Mushroom Risotto — No Wine or Cream

What you’ll need

Ingredients

Ingredient amounts make 4 servings. Nutrition below is for one serving.

• 300 g Arborio risotto rice, dry
• 400 g White mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
• 120 g Onion, peeled
• 8 g Garlic, peeled and minced
• 20 g Olive oil
• 25 g Unsalted butter
• 60 g Parmesan-style hard cheese, finely grated
• 4 g Fine salt
• 1 g Ground black pepper
• 1300 ml Water, plus extra for washing or soaking as directed

Make it

Instructions

1. 1

   Keep 1.3 litres water hot in a saucepan. Heat half the oil in a wide pan and sauté sliced mushrooms 8–10 minutes until browned; remove, keeping all juices.

2. 2

   Add remaining oil and finely chopped onion to the pan, soften for 6 minutes, then add garlic for 30 seconds. Stir in dry unwashed rice for 2 minutes until its edges become slightly translucent.

3. 3

   Add hot water a ladle at a time, stirring often and adding more as each addition is mostly absorbed. Cook 18–22 minutes until tender with a slight bite; use as much of the water as needed. Add mushrooms and all salt and pepper for the last 5 minutes.

4. 4

   Remove from heat. Stir in all butter and cheese, cover for 2 minutes and loosen with a little hot water if needed. Serve immediately in four equal portions; the creamy texture comes from rice starch and finishing fats, not cream.