Chanterelle and Porcini Mushroom Risotto

I couldn't find fresh chanterelles (apparently they are out of season in april) so just bought dried. So both kinds of mushrroms for me were dired and it was GREAT! I also halved the recipe and there was plenty for hungry me and leftovers for 2 the next night!

The recipe says 20-30 minutes cooking time. I cooked for 45 minutes, and the rice was still too tough!

Once I start adding the liquid it really only takes me about 30 minutes, so perhaps these tips will help.

Before you add any liquid, be sure you sauté the rice with the onions until the rice starts to turn translucent, about 2 or 3 minutes. Thoroughly "coating" the rice, helps regulate absorption of the liquid.

Once you add the liquid, make sure to cook on low heat and allow the liquid to be absorbed between each ladle full of stock.

Lastly, not sure how "tough" the risotto was, but it is supposed to be served "al dente".

I first had an unbelieveable wild mushroom risotto at a Marmitons event and thought I'd never find another risotto that would ever come close...until I tried this recipe.

I made this the first time with the roast pork tenderloin (as an alternative to the polenta) and it was the ultimate...the truffle oil makes this dish absolutely amazing (my wife said she'd died and gone to heaven).

I just made it again, and topped it off with some toasted pine nuts and fresh chopped rosemary and basil. Again, it was phenomenal. Thanks for such a great risotto recipe!

I'd really like to know how restaurants can make a dish that requires so much TLC and time to prepare.

I make a risotto very similar to this, but add a little butter before letting it rest. I find that this adds even more richness while not taking away from the creaminess created through the cooking process.

Porcini risotto is my favourite, but the great thing is that there's nothing to stop you from expirementing with all kinds of ingredients.

One thing to be careful of is the quality of your stock (and believe me I learned the hard way when I made risotto at a friend's place and all he had was Oxo! Never, ever again). Stocks with high sodium content can leave you with a risotto that tastes far to salty. Either make your own or buy high quality/low sodium stocks.

Great site. Very professional.

Made this again the other night and folded in sliced sauteed leeks near the very end. Delicious.

This risotto is perfect as is. We made it for a friend who is great in the kithen and he couldn't believe we did not use any butter!!!

I made this dish tonight and wowed my wife and our friends. We all loved it! I made it with a beef short rib recipe I use and it was an incredible combo.
thanks for this great recipe!

Do you not think the risotto in the video was too dry? i've heard it should flow like lava.

This is a personal preference thing. It also depends on what you are serving it with. For example, if you are serving this with a stock based sauce that'a a bit thinner, you might like to leave the risotto a bit drier to soak up the sauce. But I do agree with you. For most pairings, I would add a bit more stock to this risotto - but just a bit so that it flows a bit more.

Do you recommend using fresh mushrooms for this, and if so - what should the measurements be?

You can use any fresh mushrooms for sure. Instead of the 1/2 cup dried porcini use another a cup or so of fresh. Don't be too concerned with measurements for the mushrooms...you don't have to be very exact with them.

My wife is Italian and we love it , normally we use any white wine if we don't have bermouth. We are ROUXBE ADICTS!!!!
THANKS TO ALL YOUR TEAM

I suggest to add a small piece of butter with parmesan when you .
The risotto will be creamy.

I made this last night and it was out of this world! I forgot the parm and used all dry mushrooms but WOW is it was great nonetheless.

What do you think is the best stock for risotto?
I see, that this recepie uses dark chicken stock. Once i made my basic risotto with dark stock (the stock recepie which i used differs from yours, but kinda same), and the whole stuff got chicken flavoured, it was too much.

It all depends on the dish you are making. This is the great thing about cooking. Once you make something, you modify for the next time if it suit your tastes. If the dark chicken stock was too strong, try a white chicken stock next time or a light vegetable stock. If those are even too strong for the dish (depending if you're making a rich risotto or something light with vegetables) then trying using half water. The point is, to keep experimenting until you find the flavor you are looking for. Hope this helps!

I'm writing this over an empty plate after enjoying this dish. All I had for mushrooms was fresh Ontario button mushrooms, but it turned out to be delicious nevertheless. My dad has always made delicious risotto but I've never tried to make it myself. I must say I'm pretty proud of myself.

Next time I will use my own stock or cut back on the salt because the Campbells chicken stock I used (even though it was the low sodium) made it a bit too salty. Not to the point where it was over-powering, but it's a bit too much.

This really makes a great main dish when served with a side of veggies (we had green beans).

Thanks so much to all of you at Rouxbe for your amazing site. I received a lifetime membership for Christmas this year and it is one of the best gifts I've received in a very long time.

I know, risotto = arborio rice but if I only had short grain brown rice would i be able to use it as well? Would i have to add more liquid?

Brown rice can be used with the risotto cooking method. As far as how much liquid to add, just keep adding until you reach the desired consistency and texture. Cheers!

Unfortunately, I couldn't find dried porcini mushrooms for this recipe and although I found chantrelles, I was not willing to pay $40/lb for it. I substituted both mushrooms with cremini and portabella and still came out pretty good but I'm not sure if that was the taste I was going for. Any recommendations on mushroom substitutions??

Cook's Thesaurus is a good source for substitutions in general. Here is a link to the search I did for mushrooms. Cheers!

If I only wanted to make half as much, for 2-3 servings, it is safe to cut all ingredients for the recipe in 1/2?

Indeed, you can make as much or as little as you like. You might also find it helpful to watch the lesson on The Risotto Method. Cheers!

I would love to see a recipe for a WHITE RISOTTO incorporating mascarpone cheese please.

We actually have a few lessons on risotto. Once you learn how to make a basic risotto you will see just how easy it is to make up your own white risotto with mascarpone cheese. Let us know if you have any questions. Cheers!

Hi, i'm about to make my first risotto this coming weekend. I have dried porcinis, black trumpets, and yellow feet mushrooms which I would like to use if you think they would work in it. I also have another question, I would like to use some saffron which I recently bought but was curious as to how and when I would introduce it during the cooking process. At what point during the cooking of the risotto should I put it in? Also, how? Do i drop the strands into the pot (doesn't seem correct) or mix it with water or stock and put it in. Also, how much saffron should I use? Finally, please let me know if you think saffron would be a bad idea. Thanks.

Just curios to know if you have watched the cooking school lesson on how to make risotto or the lesson on how to vary risotto? Many of your questions should be answered in there - also be sure to check out the practice recipes. Cheers!

Thanks Dawn, Idid watch them but a long time ago. Indeed all my answers were there . Thank you Rouxbe! I don't know what I would do without you guys.

Well I just made it and it came out great, perfect consistency. Next time i would use more mushrooms. Also, I;m no sure the saffron played a roll in it. It has a wonderful mushroomy flavor. I added the saffron along with one of the early ladels of stock. I was kind of expecting the dish to become reddish, but it remained a dark brown. Since I'm not familiar with the taste of saffron in food, I'm not sure if i didn't put enough in or what. All in all I'm happy with the outcome.

Great job Paul, glad you liked the end result. As for the taste of saffron and how much to use, it really depends on how much you like the taste and also the quality of the saffron. I also think that because you used the saffron with another strong earthy flavor (the mushrooms) it would be harder to detect the true flavor of the saffron. Perhaps next time you may want to try making a more neutral flavored risotto and then try adding saffron to see the difference. The trick is to keep experimenting and practicing, as you are. Cheers!

I bought a tiny bottle (55 ml or about 3.5 Tbsp) of Black Truffle Oil for $22.95 Cdn. I got it home and read the ingredients - evoo & flavorings. I thought good Truffle Oil contained truffle essence or something real. Not flavorings. I am thinking of returning this bottle and skipping the Truffle Oil unless I can find something more real. Or are flavorings just as good? It seems like a lot to pay for evoo and flavorings. Would appreciate your expert opinion about this. Also,,,,,, what is more multi-purpose - the white truffle oil or the black truffle oil? Thanks!

Most quality truffle oils are made by infusing extra-virgin olive oil with truffles (and/or other ingredients). What you bought sounds like the norm that is available. I have a bottle of white truffle oil that lists the ingredients as: extra-virgin olive oil, white truffle, white truffle flavor. It is delicious but the "white truffle flavor" may be a synthetic component. If you are concerned, talk to the store that you purchased it from. They should know their products best.

As to what type of truffle oil to use, there are quite a few discussions in the forum on this. Simply type in "truffle oil" in the search bar (top right of any page) and click on Forum Discussions to read more. Cheers!

So I made this Risotto to perfection. It was creamy, al dente just right and amazing flavor. THEN,,, added the Truffle Oil. Hardly used any - a few drops for 1/3 of the recipe and yuck! Just didnt' like the taste at all and I am so surprised. I had to dig down where the oil didn't contaminate the Risotto to enjoy it and it was excellent. But had to throw the rest out. I used Black Truffle Oil, Pignatelli Brand that cost $22.95 for 55ml !! If you use this one just be very careful or you might have my experience? (Yuck......)

Terry, it sounds like you just might not like the taste of truffle oil. I know many people who do not...it sort of one of those "you either like it or you don't like it" sort of things. I just happen to be one of those people that enjoys it, but only in very very small quantities and not too often...which is often the case when one goes out to eat at a place that is trying to be "fancy". Cheers!

Yes - I think you are right Dawn. Even with a fraction of the intensity I tasted last night I think I still wouldn't like it which is odd because I am a very adventurous eater. In any case, this recipe is great and I will be making it again for sure. (Anyone want a great deal on a 99.99% full bottle of Truffle Oil?)

I'm new to this but your food choices sound really good I'm going in the kitchen and start cooking. lol.

With button mushrooms some recipes call for them to be sauteed first. Does this make a difference as opposed to cooking them along with the dried ones after the onions but before the rice? Would the extra liquid released make a difference?

Mushrooms are often sauteed to add color, flavor and also to evaporate their liquid. If they are not sauteed first then their color will be more pale and they will not necessarily have the same flavor; however, their liquid will still eventually evaporate. I generally saute mushrooms first as I want the added flavor and color. Of course this depends on what I am making and the final out come I am looking for.

When it comes to cooking and following recipes there are often no hard rules that you must follow (not talking about baking here, just cooking in general). It just comes down to learning the skills and techniques behind what you are doing. So you know what happens when you do or do not do something. That way you are free to make your own choices based on what it is that YOU want to do. Hope this helps. Cheers!

That totally makes sense, thank you for your quick and thorough response!

I want to bring risotto to a dinner party but I am concerned about the consistency of the dish when I reheat. Any thoughts? Should I give up and make another dish?
Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

Risotto is best when made and served right after cooking. Please refer to the lesson on How to Make Risotto. We do have a tip in there on Cooking Risotto in Advance but you'll have to finish cooking the dish at the dinner party (not just reheating it). Personally, I would take something else. It is best to reserve this dish for when you have guests over to your place and you can wow them with the proper consistency then. Cheers!

Excellent input. I will make the dish at my friend's house. I don't want to risk it.