Lobster and ramp stuffed tortellini in a mentaiko shiro dashi cream sauce

I host occasional cooking pop-ups and this was from my latest. This was by far the highlight of the night and I’m still thinking about it almost a week later.

Mentaiko Shiro Dashi Cream Sauce – sweat shallots and garlic and any aromatics you have in a pan, deglaze with saki until alcohol boils off. Add generous amount of dashi, and then splashes of mirin, white shoyu, and a premium shoyu.As you go, add butter and cream until reduction turns into semi-creamy texture. Add the mentaiko towards the latter part of the dashi reduction process. It cooks very fast and has a very strong but delicate flavor. Once cooked, pass through a very fine mesh strainer.

Lobster and Ramp Tortellini – in a food processor, combine ramps and a container of ricotta (previously drained through fine mesh or cheese cloth). Add lemon zest, lemon juice and a splash of rice wine vinegar, plus salt and pepper. Once combined, add big chunks of lobster to the filling. The goal will be to have a chunk of lobster in each individual tortellini.

I highly, highly recommend making this. This was probably one of the best pastas I’ve ever made