Roasted mushroom risotto is fantastic comfort food and surprisingly easy to make at home. Roasted portobello mushrooms add stunning savoury flavour, making this the ultimate comfort food.
Pair this risotto with Lentil Salad with Fava Beans and Feta!
I wasn’t sure about risottos at first. They seemed a little tedious, and I wasn’t sure they were worth the effort. But travelling to Italy and tasting risotto made by the experts has convinced me.
Risotto is now a comfort food for me. It’s what I make when I want a one-pan meal that won’t take a whole lot of time or effort. There is a small amount of technique that goes into making risotto right. But don’t worry, it doesn’t take long to get the hang of it!
How to make creamy roasted mushroom risotto
Creamy risotto is a result of adding the stock slowly and allowing it to combine completely before adding more, while at the same time regularly stirring. Stirring while adding stock slowly releases the natural starch of the arborio rice and makes the risotto creamy. The friction of the rice pieces bumping into each other releases starch.
Although pouring in all the stock may be tempting as a way of speeding up the recipe, it will not make for a great result. If all the liquid is added at once, the result will be more like a soup because the rice won’t have the chance to absorb it properly.
Roasted portobello mushrooms
We’ve added roasted portobello mushrooms to this recipe to bring beautiful umami flavour to the creaminess of the risotto. Roasting them first brings this out and lets the mushroom flavour come out in a surprising way. Roasting the mushrooms first does make cooking this recipe a little longer, but you will not regret it when you taste the result!
Adding wine to risotto
White wine is traditionally added to risotto to give it acidity. This is important for balance since risotto without wine can be quite rich. Choose a dry white wine or a dry vermouth, avoiding anything sweet.
While I love wine in my risotto, it is absolutely possible to make it with no wine. If you don’t add wine, at least add 1-2 teaspoon of white wine vinegar to replace the acidity. A squeeze of lemon juice will work as well.
More Italian recipes
- Roasted Vegetable Risotto
- Vegetable Lasagna
- Vegetarian Mushroom Bolognese
- Basil Pesto Pasta
- Vegetarian Mushroom Carbonara
Roasted Mushroom Risotto
Delicious roasted portobello mushrooms add stunning savoury flavour, making this the ultimate comfort food.
Ingredients
- 300g Baby Portobello mushrooms
- 5-6 sprigs of thyme
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 stalks celery
- 1 white onion
- 10g dried mushrooms
- 50g vegetarian parmesan cheese alternative
- 300g / 1 ½ cups Arborio rice
- 125ml / ½ cup white wine
- 500ml / 2 cups vegetable stock
- 500ml / 2 cups water
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Scatter whole mushrooms on a large baking sheet. Place sliced garlic cloves and thyme leaves over top and pour over olive oil. Roast in an oven preheated to 200 degrees for 15 minutes.
- Rehydrate the dried mushrooms in 2 cups of water and allow to steep for 30 minutes. Once done, drain and strain the stock into a separate container and put rehydrated mushrooms aside. Chop the onions and celery into a small dice.
- Heat a large pan or wide pot over medium heat and pour in 2 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the celery and onions and sauté for 10 minutes.
- Add arborio rice and sauté while stirring until all the rice is evenly coated with the olive oil, for about 1 minute. Pour in the white wine and stir until it has completely evaporated, scraping the bottom to release the brown bits into the broth. Allow it to simmer over low heat for 2 or 3 minutes.
- Add ½ cup vegetable stock, ½ cup of mushroom stock and chopped up rehydrated mushrooms to the rice and give it a good stir, leave to cook. The stock should be just above the rice when you first add it. Once you see the stock going down add a bit more and stir. Make sure the stock is nearly absorbed into the rice before adding more stock. Repeat until all the stock is gone and the rice is cooked but still slightly chewy.
- Once the rice is cooked and the risotto is a nice and creamy consistency, cut up the roasted portobello mushrooms into small pieces and add to the rice. Stir to combine. Add a good pinch of salt, careful not to add too much. Grate over with a hard vegetarian cheese. Cover with a lid and let it stand for 5 minutes. Serve with more grated cheese and black pepper.
Notes
Choose a dry white wine for this recipe, avoiding anything sweet. If you don't want to add wine, add at least add 1-2 teaspoon of white wine vinegar . or a squeeze of lemon juice to replace the acidity.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 281Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 736mgCarbohydrates: 33gFiber: 3gSugar: 4gProtein: 9g
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