Hello all,
Today I will be sharing one of my most appreciated food recipes: risotto with porcini mushroom. Great if you have guests or a deserving lady over, this dish is also not overly time-consuming to prepare.
Now, unless you have access to fresh porcini, which can be quite difficult, especially on the west coast, you will be using a small bag of dried porcini that can be found in the "expensive" section of fruit&veggies of most quality supermarkets.
Why porcini? You can certainly replace porcini with shiitake or champignons/crimini, and the result will still be good, but why drive a BMW if you can own a Ferrari? Nothing compares to the taste of porcini, it's as simple as that.
My recipe is a bit different from the one offered by online websites but is undoubtedly tastier. Give it a shot and see if you can prove me wrong.
Begin by cleaning the porcini and placing them in a small bowl filled with water for an hour or two. This will soften the mushrooms and give the water enough flavor that we'll be able to use it as broth.
After the mushroom are ready, take them out of the bowl and pour the now-flavored water into a small pot or casserole. Add about 16oz of organic vegetable broth and set the stove to medium heat. (If you prepare this dish a few times you'll figure out which broth you like best)
Slice a quarter of an onion very finely and place it in a frying pan, with a couple of table spoons of high quality southern Italian or Greek olive oil and a small piece of butter.
Set the stove to low/medium heat.
You'll notice I'm not adding parsley as I don't want it to take over the taste of our delicate mushrooms. Add an espresso-cup worth of arborio rice (from Italy) per person, or two if you'd like larger portions, and wait until the onions become a little more golden in color.
This will also fry the rice a little bit. You can also add half a glass of white wine to give it more kick. Needless to say, don't use cheap wine.
Now add the mushrooms and a few spoons worth of our special broth. Mix everything up making sure the rice doesn't stick to the pan. When it does, add more broth and continue like this until done.
Throughout I also add several table spoons of grated parmigiano reggiano (grana padano is ok too but do NOT use generic Parmesan), 6 total, each one added every couple of minutes.
Like I said, you'll be stirring and adding broth constantly.
When you can taste the rice being a few minutes away from being al dente, add a quarter cup of organic milk (family secret) and stir.
Turn off the stove and let the risotto sit for 5 minutes. This is when the rice and the mushroom sauce really stick together. Taste it every couple of minutes to make sure you don't overcook it. Few things are more frustrating than overcooked porcini risotto.
When ready, serve it in a nice plate and add a little more parmigiano.
Wine pairing
You can pair it with either white and red wine, mostly depending on which you prefer and what you'll be eating as secondo piatto (one-course meals are lame). With fish as the next course, I'll pair my risotto with a nice bottle of prosecco Di valdobbiadene or a french Pinot Gris. If I'm having steak, a rich Chianti docg or Brunello Di Montalcino will do.
Enjoy your meal and the subsequent bang!
Today I will be sharing one of my most appreciated food recipes: risotto with porcini mushroom. Great if you have guests or a deserving lady over, this dish is also not overly time-consuming to prepare.
Now, unless you have access to fresh porcini, which can be quite difficult, especially on the west coast, you will be using a small bag of dried porcini that can be found in the "expensive" section of fruit&veggies of most quality supermarkets.
Why porcini? You can certainly replace porcini with shiitake or champignons/crimini, and the result will still be good, but why drive a BMW if you can own a Ferrari? Nothing compares to the taste of porcini, it's as simple as that.
My recipe is a bit different from the one offered by online websites but is undoubtedly tastier. Give it a shot and see if you can prove me wrong.
Begin by cleaning the porcini and placing them in a small bowl filled with water for an hour or two. This will soften the mushrooms and give the water enough flavor that we'll be able to use it as broth.
After the mushroom are ready, take them out of the bowl and pour the now-flavored water into a small pot or casserole. Add about 16oz of organic vegetable broth and set the stove to medium heat. (If you prepare this dish a few times you'll figure out which broth you like best)
Slice a quarter of an onion very finely and place it in a frying pan, with a couple of table spoons of high quality southern Italian or Greek olive oil and a small piece of butter.
Set the stove to low/medium heat.
You'll notice I'm not adding parsley as I don't want it to take over the taste of our delicate mushrooms. Add an espresso-cup worth of arborio rice (from Italy) per person, or two if you'd like larger portions, and wait until the onions become a little more golden in color.
This will also fry the rice a little bit. You can also add half a glass of white wine to give it more kick. Needless to say, don't use cheap wine.
Now add the mushrooms and a few spoons worth of our special broth. Mix everything up making sure the rice doesn't stick to the pan. When it does, add more broth and continue like this until done.
Throughout I also add several table spoons of grated parmigiano reggiano (grana padano is ok too but do NOT use generic Parmesan), 6 total, each one added every couple of minutes.
Like I said, you'll be stirring and adding broth constantly.
When you can taste the rice being a few minutes away from being al dente, add a quarter cup of organic milk (family secret) and stir.
Turn off the stove and let the risotto sit for 5 minutes. This is when the rice and the mushroom sauce really stick together. Taste it every couple of minutes to make sure you don't overcook it. Few things are more frustrating than overcooked porcini risotto.
When ready, serve it in a nice plate and add a little more parmigiano.
Wine pairing
You can pair it with either white and red wine, mostly depending on which you prefer and what you'll be eating as secondo piatto (one-course meals are lame). With fish as the next course, I'll pair my risotto with a nice bottle of prosecco Di valdobbiadene or a french Pinot Gris. If I'm having steak, a rich Chianti docg or Brunello Di Montalcino will do.
Enjoy your meal and the subsequent bang!
