Contrary to popular belief that risotto is a cross between pilaf and milk rice porridge, it is not.
Risotto - an independent dish of rice and other components of the dish differs from the usual rice dishes, and this is what we learn to cook hotter, having examined the secrets and subtleties of its preparation.
Mushroom risotto - general principles of preparation
Before cooking risotto with mushrooms, you must take care of the presence of all products. Moreover, it is important that the components are not only fresh and tasty, but also meet all the specified parameters.
Regardless of what the risotto is made with, the main ingredient of the dish is rice. The grits used for cooking should be large, whole.
Ideal rice varieties for risotto:
• Vialone Nano;
• Arborio;
• Maratelli;
• Padano;
• Carnaroli.
Rice should be very starchy, after cooking, the grains should stick to each other, therefore, when preparing a risotto, the step of soaking the rice in water should be skipped.
Traditionally, mushroom risotto is cooked in a broth: vegetable, mushroom or chicken. You can also use ordinary water, but then it is recommended to boil it with sprigs of parsley and thyme, celery roots, and laurel.
Another important component of the dish is mushrooms. Especially tasty is a dish with fresh, frozen or dried forest mushrooms: oils, birch bark, chanterelles and others. But for lack of this component, you can use the greenhouse "brothers": champignons, oyster mushrooms.
If cheese is added to the dish, then it is better to use a product of hard varieties: Grana Padano, Parmigiano Rigiano, Trentiegrana.
Additionally, you can put in the dish:
• Vegetables (tomatoes, broccoli, carrots, pumpkin, etc.);
• Meat (chicken, pork, turkey);
• Seafood (squid, fish, shrimp, etc.).
Ingredients such as white wine or sherry, saffron tincture, butter will help to add taste and aroma to the risotto.
1. Risotto with mushrooms: a classic recipe
Ingredients:
• rice - 1 glass;
• 5 medium boletus;
• Dutch cheese - a small piece;
• onion head;
• a tablespoon of butter;
• chicken stock - 1 liter;
• dry white wine - an incomplete glass;
• salt - half a teaspoon;
• saffron tincture on vodka - 3 tbsp. spoons.
Cooking method:
1. Chop the onion with a knife and fry in a pan in a small amount of butter over low heat.
2. Pour the washed rice groats into the onion and fry for 5 minutes.
3. After a few minutes, reduce the heat, pour in the wine, mix well.
4. After the wine has completely evaporated, pour the chicken broth in several stages.
5. Rinse and peeled mushrooms coarsely chop, fry in a separate pan with sunflower oil.
6. When almost all of the broth has evaporated, put the mushrooms in the rice and onion, mix well.
7. At the very end, pour in the saffron tincture, close the lid and leave for a few minutes.
8. Slowly pour grated cheese into the rice mass, mix.
9. Serve the risotto on a portioned plate, garnishing with parsley leaves.
2. Risotto with mushrooms: recipe with vegetables
Ingredients:
• rice - 1 glass;
• chicken broth - 2 liter cans;
• 6 small boletus or chanterelles;
• wine - half a glass;
• butter - 50 g;
• 2 onion heads;
• 1 stalk of leek;
• 2 carrots;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• saffron - 10 g;
• a slice of Dutch cheese;
• seasoning paprika - 20 g;
• ground allspice - 30 g;
• seasoning for mushrooms - half a pack;
• salt - 10 g.
Cooking method:
1. Cut the peeled and washed mushrooms into large pieces and fry in a skillet with butter.
2. Saffron soak in dry wine for 30 minutes.
3. Chop onions and leek with a knife, carrots - slices.
4. In a separate frying pan in oil, fry the onions and leek until transparent.
5. Add chopped carrots and whole cloves of garlic to the onion, fry for a few more minutes and turn off the heat.
6. Remove the garlic cloves from the vegetables and add the washed rice.
7. Pour a few tablespoons of white wine and stew until the wine evaporates.
8. Gradually pour the chicken broth (possible from chicken drumsticks or wings).
9. Add saffron soaked in wine, paprika and mushroom seasoning, slightly salt, then 4 minutes and remove from heat.
10. Sprinkle with chopped cheese, add a little butter, stir and arrange on plates.
3. Risotto with mushrooms and chicken
Ingredients:
• rice - 1 glass without a slide;
• chicken stock - a little more than a liter;
• wine - 1 incomplete glass;
• 2 onions;
• garlic - 2 cloves;
• mushrooms - 8 pcs. (chanterelles or boletus);
• chicken meat - a small piece;
• some Parmesan cheese;
• butter - a small piece;
• olive oil for frying;
• common and sea salt - 10 g each;
• black allspice - 2 teaspoons.
Cooking method:
1. Onion cut into small crumbs, put in a pan with a small piece of butter and fry until transparent.
2. Rinse and pour the rice into the onion, fry for several minutes with frequent stirring.
3. Pour in dry wine and simmer until it evaporates.
4. Add a little salt and pour into the chicken stock.
5. In a separate frying pan with a small piece of butter, fry the chicken meat until semi-soft. After a few minutes of frying, sprinkle the meat with pepper and salt.
6. In a second skillet, fry the prepared mushrooms with olive oil for 5 minutes.
7. Combine the fried mushrooms with chicken and add rice and onions to them, pour in the wine, simmer until it partially evaporates.
8. Slowly pour in the broth, mix well so that it is absorbed into all products, turn off the heat and leave for 3 minutes.
9. Sprinkle with chopped parmesan, stir well and serve.
4. Diet risotto with mushrooms in a slow cooker
Ingredients:
• 400 g of rice cereal;
• 250 ml of dry white wine;
• 7 medium boletus mushrooms;
• 1 onion;
• some olive oil;
• Dutch cheese - 50 g;
• salt - 20 g;
• black pepper - optional;
• parsley leaves - 1 bunch.
Cooking method:
1. Separately, fry the peeled, washed and coarsely chopped mushrooms with chopped onion in a frying pan.
2. Transfer the mushrooms with onions into the multicooker bowl, pour the washed rice groats, salt, pepper, pour white dry wine and stew in pilaf mode until the groats are softened.
3. After the rice is cooked, add a slice of butter and leave it in “heating” mode for 10 minutes with the lid closed.
4. Sprinkle with Dutch cheese, mix thoroughly.
5. Arrange on serving plates, sprinkle with chopped parsley.
5. Tender mushroom risotto with cream sauce
Ingredients:
• cream with high fat content - 1 small can;
• round grain rice groats - a little more than half a glass;
• Dutch cheese - a small piece;
• chicken stock - half a liter;
• olive oil for frying;
• 4 medium boletus mushrooms;
• salt - 10 g;
• fresh basil - a few leaves.
Cooking method:
1. In a pan with a slice of butter, fry the rice groats until light brown.
2. Pour in chicken broth in several steps.
3. Prepare the cream sauce according to the following technology: fry clean mushrooms, chopped into large slices, pour in the cream, add half of the crushed cheese, mix, salt and let it brew for 10 minutes.
4. After evaporating the broth in rice, add creamy sauce, sprinkle with the remaining half of the cheese, stir well.
5. When serving, put in a portioned dish, sprinkle with herbs.
6. Risotto with mushrooms and pearl barley "In Russian"
Ingredients:
• 200 g of pearl barley;
• 250 ml of chicken stock (you can plain water);
• 5 medium boletus;
• 1 onion;
• garlic - 3 cloves;
• nutmeg in powder - half a teaspoon;
• ready soy sauce - 50 ml;
• tomato puree - 50 g;
• 50 ml of cooking oil;
• salt - optional;
• a bunch of parsley.
Cooking method:
1. Soak pearl barley for half a day.
2. Peel the mushrooms, rinse, cut into large plastics and fry together with chopped onions in a pan with butter for 5 minutes.
3. Add the swollen pearl barley squeezed through the garlic, garlic, tomato puree, soy sauce, salt, pepper, pour the broth or water, stir well and simmer for 5 minutes.
4. At the end of the stew, add a slice of butter, sprinkle with cheese, mix thoroughly and arrange on plates.
Mushroom risotto - tips and tricks
• When choosing rice for risotto, pay attention to the integrity of the grains. Chopped rice boils quickly, because of this it is impossible to obtain the desired consistency, and instead of properly cooked risotto, you will get porridge with mushrooms.
• If you need to stir the dish during cooking, add water or broth - do it more boldly. Risotto with mushrooms is not pilaf, so this approach will not affect the final result.
• If you fry the rice in butter before cooking, the risotto will turn out to be especially tender and tasty.
• Do not be afraid to add various spices, but you should not be too zealous. A pinch of paprika, Italian herbs, dried garlic, a mixture of peppers, herbs will enrich and complement the taste of risotto with mushrooms.
• Use good thick-walled utensils for cooking, it can be a cauldron, cast-iron frying pan, stewpan. Risotto turns out well in a slow cooker.
• Serve hot risotto, traditionally complemented by a salad of fresh vegetables, herbs and herbs, wine or tomato juice.
