Date Night Recipe: Mushroom Risotto

Image by Vicki Bartel

Can I just preface by saying that I love to cook and I honestly always have. It’s become more and more of an escape and passion of mine over the years because there is nothing better than a home-cooked meal.
Although in saying that, there was a period of time where life was really chaotic and busy (it still is) and cooking meals felt more like a chore and less of a joy to do but over the years, I’ve found that challenging myself to cook new recipes or try unorthodox ingredients has excited me once again to make the most of my dinner plans.

So if you’re familiar with Italian cuisine you will know that pasta is a staple in a lot of households but have you tried risotto and if you love it as much as I do, have you tried cooking it? It may seem like a daunting task but honestly, it’s quite simple to make. The three things I observed about making a successful risotto is timing, preparation and good quality ingredients and if you have all of those boxes checked, you can make quite a delicious meal in under 45 minutes.

I hate a food/recipe blog that rambles on (I know you probably do too), so let me get to it with sharing my ingredient list, instructions, and cooking tips to making a comforting Mushroom Risotto.

Kitchen Equipment:

• 1 large skillet (or skillet) for this recipe. I also have used a dutch oven to make this for larger batches.

• Grater (for Parmesan cheese)

• Wooden spoon (for stirring but you can use what you prefer)

• Knife + cutting board

• Garlic Mincer

Ingredients for 4 Servings

• About 3-4 cups of sliced mushrooms, I like a variety of mushrooms in my risotto like Portabello, Cremini, Shitake, or Enoki (you can also dice them if you like smaller chunks)

• 1 small onion or 2-3 shallots, chopped (I use a cooking onion if I don’t have shallots on hand)

• 3-4 cloves of garlic, minced

• 1/2 Tsp Fresh parsley (dried will be fine too)

• 1/2 Tsp Fresh thyme, chopped

• 1/4 cup of salted butter

• 1 cup of Arborio rice (there are other types of rice you can use for this, but this is most common to find locally)

• 1/2 cup of white wine (if you don’t like wine, you can add 1/2 cup of extra chicken broth.. but the wine makes it more flavourful… so your call)

• 4 cups of warmed/room temp chicken stock (I like less salt option)

• 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese, finely shredded (or similar cheese)

• Truffle oil, just a few drops at the end (if you have on hand)

That’s it!

Instructions:

This process goes fairly fast, so I like to prepare all of my ingredients first so that way I can concentrate on the cooking portion.

So you will want to pull out your cutting board and knife and clean and slice your mushrooms and set aside. Then finely dice your onion and mince your garlic and set it aside in a bowl.

Next, grate your Parmesan cheese and set aside. Measure out your 1 cup of Arborio Rice in a dry measuring cup. Measure out your 1/2 cup of wine and get your chicken stock out and ready to be used.

Then this is where the cooking happens. In your large skillet, put 3 tbsp of the butter in the pan and heat to medium-high heat. Wait for the butter to melt and then add your sliced mushrooms into the pan. Saute these mushrooms till they start to get a browned on the outside. It looks like you’re cooking a lot of mushroom here but don’t worry, they cook down. Once browned, take them out of the pan and reserve till the end of the recipe.

Next take the remaining tbsp of butter and drop into the same pan the mushrooms just came out of. Toss your finely diced onion and minced garlic into your pan and cook till fragrant and translucent. Next take your cup of rice and gently sprinkle into the pan with your onions and garlic and let that cook for about a minute. Then you will want to de-glace your pan with the 1/2 cup of white wine. Let that simmer for about 1-2 minutes till the wine is absorbed into the rice.

One the wine has absorbed completely, slowly add in your chicken stock. You want to add this in about 1 cup at a time and in between cups, try and let the liquid come to a gentle boil before adding your next cup. You will want to add four cups in total and turn your heat down to medium so this doesn’t boil over AND so you aren’t evaporating all your liquid as the rice will take some time to cook.

I leave a lid off the pan, cook the rice for about 20 minutes or so (I test it by taking a small forkful and eating it hahaha… nobody wants under-cooked rice). If the rice is soft and not crunchy, remove the pan from the heat.

Add back in the mushrooms you cooked earlier, as well as the thyme, some of the parsley and about 80% of the Parmesan cheese.

Then stir it till heated through and everything is combined nicely.

Now you’re ready to plate and sprinkle with any remaining Parmesan cheese and if you have that truffle oil on hand, just add a few droplets to each plate to add in bit more of a mushroom flavour.

And last but not least, ENJOY!

This risotto can be made with a number of additional ingredients or different ingredients. I have made this with asparagus and mushroom as well as zucchini and frozen peas. Once you make this you will be hooked and I urge you to try it out a few different ways and find your favourite way to make it.

Lastly, it reheats well for lunches the next day. Store in an airtight container and make sure you don’t skip sprinkling this with a bit of extra cheese!

If you made this recipe or are curious about making it and have some questions, send it my way! It’s in the regular monthly rotation for meals in our household and I LOVE it.

Cheers (with any additional wine that may be involved in making this recipe),

Markie.