Risotto is a slow-cooked rice dish cooked with broth until it reaches a creamy consistency. Oyster mushrooms provide a very meaty texture to this dish as well as an earthy flavor. Rich and delicious, you will finish the entire plate without even realizing it.
Ingredients
1 cup oyster mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 cup cremini mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 shallot, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 tbsp butter
1 cup arborio rice
4 cups stock*
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a deep pan and add the chopped mushrooms. Cook on high heat, allowing juices to release. Turn over mushrooms once. Note: If you don’t disturb the mushrooms too often, the liquid evaporates and you are left with an intense, concentrated mushroom flavor. Once the liquid evaporates, add the shallot, garlic and spices and continue to cook until the shallot is translucent (approximately 3 minutes). Add the wine and reduce until the wine is almost gone.
Add the rice and 1/4 cup of the stock and continuously stir. Add an additional 1/4 cup of liquid and continue to stir allowing the rice to absorb the liquid. As the stock gets soaked up by the rice, continue to add more. After all the stock is added, taste the rice to ensure that it is ready (if not, add additional liquid). Once you have added all the stock, add the Parmesan cheese and stir until melted. At the end, mix in 2 tablespoons butter. Serve immediately.
Serves 2 to 4. *Use stock of choice – for a vegetarian dish, use vegetable stock, otherwise chicken or beef stock.
Patataki 