Creamy Mentaiko Pasta
This creamy mentaiko pasta is rich, buttery and packed with umami flavour. Made with salted pollock roe, cream, garlic and angel hair pasta, it’s a simple Japanese-inspired pasta dish that comes together in under 20 minutes.
Servings: 2 serves
Ingredients
- 120 g mentaiko about 3-4 sacs
- 30 g butter
- 200 g angel hair pasta
- 1 small clove garlic minced
- 1 spring onion finely sliced
- 250 mL cream
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- ½ tablespoon mirin
For Serving
- Reserved mentaiko
- Sliced spring onion
- Nori flakes
Instructions
- Slice open the mentaiko sacs and gently scrape the roe into a small bowl. Discard the membranes and reserve 1 teaspoon of mentaiko for serving.
- Bring a pot of salted water to the boil.
- Meanwhile, melt the butter in a fry pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and the white part of the spring onion and cook for 1–2 minutes, or until fragrant.
- Pour in the cream and stir through the soy sauce and mirin. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 4–5 minutes, or until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- While the sauce simmers, cook the angel hair pasta until al dente according to packet instructions. Reserve ¼ cup pasta water before draining.
- Remove the sauce from the heat and whisk through the mentaiko. Add the cooked pasta and reserved pasta water, tossing well until glossy and evenly coated.
- Divide between two bowls and top with the reserved mentaiko, sliced spring onion and nori flakes. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Thin spaghetti can be used instead of angel hair pasta.
- Stir the mentaiko into the sauce off the heat to prevent it from becoming grainy.
- Mentaiko can usually be found frozen at Japanese or Korean grocery stores.
- Taste the sauce before adding extra salt, as the mentaiko and soy sauce are already quite salty.