Recipe Time! – Wild Mushroom Risotto

Two winters ago I was watching the Food Network channel and was watching one of my favorite shows Secrets of a Restaurant Chef hosted by Anne Burrell. One of the recipes on this particular episode was this Wild Mushroom Risotto recipe. I am not a big fan of mushrooms and I have never made risotto before but after watching the show, I felt moved compelled to create this dish. I went out to get the ingredients that I needed and cooked it accordingly. When I had the first spoonful, mmm mmm mmm. It was heaven! So I will share it with you. This is an easy recipe and takes about an hour to cook.

Wild Mushroom Risotto – courtesy of FoodNetwork.com

What you will need:

• Extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed with heel your hand
• 1 1/2 pounds assorted fresh mushrooms, such as shiitake, oyster or cremini, cleaned and sliced
• Kosher salt
• 1 cup dried porcini mushrooms, soaking in 3 cups hot water
• 1 medium or 2 small onions, cut into 1/4-inch dice (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 2 cups Carnaroli or Arborio rice
• 2 cups dry white wine (SN: Use a wine that you can drink)
• 6 to 7 cups hot chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano
• 1/2 cup chopped chives

Directions:

Coat a large saute pan generously with olive oil and add the smashed garlic cloves. Bring to a medium-high heat. When the garlic cloves have begun to brown and are very aromatic remove and discard them. Add the assorted fresh mushrooms to the pan and season with salt. Saute the mushrooms until they are soft and pliable. Turn off the heat and reserve.Using your hand, carefully scoop the porcini mushrooms out of the hot water. (At this point the water should have cooled off significantly. If it is still too hot for your hand, use a slotted spoon.) Pour the top 2/3 of the mushroom water into another container and reserve for use while making the risotto. Discard the bottom third. It contains a lot of sand and dirt from the mushrooms. Puree the re-hydrated mushrooms with a little of the reserved mushroom water to make a smooth mushroom paste. This will not look good but it will certainly taste good! Reserve.

Coat a large sauce pot abundantly with olive oil. Add the onions and season generously with salt. Bring the pot to a medium-high heat. Cook the onions, stirring frequently until they are very soft and aromatic but have no color. Add the rice and stir to coat with the olive oil. Cook the rice for 2 to 3 minutes to toast, stirring frequently. Add wine to cover the surface of the rice and stir frequently until it has completely absorbed. Add the reserved mushroom water and then add chicken stock until the liquid has covered the surface of the rice. Stir frequently until the stock has absorbed into the rice. Repeat this process 2 more times. Check for seasoning, you probably will need to add salt.

During the third addition of stock, add the reserved sauteed mushrooms and 2 tablespoons of the pureed porcini mushrooms. When the stock has absorbed into the rice and the rice is cooked but still “al dente”, remove the pot from the heat. Add the butter and cheese and whip until well combined. This will set the perfect consistency of the rice. The rice should flow and not be able to hold its shape and look very creamy. Serve immediately garnished with chives.

Risotto is like rice and is very versatile when it comes to adding ingredients. If you aren’t a mushroom fan, you can add other veggies or meats and you will have your perfect dish.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, I know I did!  Happy cooking!

God Bless!