Best Creamy Miso Mushroom Pasta

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This creamy miso mushroom pasta has ALL the umami flavors. Golden toasted mushrooms mixed into a rich creamy sauce with miso paste, parmesan cheese, fresh herbs and lemon juice. Perfectly balanced and insanely delicious. Easy enough for a weeknight dinner but impressive enough for a dinner party where guests will be wowed.

White plate with maccheroni pasta (tubes) in a creamy sauce. Golden mushrooms, fresh thyme leaves and lemon zest on top. Fork testing into pasta.

Hello! I had some miso paste left over from testing my broccoli pasta recipe and knew I needed to make a luscious creamy mushroom sauce with it. If you haven't used miso in a pasta, don't be afraid! It adds spectacular flavour and seasoning and is similar to nduja in it's depth of flavor adding abilities!

This is similar to my very popular Creamy Mushroom Pasta with Olives, so make sure you try that if you haven't.

Main ingredients

The full ingredient list and cooking method is in the recipe card below.

Fresh Mushrooms - Use any type of mushrooms you like. I use brown or white mushrooms but a combination of anything including cremini mushrooms or shiitake mushrooms would be great too.

Single or light cream - I don't like to use heavy cream as I find it can get too thick as I always add parmesan to the sauce.

White miso paste - Miso is a fermented soy bean paste used in Japanese Cuisine, you've probably tried miso soup before. The colour name is a bit confusing as the white paste is still quite brown in colour. It's really easy to find in supermarkets now and usually comes in a tub. You can get red miso paste too but I haven't tested that with this sauce.

Fresh thyme - I always love to use fresh herbs in my pasta sauces.

Parmesan cheese - Finely grated with a microplane or using the star side of your box grater.

Ingredients on a wooden chopping board. Ramekins of miso paste, parmesan, garlic and cream. Bowl of mushrooms and sprigs of fresh thyme.

Substitutions or variations

Miso - I have used a tablespoon as I love a lot of flavour. If you aren't sure about it then start with ½ tablespoon and go from there.
Herbs - Substitute the fresh thyme for rosemary or sage.

How to make creamy miso mushroom pasta

Stainless steel fry pan with sluced mushrooms.

Step 1: Sautée the mushrooms in olive oil and butter over a medium-high heat in a large skillet. Do them in a couple of batches if necessary. Also get your pasta cooking in a large pot of water.

Step 2: Cook the mushrooms for 4 - 5 minutes, turning only once or twice until golden brown. Lower to a medium heat if you need.

Cooked mushrooms in a stainless steel pan with garlic and thyme mixed in.

Step 3 - Lower to a medium-low heat. Add the minced garlic and thyme and cook for a further minute. Add the cream and bring to a very gentle simmer.

Pan with mushrooms pushed to side and cream added in. Whisk resting in.

Step 4 - Push mushrooms to side then whisk in the miso, add the parmesan, lemon juice and black pepper and let it gently simmer to thicken.

Fry pan with cooked pasta added in on top of sauce.

Step 5: Add the cooked pasta straight into the creamy miso mixture, mix well, add the rest of the thyme leaves and lemon zest and cook for 1-2 minutes to thicken some more.

Plate with the cooked pasta and sauce, fork resting in. Fry pan above on bench with the rest of the pasta.

To serve: Serve between heated bowls or plates and top with a scattering of fresh thyme and lemon zest, plus some extra parmesan if you wish. Some red pepper flakes would also be delish!

Expert tips!

Keep mushrooms in the main section of your fridge - not the vegetable crisper draws. It is too moist for them!

Cooking the sautéed mushrooms - I do them in two batches (or in two pans at the same time) so they aren't over crowded. The best way to get golden brown mushrooms is to add to pan, toss in the olive oil and butter then leave them alone. Let them toast up and just turn once rather than moving them around.

Measure ingredients by weight where applicable - I want you to have success and if I was to measure a cup of mushrooms or a cup of parmesan it might be different to how you do it. That is why I weigh most ingredients, including the pasta.

Keep an eye on your heat - When you add the cream you want to turn your stove down to a low heat. The cream should never be boiling.

Cooking the pasta - I like pasta to be al dente so I tend to undercook it by a minute so it can finish cooking in the sauce. No one likes overcooked pasta!

A little tip for creamy sauces

Creamy sauces thicken up FAST when taken off the heat. That is why I always make sure the sauce is really saucy in the pan, maybe even thinner than you think. By the time you take it off the heat, serve it in your bowls and get it to the table it will continue to thicken.

This is why the starchy pasta water is your best friend. ALWAYS reserve a big cup or mug of the pasta water before draining so you can thin a sauce down if you need. I very rarely drain my pasta in a colander I usually transfer it directly from the water into the sauce with a spider strainer. Then the pasta water is sitting there in the pot for me to ladle in as I need.

What pasta shape is best?

Look, as I always say, I am not a rule follower. Plus this is definitely not a traditional dish so use any type of pasta you like, fresh or dried. I had some maccheroni in the cupboard so I used that. I feel with mushrooms a short pasta shape works best.

Feel like making some pasta from scratch? My favourite shape is my homemade orecchiette. It can be slightly tricky to master so for something easier then my hand rolled gnocchi sardi is delicious. If you are after a long noodle shape then use my easy homemade pasta dough and cut into homemade pappardelle or use a fettuccine or spaghetti cutter.

Orecchiette on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.

Recipe FAQs

Can I store the leftovers?

I don't love storing pasta as I don't feel like it reheats super well. However it will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for 3 days.

What if I can't find any miso paste?

It really is readily available in supermarkets so try and hunt some out. You could use ½ tablespoon of soy sauce but it has a much thinner consistency. It would still be delicious if you left the miso out entirely.

Will the lemon juice curdle the cream?

I have never had this happen to me. Don't have your heat too high and stir it in straight away, I like to use a flat whisk for this.

Want some other sauces to try?

If you loved this creamy miso pasta recipe next time try my Broccoli Pasta Recipe as it also uses miso paste! If it doesn't need to be vegetarian then try one of my recipes with nduja, my Creamy Nduja Pasta Sauce is pretty great. Another favourite creamy sauce is my Roast Garlic and Lemon Pasta. Creamy pasta dishes really are my favourite, the ultimate comfort food!

White plate with orecchiette pasta in a broccoli sauce. Dollops of ricotta on top with golden breadcrumbs scattered. — Best Broccoli Pasta

Rigatoni in an orange nduja sauce with a fork resting in and fresh parsley on top. — Best Broccoli Pasta

Made this recipe and loved it?

I would love love LOVE if you could leave me a review down below and let me know what you thought! I love to hear any changes or adaptions you have made too. Also if you put a photo on instagram, please tag me so I can see, it makes my day!

Recipe

Best Creamy Miso Mushroom Pasta

5 from 10 votes

Author: Emilie Pullar

Cook Time:25

Servings: 2 people

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This creamy miso mushroom pasta has ALL the umami flavors. Golden toasted mushrooms mixed into a rich creamy sauce with miso paste, parmesan cheese, fresh herbs and lemon juice.

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Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
270 grams mushrooms sliced but not super thinly
3 - 4 garlic cloves minced
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves divided
¾ cup single or light cream
½ - 1 tablespoon white miso paste see notes
40 grams parmesan finely grated
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice plus 1 tablespoon of zest
Pasta of your choice see notes

Instructions

Cook your pasta in a pot of well salted water according to package directions. I do tend to undercook dried pasta by a minute so it can bubble away in the sauce for a minute or two at the end. Reserve a cup of pasta water.
Cook the mushrooms - in a large skillet or Dutch oven heat the olive oil and butter over a medium-high heat. I don't like to overcrowd the mushrooms so I do them in two batches so divide the butter and olive oil in two if you do that too.
Add the mushrooms to the pan, toss in the oil and butter then leave alone for 4 - 5 minutes, turning only once or twice until golden brown.
If you have cooked in two batches add them all back into the pan, lower the heat slightly and add the garlic and 1 tablespoon of the thyme leaves. Cook for a minute.
Push the mushrooms to one side of the pan and add the cream, you want a low heat here, the cream should never be boiling, just a nice gentle simmer.
Add the miso and whisk into the cream until well incorporated.
Add the grated parmesan in 2 or 3 lots, letting it melt into the cream in between each addition.
Add the lemon juice and pepper and cook for a minute or two to thicken slightly. A gentle simmer.
Add the cooked pasta straight in, mix well and let it all gently bubble away for a minute or two to thicken further. Loosen with a splash of pasta water if you need to.
Mix in the remaining 1 tablespoon of thyme leaves and the lemon zest and serve.
Top with extra parm, lemon zest and thyme leaves if you wish.

Notes

Double the recipe exactly for four.
Miso - I use 1 tablespoon as I like a lot of flavour. If you aren't sure then use ½ and you can always add more.
The parmesan should be VERY finely grated either with a microplane or the star side of your boxed grater.
Pasta - For this recipe I allow 110 grams dried per person or 150 grams fresh per person.
Reserve a mug of pasta water before draining so you can add a splash if you need to thin the sauce down.

Author: Emilie Pullar

Cook Time: 25

Course: Vegetarian

Cuisine: Italian Inspired

Keyword: creamy mushroom pasta, miso mushroom pasta

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