Mushroom Risotto

So, Desiree and I have made mushroom risotto 4 times and we finally came to a consensus that this is a good recipe. But the bad thing about this dish is that it takes quite long to cook, so I would advice people to only cook this dish if they have time (e.g. after exams or before the school term starts). It takes at least 1hr and 15mins to cook the dish and about 5-10mins to prepare the ingredients. And also, the ingredients of mushroom risotto is really really cheap to get in the UK rather than to get it in Singapore because mushrooms cost a bomb in Singapore. 

The key thing about mushroom risotto is that you have to try to get all different types of mushroom to get the best flavour out of it. We tried using one type of mushroom only, and it did not turn out nice. For the white wine, we basically just got the cheapest white wine because we think that you will be wasting an expensive bottle of white wine. 

Ingredients: 

1 Chicken Stock (other recipe used vegetable stock)

300g of Mushroom (3 different types of mushrooms)

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 Garlic Cloves, finely chopped

1 Onion, finely chopped

300g Risotto Rice, such as Arborio

175ml White Wine

25g Butter

White/Black pepper for garnish

Grated Parmesan/Italian-Style Cheese for garnish

Directions:

(If you're using dried mushrooms) Put dried mushrooms into 1 litre of boiling water. Soak for 20 mins, then drain into a bowl, discarding the last few tablespoon of liquid left in the bowl. Squeeze the mushroom gently to remove any liquid. In the 1 litre of mushroom water, add the chicken stock and make sure it complete dissolve in the water. Slice all the remaining mushrooms that you have prepared.

Heat the oil in a saucepan over a medium flame. Add the onions and garlic, then fry for about 5 minutes until soft. Stir in the fresh (and dried) mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and continue to cook until the mushrooms have softened, which will roughly take about 8 minutes. It is alright if the mushrooms start to give out water. DO NOT POUR IT AWAY.

Here comes the most tiring and tedious part. Add the rice into the pan and cook for 1 minute. Make sure that all the rice is coated with mushroom and its sauce. Pour over the wine and let it bubble to nothing so that the alcohol evaporates. Make sure to keep the pan over a medium heat. Pour in about 1/8 of the mushroom stock. Simmer the rice, stirring often, until the rice has absorbed all the liquid. Then add about the same amount of stock again and continue to simmer and stir - it should start to become creamy, plump and tender. By the time all the stock is added, the rice should be almost cooked.

Continue stirring until the rice is cooked. If the rice is still undercooked, add a splash of water. Take the pan off the heat, add the butter and scatter over some cheese and parsley. Cover and leave for a few mins so that the rice can take up any excess liquid as it cools a bit. Give the risotto a final stir, spoon into bowls and scatter with the remaining cheese and parsley (and pepper if you like)

If I'm not wrong, it feeds about 2-3 people :) Cheers!