Mushroom Risotto

Yields: 4 to 6 servings

Time: 15 minutes prep, 45 minutes cooking 

INGREDIENTS:

• 6 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable stock, more as needed 
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided 
• 1 pound mixed mushrooms (such as shiitake, oyster and cremini), destemmed, thinly sliced  
• 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar 
• 1 large shallot, minced (about ¼ cup) 
• 2 garlic cloves, minced 
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped 
• 1½ cups arborio or carnaroli rice 
• 1/2 cup white wine, such as pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc 
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated, plus more for garnish 
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 
• Kosher salt, to taste  
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste 
• 3 tablespoons fresh parsley leaves, roughly chopped 

PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Bring the stock to a very light simmer in a large GreenPan saucepan on the stovetop over low heat. 

2. Place a large GreenPan sauté pan on the stovetop over medium high heat and pour in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil.  Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes or until fully cooked and deeply golden brown. If the pan starts to look too dry, add a bit more olive oil as the mushrooms cook. Season them with the red wine vinegar and a pinch of salt and black pepper, then transfer to a small bowl and set aside. 

3. Lower the heat on the sauté pan to medium low and add in the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Add the shallot, garlic and thyme and cook, stirring regularly, for 2 to 3 minutes or until softened and aromatic. Add the rice and cook a minute or two more, stirring regularly, until the grains of rice start to become slightly more transparent around the edges. 

4. Increase the heat to medium, pour in the wine and cook until the wine has reduced enough so the pan is almost dry. Using a ladle, add in enough of the warm stock to just cover the rice and adjust the heat until the rice and stock comes to a light simmer – there should be just a small amount of consistent light bubbles on the surface. Cook, stirring regularly, until the broth reduces to just below the surface of the rice, 4 to 5 minutes.

5. Repeat this process of adding broth just to cover the rice and cook, constantly stirring until the broth is just below the rice, 2 to 4 more times (you may not use all the broth). The rice is done cooking when it has released enough starch to thicken the stock and is just cooked through and barely al dente in the center when you bite through it.

6. Reduce the heat to low and stir in the parmesan, butter and reserved mushrooms until the cheese and butter are melted and the mushrooms are warmed. Adjust the consistency of the risotto with more stock – it’s perfect when you can draw a clean line through the risotto in the bottom of the pan with a silicon spoon and it takes a second or two to flow back together. Taste and adjust as desired with salt, black pepper, vinegar and parmesan. Stir in the parsley.

7. Divide the risotto into warmed shallow bowls. Garnish with a bit more parmesan and serve immediately.

TIPS:

Risotto is great to prepare ahead and finish right before serving! Follow the recipe until the rice is 80% cooked, then pour onto a sheet tray and cool in the refrigerator.  When ready to serve, heat stock on the stovetop and then add stock until the rice is fully cooked and finish the recipe as written!  

You never quite know how much stock you’ll need for to cook the risotto fully, but it’s key that it’s warm!  If you notice you start running low before the rice is cooked, simply add water to the remaining stock to get warm. It will still be delicious as you use it to finish cooking the risotto!