Italian salt cod (baccalà) and porcini tagliatelle

5 from 37 votes

Italian salt cod (baccalà) and porcini tagliatelle

This traditional tagliatelle with baccalà and porcini is a recipe from Abruzzo in Central Italy. The combination of salt cod and porcini mushrooms with cloves, lemon zest, nutmeg and wine give this recipe a unique and rich flavour that is really special and definitely worth trying. Perfect for Lent and other meatless days.

Prep Time20

Cook Time30

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Abruzzo, Central Italy, Italian, Mediterranean

Keyword: Abruzzo, authentic Italian pasta recipe, baccalà, baccalà pasta, salt cod, salt cod pasta recipe, tagliatelle

Servings:

Calories: 889kcal

Author: Jacqui

Ingredients

400 g tagliatelle (14oz) I used fresh tagliatelle from Giovanni Rana
400 g salt cod (baccalà) (14oz) soaked, desalted and rehydrated (see text for instructions)
30 g dried porcini mushrooms (1oz) soaked in warm water
1 onion peeled and finely chopped
1 carrot washed and finely chopped
1 celery stalk washed and finely chopped
1-2 garlic cloves peeled and finely chopped
½ teaspoon nutmeg grated
2-3 cloves crushed
1 teaspoon lemon zest (organic lemon)
0.5 glass white wine
1 tablespoon milk
40 g butter (1.5oz)
freshly ground black pepper. to taste
salt for pasta and to taste
3-4 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil.
1 handful fresh parsley washed and chopped

Instructions

Prepare the ingredients

Cut the prepared salt cod (baccalà) into small chunks (see text for prep instructions if necessary). Peel and finely chop onion and garlic. Wash and finely chop carrot and celery. Wash and chop parsley. Soak the dried porcini in warm water for at least 30 minutes. Drain and chop. Save the liquid to add to the sauce if required.

Cook the baccalà and porcini sauce

Sauté the chopped celery, carrot, onion, garlic in olive oil. after a couple of minutes, add the crushed cloves and nutmeg, grated lemon zest and some freshly ground pepper.
Once the veggies are soft and you can smell the spices, add the drained and chopped dried mushrooms and pieces of salt cod. Turn the fish and mushrooms so they cook on all sides then add the white wine and allow the alcohol to evaporate.
Add the milk and season with salt and pepper (taste test first as you don't want it too salty). Finally add the chopped parsley and, at the very end, add the butter and mix it gently into the hot sauce until it melts. If your sauce seems dry you can add some of the porcini soaking water or pasta cooking water.
Put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. Add salt once it starts to boil and bring to the boil again. Cook the pasta al dente according to the instructions on the packet. My fresh tagliatelle took only a couple of minutes.
Drain the pasta and add it to the sauce. Mix everything together well and serve immediately.

Notes

Tagliatelle is the traditional pasta for this dish but you can also use pappardelle or other pasta ribbons.

Instead of dried porcini, you can use fresh or frozen porcini or other types of dried or fresh mushrooms.

Nutrition