Risotto con i Funghi (mushroom risotto)
Mushroom Risotto is made in Italy with either freshly picked porcini mushrooms during the fall or with their dry version the rest of the year. This recipe uses dry mushrooms so it can be made at any time. There are many varieties that use different types of mushrooms, additional vegetables and/or even other grains like farro. I like this “purist” Venetian version.
Servings 4 servings
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp Virgin Olive oil
- 1 shallot or ½ small sweet onion
- 1 oz dry porcini mushrooms
- 1 1/4 cup Arborio rice
- 4 cups vegetable broth chicken or beef broth can be used as well
- ¼ cup Parmigiano cheese
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter optional
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Soak the dry mushrooms in a cup of hot water for 15 minutes until tender and pliable. Once done, strain them but SAVE the liquid for cooking. Cut the larger mushroom pieces so we have a batch of mushrooms of approximately same size (around 1-inch square)
- While mushrooms soak, finely chop the shallot(s) or onion
- Heat olive oil in medium size pot and cook onions until soft, add mushrooms and keep cooking for 5 minutes. Add rice and mix well. Let the rice absorb the flavors for a couple of minutes
- Add the liquid from the mushrooms, slowly, making sure the sediment is left out. Lower the heat to simmer
- Once the liquid is almost absorbed, start adding the broth, one cup at the time, stirring the rice often until the liquid is absorbed. Repeat until the rice is tender but not mushy, about 18 minutes. The rice will be "al dente" but it will continue cooking while cools down.
- Remove the pot from the flame, add the cheese and adjust the seasoning to your taste.
- At this point you can also mix in the butter if you like a creamier “cremato” risotto. Let the risotto rest for 5-10 minutes
- Serve with additional Parmigiano if desired.
Notes
- talians like their risotto “al dente”, a shade less cooked than the typical American rice version. The timing in the recipe can be extended 2-3 minutes if you like the more cooked version
- Vegetable broth is lighter in flavor and goes better with this risotto recipe. The chicken broth tends to be stronger in flavor and overpowers the recipe