There are plenty of reasons why pasta is so universally loved. Even for the Japanese home cooks, pasta are the holy grail of time-saving, pantry-friendly, kid-friendly, low-fuss kind of meals. Need a quick dinner? Raid your pantry for some kind of pasta, canned fish, bottled seasoning, and you can rustle up a flavorful meal like this Japanese-style Tuna Mushroom Pasta (ツナときのこのパスタ) in no time. What a life saver on busy nights!
Effortless Japanese-style Pasta with Pantry Staples
Whenever I make a Japanese-style pasta, I often turn to my Japanese pantry staples. It is as simple as combining soy sauce with butter to create a Japanese flair for whatever pasta I can find. Other ingredients can be local, in-season vegetables, canned or fresh seafood or bacon or tofu or mushroom. As far as the variety goes, the sky is the limit! For a flavor boost, I may add a spoonful of miso. For nuttiness, a drizzle of sesame oil does the trick. For final Japanese touches, a sprinkle of shredded nori or furikake seasoning or a scatter of julienned shiso leaves is always welcome. By keeping things flexible and minimal, these pantry essentials allow me to make a satisfying pasta dinner with little to no effort.
How to Make Japanese Style Tuna Mushroom Pasta
Ingredients You’ll Need
Japanese mushrooms of your choice – I highly recommend using Japanese mushrooms like shiitake, shimeji, maitake, enoki mushrooms, etc. Canned tuna – Not only it is a convenient, great pantry item, but it also adds great flavors. Not a fan of tuna? Swap it with other protein or more meaty mushrooms like portobello or king oyster mushrooms. Kobucha (Kombu-cha) – This salted powdered kombu adds saltiness and umami kombu essence to the pasta. It’s sold in the tea section of the Japanese grocery stores. It can be substituted with salt if you can’t find one. Sake – You can use white wine (dry sherry) Mentsuyu (or soy sauce) – Mentsuyu is a noodle soup base we use in Japanese cooking. You can make it yourself or just buy a bottle of mentsuyu at Japanese/Asian grocery stores. Butter – It adds sweetness, creaminess, and fragrance, but also a sublime match with soy sauce and mentsuyu. Shredded nori seaweed – You can buy shredded nori or cut a sheet of nori into julienned strips yourself. Shiso leaves – I love adding shiso to Japanese-style pasta. If it’s hard to get, you can use scallions or other green herbs or grow your own!
Overview of Cooking Steps
That’s it!
3 Important Tips to Make Good Pasta
Salt your pasta cooking water – Salt increases the boiling point of the water, so it will cook at the optimal temperature. Cook pasta to al dente – Since we’ll be sautéing the cooked pasta in the frying pan with the other ingredients, I typically cook pasta one minute less for best texture. Reserve at least 1/4 cup (60 ml) of pasta cooking water – The salted pasta cooking water helps loosening the pasta, and adding extra flavor and moisture to the pasta sauce.
You can complete this Japanese Style Tuna Mushroom Pasta with Japanese corn soup (corn potage), kale soup, or miso soup, and a side of simple salad.
Other Quick Japanese-Style Pasta Recipes You’ll Love:
Japanese-style Pasta with Shrimp and Broccolini Creamy Napa Cabbage and Bacon Pasta Ume Shiso Pasta Miso Butter Pasta with Tuna and Cabbage Creamy Miso Pasta with Tofu and Asparagus
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