Mushroom Risotto. She is not always familiar, for she is foreign. She is not basic rice, for she is fancy.
She is not pasta, for she is temperamental.
Mushroom Risotto
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 cup sliced or diced fresh mushrooms
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
- 3/4 cup dry white wine
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 2-3 tablespoons beef Better Than Bouillon
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup fresh parmesan cheese, grated (plus more for the top if desired for garnish)
- One small handful of fresh chives, finely chopped
- Salt
- Pepper
To prepare for all that is holy and lovely, pull all ingredients together ahead of time. Cut onion and mushroom and heat olive oil on medium-high in a somewhat deep frying pan.
Saute mushrooms until softened and a beautiful brown. Using a straining utensil, remove mushrooms from pan and set aside.
While cooking the mushrooms in the frying pan, heat the chicken broth in a separate saucepan until warm in a saucepan. Keep warm (but don’t allow it to reduce).
Place chopped onions into the oil. Cook until translucent and caramelized. Add minced garlic. Then add Arborio rice and stir until rice is translucent around the edges yet white in the center.
Finally, the finicky side of risotto… the babysitting.
Pour white wine into the risotto. Stir and cook on medium heat until wine is nearly all absorbed by the rice.
Add about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of broth and stir and cook until the broth is nearly all absorbed.
Continue to cook and add broth in this same fashion until broth is gone but, more importantly, until risotto is al dente (not mushy and not crunchy). The dish should be a little creamy. Stir in 2-3 tablespoons beef Better than Bouillon to your liking.
Stir in cooked mushrooms, butter, parmesan cheese, and chives. Add salt & pepper last since you can’t be sure how much salt you will need until after the parmesan has been added. If desired, sprinkle freshly grated parmesan over the top and perhaps some freshly chopped chives.
Serve hot and serve often for she is warm and gorgeous and comforting. For she is risotto.
To make this into a main dish, you can stir in pieces of cooked chicken.