Autumn Peperoncino (Mushrooms and Fresh Salmon)

Peel the skin off the salmon. Pinch the part that has come loose and pull the skin while sliding the knife upward. You can crisp up the leftover skin and eat it as a snack.

Fresh salmon has a slightly fishy smell, so rub salt on both sides and let it rest for a while. Osmosis draws out the moisture along with the odor.

Prepare the garlic. Since the mushrooms are seared slowly, use the cloves whole so they do not burn, and cut large ones down so they are all the same size. If the germ is exposed it burns easily, so remove it, and crush the cloves lightly with the flat side of the knife so the aroma transfers to the oil more readily.

Mince the parsley. Next, tear the mushrooms by hand. The ragged surfaces help the sauce cling. Prepare about 100g in total.

Once the salted salmon starts to sweat, wipe off the released moisture with paper towels. Cut the drained flesh into bite-sized pieces and remove any bones you find.

Bring the pasta water to a boil. Aim for a salt concentration of 1.5% (1 tablespoon of salt per liter of water). This brings the cooked noodles to about 0.8% salt, giving them bite and making the seasoning come together.

Put olive oil and garlic in a frying pan and heat over fairly high heat until small bubbles appear. Once they do, lower the heat and draw out the aroma slowly, then add the chili peppers once the garlic is fragrant.

Once the garlic aroma has fully transferred to the oil, add the mushrooms and coat them all over with the garlic oil. Sear them over medium heat without moving them, turning them over periodically. Steam rising is a sign the moisture is cooking off. When they have shrunk and taken on an appetizing sear, add the fresh salmon and toss to cook it lightly.

Once the water boils, cook the pasta. Use 80g of noodles (100g if you want a bigger portion). Follow the cooking time on the package.

Make the sauce. Add about 50cc of pasta cooking water and water in equal parts to the pan and scrape up the flavorful bits stuck to the bottom. Add butter for richness, then ishiri for umami. If it needs more salt, adjust with cooking water or salt, and finally add the parsley. Once the sauce is done, turn off the heat and set it aside.

When the pasta is done, drain it, reserving a little cooking water for final adjustments. Add the pasta to the reheated sauce and toss quickly. Add plenty of extra virgin olive oil to finish and pepper for a robust kick, then toss briskly with the sauce while tossing the pan.

Finish by drizzling sudachi juice over the top to tighten the flavor. Plate and serve.