Mentaiko Pasta
Greg Dunmore
Rated 4.4 stars by 7 users
Servings
1
One of my favorite wafu (Japanese-style) pastas!
I was introduced to this dish years ago by my mentor and former chef, Hiro Sone, when I worked at Ame. It’s a beautiful marriage of Western and Japanese ingredients that results in something truly special.
I fell in love with the combination of mentaiko (spicy cod roe), nori, and buttered pasta—simple, yet incredibly satisfying. Because the dish relies on just a few ingredients, each one needs to be high quality, especially the butter. I recommend using a cultured salted butter for the best flavor.
Mentaiko is cod roe seasoned with chili pepper, typically found in the freezer section of Asian markets.
Ingredients
- Salt (for pasta water)
- 3 to 4 ounces spaghetti
- 1 sac mentaiko (spicy cod roe), defrosted
- 1 tablespoon chopped chives
- 1½ tablespoons salted butter
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
-
1½ tablespoons Motoi Kizami Nori
Directions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and season it generously with salt— it should taste like ocean water. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, following the package instructions.
While the pasta cooks, prepare the sauce. In a medium bowl, add the mentaiko sac. Remove the membrane by gently piercing it and peeling it away to release the roe (tiny fish eggs that will blend evenly throughout the sauce). Add the chives, butter, olive oil, and black pepper to the bowl and set aside.
This part is important - once the pasta is done, reserve about ½ cup of the pasta cooking water before draining. Immediately add the hot pasta to the bowl with the mentaiko roe and other ingredients, along with 2 tablespoons of the reserved pasta water. Toss thoroughly until the sauce is glossy and evenly coats the noodles. If it looks a little dry, add more pasta cooking water, one tablespoon at a time, and toss again. Discard any leftover pasta water.
- To serve, twirl the pasta into a mound on each plate, garnish with shredded nori, and enjoy.