Creamy slow turned simple white button mushroom risotto simmered with dry white wine, homemade stock, and butter.

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I love risotto. It’s impressive but also really easy. Especially if you make it no pressure in the kitchen. To reduce stress I like to make things simple. To make that happen it requires a little do ahead.

Risotto needs to be stirred and often. About once every 30 seconds for 30-40 minutes so that’s a lot! To give the risotto my whole attention I like to top it with slow-cooked stews, chickens, and baked meats and veggies! That way I can do everything ahead and keep it screaming hot in the oven. So once the risotto is done. We can eat.

Don’t stress or fear making risotto it’s pretty forgiving even for beginners. Often times you see it made with over-the-top expensive ingredients like oyster mushrooms, truffles, different types of aged cheese. Don’t even worry about that till you have it down. Who wants to waste amazing ingredients? So switch it up with cheaper alternatives like button mushrooms, grated parm, and simpler toppings. Check out my tips and tricks to help you along the way. Try this recipe out and let me know what you think!

TIPS & TRICKS FOR THE BEST MUSHROOM RISOTTO:

stock on the side: a couple of risotto must-haves are hot stock and time. You want to incorporate hot stock into your risotto as you cook it. that keep it from affecting the cooking time. so it doesn’t have to reheat every time and it keeps it velvety. cold stock will cause the risotto to get majorly gummy. the simplest and most consistent way of doing this is by keeping a pot of stock on a burner right next to the pot so you can just ladle it in.

use some bones: sometimes you have them sometimes you don’t. If you have frozen or leftover chicken bones. making a quick stock ( shortcut recipe below) to really enhance the flavor. my stock consist of simple ingredients that require no prep and all should be on hand. the collagen in the chicken carcass really adds depth and creaminess to the final product in risotto. which cant be replicated in boxed broth. It is okay if you have boxed broth just treat it like my tip above and you’ll be fine. But feel free to add fresh veggies and whatever scraps you have to the box to help boost the flavors:

spider it: good chicken stock can take a very long time I’m talking close to a day. to help this quick recipe out I like to boil my stock for an hour to help everything soften up (bones included) and I like to mash it with a potato masher. mashing it will release the marrow in the chicken bones adding more flavor. the pectin from the veggies helping with texture and color. and it will just move the process along a lot quicker. I don’t strain or dump the parts of my broth at all. I place a spider in the middle that acts like a strainer and I dip my ladle only into that part to pick up the stock but not the contents. that keeps my stock rich the entire time and if I need more all I have to do is just add water.

low and slow: risotto has a lot of visual cues before you lose it completely the main one being the reduction of the broth. as the broth reduces it slowly cooks the rice leaving the top layer exposed. that’s why you stir it so much. the stirring and the fact it is high gluten results in a creamy texture similar to a carbonara. the slow simmering keeps it from sticking to the bottom only add stock as it’s reduced by half and only enough stock as needed at the time.

it’s about the pasta: arborio rice is risotto rice. It’s short-grain high gluten rice that gives the risotto that pillowy fluffed texture. it high gluten makes so that it can stand up to the constant stirring without it becoming gummy. you can use a variety of other grains of rice if you can’t find arborio but cooking times are changed drastically and the final product will vary.

don’t leave it: risotto is not a set-and-forget style dish. it’s easier and less taxing to make everything else you serve it with a set and forget item like stews and braised meats. the risotto needs to be constantly stirred, babysat, and tended to. so don’t forget about it.

salt in layers:  oversalting any rice during its cooking process can result in it have splayed ends causing a weird texture. that’s why it’s often instructed to salt after it’s done. but the missed flavor-building opportunity is gone. so salt in layer maybe every 10 minutes and keep it small. that way you build the place, don’t have to worry about gumming the rice and not building flavor. save the major seasoning for the end.

 

SIMILAR INGREDIENTS TO:

1. HERB GOAT CHEESE CHICKEN BREAST AND PARMESAN MUSHROOMS
2. ROSEMARY AND LAVENDER CRUSTED TRI-TIP
3. BRAISED SHORT RIBS AND PURPLE SWEET POTATOES

ENJOY THIS RECIPE WITH:

1. RED PEPPER AND PARMESAN CRUSTED PORK MEDALLIONS
2. CLASSIC RIBEYE W/ SHITAKE AND CARMALIZED ONION BUTTER
3. CAJUN CHICKEN QUARTERS W/ DIRTY RICE

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