepper, your choice; I love red pepper flakes but coarse black pepper is OK
½ cup hot water from the pasta pot
Salt to taste
Fresh chopped parsley for garnish, optional

Before starting the pasta water, prep the shallots, mushrooms and garlic so that each ingredient is ready to go when you are.

Wash the mushrooms and trim the end of the stalks. Cut the stalks in ¼-inch pieces. If the mushroom tops are on the smaller side you can leave them whole. The large ones tend to break apart when cooking.

Dice the shallots as finely as you can. Shallots vary in size. To get one cup, you will need about 3 large shallots or about 6 smaller ones.

Making the sauce takes about the same amount of time as bringing the water to boil and cooking the pasta, so I prepare them both at the same time.

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil, add about a tablespoon of sea salt to flavor the water and then put the linguine in the pot to cook per the instructions on the box.

If you time this just right you can use a pasta fork or strainer to remove the pasta and add it to the finished sauce as it’s ready to be drained. (A note: This is always how I strain pasta. I very rarely use a colander unless I need to rinse it with cool water for a pasta salad.)

I use a 3-quart braiser-style pot to start the sauce. It’s wide, which makes it easier to sauté the vegetables, and it’s large enough to mix in a pound of cooked pasta. You can simply serve from that pot when you’re ready to eat.

Turn the stove burner to medium-low and let the pot warm for a minute before adding in 2 tablespoons of olive oil to heat.

After another minute, add the mushroom stems, stirring regularly for 4-5 minutes before adding in the mushroom tops. Stir the mushrooms every minute or so for another 4-5 minutes. Test a small piece of the stem to see if it’s tender to the touch and use a slotted spoon to remove the mushrooms to another bowl.

Add 2 more tablespoons of olive oil to the pot and stir in the diced shallots. Stir regularly for 10-12 minutes, or until the shallots are soft and translucent.

Adding the anchovies: I use 2 cans of flat-packed anchovies in oil. I have tried the 4-ounce glass jar but I don’t care for the texture of the fish. I leave a few larger pieces for flavor and I think that the tinned fish is better. Anchovies have bones but they are super fine, unlike pin bones in large filets. They are soft and break down well. They actually add extra texture. (The bones are impossible to remove and you will see and bite a few.)

Add one can of anchovies with the oil to the shallots and stir constantly for 3-4 minutes, breaking the fish pieces down to create a sauce.

Add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant but not brown, about another minute or 2.

Add the second can of anchovies with the oil, along with a teaspoon of pepper. Break the pieces with a spoon but leave a few larger pieces if possible.

The anchovies make this dish salty, so salt this to taste at the very end.

Scoop ¼ cup of the boiling pasta water from the pot; use a small Pyrex measuring cup with a handle to scoop out the water and pour it into the sauce. This will release all of the flavor from the sides of the cooking pan.

Use a wooden spoon or spatula to gently scrape the sides and bottom of the pot. The water will mix with the shallots and gently boil down to a light, brown-colored sauce.

Add the mushrooms and let them cook in the sauce for 2 minutes before adding the last ¼ cup of hot water to the pan.

Allow to simmer for 5 more minutes so the flavors develop.

If the sauce is finished and the pasta is still cooking, turn off the heat on the stove and cover the pan until you’re ready to mix in the pasta.

When the pasta is cooked to al dente, scoop it from the cooking pot and toss it with the sauce. If the pasta seems a little dry, add another 2 tablespoons of hot water and it should meld together with the sauce as you stir it.

If you are serving a dairy meal you can add cheese if you like, but I think that a strong parmesan cheese competes with the flavor instead of complementing it.

To bring this to the next level, add two tablespoons of butter and allow it to melt in before serving. It’s stellar without the butter, but this is another option and butter always adds to the flavor of a meal like this.

You can sprinkle this with fresh chopped parsley for color.

Enjoy and bless your hands! PJC

Jessica Grann is a home chef living in Pittsburgh.