Easy Mushroom Risotto (Recipe Inspired by GHOSTER)

Mushroom Risotto is my new make-at-home culinary obsession. (Much to my mushroom-hating husband’s dismay.)

Once you make this dish, you’re never going to order risotto in restaurants again. There’s no need to when you can make it better at home. 

Why is Mushroom Risotto the book-inspired recipe for Ghoster?

Well, this is awkward. I can’t tell you why Mushroom Risotto is the book-inspired recipe for Ghoster. The inspiration for this dish comes at the very end of the story. 

What I can tell you is that Mushroom Risotto is one of my favorite meals, but I rarely get the opportunity to eat it.

A lot of restaurants offer it on menus, but I’ll be straight with you: most of the risottos (mushroom or any other kind) I’ve been served have been shitty.

And I don’t know why!!!!!

Making risotto is NOT hard. I swear that it’s not. 

All you need is patience.

Making risotto isn’t hard. Just time-consuming. 

A good risotto takes 40-50 minutes to make. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Someone who makes a risotto in 15 minutes is someone who makes a BAD risotto.

Be prepared to stand over the stove for awhile. Risotto needs a lot of babysitting, and this Mushroom Risotto is no exception.

But, if you just follow the super simple instructions below, you’ll get perfect risotto every time. 

And this Mushroom Risotto is so worth everyone minute you spend stirring. This dish is rich and decadent, creamy and luscious, hearty and filling.

It’s elegant, stick-to-your-ribs comfort food. The oatmeal of the fine dining world, if you will.  

I used my mushroom thyme pasta as the base for my Mushroom Risotto because the simple ingredients I used in that recipe — soy sauce, lemon, thyme, and shallots — bring such amazing depth of flavor out of the mushrooms.

The rest of the recipe is pretty standard — keep adding white wine and warm broth to Arborio rice until it’s thick and creamy and delicious. 

You can use any kind of mushrooms you want; I did a mix of shiitake, baby bellas, and oyster for a varied depth of flavor. 

That’s also what happened to be available at my local grocery store.

If you can find weirder-looking, even better-tasting mushrooms where you are, go for it! Mushroom season is about to begin, so let yourself run free. 

Just remember: PATIENCE is the key. Don’t make this recipe on a weeknight; you’ll hate yourself.

Save Mushroom Risotto for a rainy autumn afternoon or a chilly winter night on the weekends.  It’s the perfect meal for when there’s a nip in the air. The aroma will fill your home with cold-weather coziness, calling everyone to the table.

What do you serve with Mushroom Risotto?

Mushroom Risotto is a great dish to accompany hearty dinner recipes like Coq au Vin, Salmon with Creamy Dill Sauce, or Raspberry Thyme Chicken. However, this risotto also makes a great lunch when served with some Mixed Berry Spinach Salad on the side. 

Top off your meal with a comforting dessert like Sticky Toffee Pudding, Parkin Cake, or Red White Chocolate Cake.

Easy Mushroom Risotto

Rich, flavorful risotto featuring a variety of mushrooms is easy to make at home if you just have patience and follow these simple steps.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Course Dinner

Cuisine Italian, American

Servings 6 servings

Ingredients

  

• 8 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
• 2 large shallots, diced (about ½ cup)
• 1 lb mixed fresh mushrooms (baby bella, shiitake, oyster)
• 1/4 cup fresh thyme, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 8 tsp low sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese, plus more for serving
• 1/2 cup dry white wine (like pinot grigio)
• 1 1/4 cups Arborio rice
• 6 cups low sodium chicken broth (as needed)
• chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Instructions

 

PREP INSTRUCTIONS

• Pour chicken broth into a medium pot on the stove and bring to a simmer, about 20 minutes. Once simmering, reduce heat and simmer slowly to keep warm. Leave the pot on the stove near where you will be cooking the risotto
• Chop parsley (if using) and set aside.
• Chop shallots and set aside.
• Chop thyme and set aside.
• Roughly chop the mushrooms and set aside.
• Grate cheese and set aside.
• Combine the soy sauce, lemon juice, and black pepper in a small bowl and set aside.

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

• In a large skillet, melt 4 tbsp butter over medium-high heat. Add chopped shallots and stir to coat. After 1-2 minutes, add the chopped fresh thyme and stir to coat. Cook until shallots have slightly softened, about 5-6 minutes.
• Add the remaining 4 tbsp butter and the mushrooms to the skillet, then toss so the mushrooms are thoroughly coated. Stir in the lemon juice, soy sauce, and black pepper mixture and toss so all mushrooms are coated with the sauce. Let cook 6-8 minutes, until the mushrooms are tender.
• Taste the mushrooms; if too lemony, add a little more soy sauce, and vice versa. Once you’re satisfied with the flavor, move on to making the risotto.
• Reduce the skillet heat to medium. Pour the Arborio rice into the skillet and stir into the mushrooms. Cook 1-2 minutes, then stir in the white wine, deglazing the bottom of the skillet as you go. Cook a few minutes, stirring regularly, until the wine is almost totally absorbed.
• Ladle in ½- ¾ cup of the simmering chicken broth into the skillet, pouring enough in so it just covers the rice. Stir and let cook, stirring regularly, until liquid is almost totally absorbed. Then add in another ladle of chicken broth.
• Repeat the "add-broth-stir-until-liquid-absorbed" process, adding more broth whenever the pan starts to get dry. Be patient – this will take 30-40 minutes.** SEE BELOW FOR RISOTTO COOKING TIPS.
• Once the risotto is cooked through, turn off the heat under the skillet and the pot that held the chicken broth. Stir the grated cheese into the skillet. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.
• Serve mushroom risotto immediately, garnishing with more grated cheese and chopped parsley if desired.

Notes

RISOTTO COOKING TIPS: 

-- At the beginning of the “add-broth-and-stir” phase, you only need to stir the risotto every 1-2 minutes. Once you’re about halfway through the broth --and once the rice starts to plump up – stir the risotto every 30-45 seconds to keep the rice from sticking to the bottom of the skillet.

-- Monitor your heat level under the skillet. You want to risotto to absorb the broth ladleful-by-ladleful, slowly but not TOO slowly. If you think the broth is being absorbed too quickly, reduce the heat under the skillet from medium to medium-low, or even to low. I constantly adjust the heat level when I make risotto, especially toward the end when the rice naturally absorbs the broth much more quickly.

-- As the rice absorbs more and more broth, the risotto will get thick and creamy, which is what you want.

-- When you have about 2 cups of broth left, start tasting your risotto to check the texture. At the end, the rice grains should be soft all the way through but still al dente. This won’t happen until you’re almost done with the broth.

-- You might not need all 6 cups of broth to fully cook the risotto; it can vary slightly according to temperature, humidity, etc. As long as you get the risotto to that soft but al dente texture – which should use most of the broth – you’ll be fine.