Mushroom Risotto
Mushroom Risotto. The best mushroom risotto I've ever eaten was in Valetta, Malta (so good you'd give somebody's left arm for it)and I've been hunting for a good recipe ever since. This recipe is a close second! I've made it twice now, and I've found that I prefer to use about twice as much wine as called for (and of course then cut back on the chicken stock.
Ingredients
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Prepare 2 Tbs of unsalted butter
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Prepare 1/2 lb of mushrooms – shitake, chanterelle, oyster, crimini, and/or baby bell, cleaned and sliced
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It’s 1 package of dried porchini mushrooms
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Prepare 1 cup of hot water
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You need 2/3 cup of dry white wine
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You need 4-5 cups of vegetable stock
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Prepare 1/2 of small onion and 1 large clove of garlic or 1 large shallot, finely chopped
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You need 1 1/2 cups of arborio rice
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You need 1/3 cup of Parmesan cheese
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It’s to taste of Salt and pepper
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You need 2 Tbsp of fresh parsley, chopped
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It’s 8 oz of mascarpone cheese, optional
Steps
- Bring stock to a simmer in a sauce pan. Add the dried mushrooms to to the cup of hot water and soak until softened and re-hydrated. Reserve the soaking liquid..
- Melt the butter in a deep, heavy, medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat. Add fresh mushrooms, re-hydrated mushrooms, onion and garlic or shallot. Saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Add rice and stir to combine..
- Add wine and bring to a boil and cook, stirring, until liquid is reduced by half. Add the mushroom liquid, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring enough to prevent the rice from sticking to the pan. Once the liquid is almost completely absorbed, add the vegetable stock, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring almost constantly to create a creamy sauce. Wait until the stock is almost completely absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup. This will take 25-30 minutes. The rice should be just cooked and slightly chewy..
- Stir in the Parmesan cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with a generous dollop on mascarpone and a sprinkle of chopped parsley..
For this mushroom risotto, mushrooms are sautéed first, then cooked in brandy (or vermouth). Arborio (or any other kind of risotto rice) is cooked slowly with stock and when done, you stir in some freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Bring the broth to a simmer in a heavy medium saucepan. Keep the broth warm over very low heat. If you are ever at a loss for what to make for an impromptu dinner party, especially if there will be vegetarians at the table, consider this luxurious mushroom risotto I added peas because I wanted to introduce some color, and also because the sweetness of the peas fits right in with the flavors of this dish But this satisfying, elegant dish is fine without peas, too Ordering risotto at your favorite Italian restaurant has always been a treat reserved for dining out.
