Mushrooms in general are great for grilling, and portabellas—which not only have a wonderful, earthy flavor but are also large enough to be easy to handle on the grill—are perhaps the best of all.
•Portabellas can be grilled in batches in a lightly oiled hot grill pan over medium-high heat, turning once, until tender, about 10 minutes per batch.
•Portabellas can be grilled 1 day ahead and chilled. Bring to room temperature before using.
Recipe information
Total Time
35 min
Yield
Makes 4 (main course) servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Prepare grill for direct-heat cooking over hot charcoal (high heat for gas); see Grilling Procedure .
Step 2
Brush mushroom caps with vegetable oil and season with 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.
Step 3
Oil grill rack, then grill mushrooms, stemmed sides down, covered only if using a gas grill, 5 minutes. Turn mushrooms over and grill until tender, about 3 minutes more. Cool slightly and slice.
Step 4
Cook penne in a pasta pot of well-salted boiling water until al dente. Reserve 3 tablespoon cooking water, then drain pasta.
Step 5
Toss pasta with reserved cooking water, mushrooms, Pecorino, marjoram, olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.
