Weekly Dish

I love to eat risotto. It is creamy and hearty, perfectly satisfying on a cold night. What I love even more, though, is to cook risotto. In some recipes, the method is its own reward, and for me, the methodical stirring-and-adding process of making risotto is thoroughly rewarding. I think it’s because I spend so much of my time researching, writing and reading that my mind is happy for the opportunity to unwind with the motion of my wooden spoon. And that’s exactly what happens–when I have less than an hour to make dinner, this method is one I often turn to because the very act of making it relaxes me, a pretty challenging feat at this point in the semester. Nothing has to be done in a hurry, it’s versatile enough to accommodate a wide variety of flavor combinations, and I’ve never had it turn out badly. It does take concentrated time (you can’t mix everything up and stick it in the oven), and if you don’t like to stir, this isn’t the dish for you. But, in my opinion, the results are well worth the effort.

You can add any number of vegetable combinations to your risotto; for this one, I used an assortment of mushrooms and the arugula growing in my backyard. My method is based on Sara Foster’s Risotto for All Seasons, in Fresh Everyday.

Mushroom-Arugula Risotto

4 cups chicken broth

Olive oil

Butter

2 portabello mushrooms, cut into chunks

1 cup assorted other mushrooms (I used shitake and oyster)

1 cup torn arugula leaves

1 yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

1/2 cup white wine

2 ounces Fontina cheese

Salt and cracked pepper

Usually, risotto recipes call for the chicken broth to be warm (Foster says to bring it to a simmer in a saucepan), but I forgot to do that last time I made it and it turned out just fine. Omitting this step gets one less dish dirty, and my husband always appreciates that, so I’m cutting out that step (but I feel the need to tell you about it, in case you are a strictly-follow-the-recipe kind of cook). In a very large saucepan or skillet, melt the butter (about a tablespoon) and olive oil (about 2 tablespoons) together over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and cook until tender. Remove the mushrooms with a slotted spoon. Add the onion and garlic to the skillet and cook until translucent and tender, about 5 minutes. Add the rice, and stir constantly until the grains move easily around the skillet and shimmer a little, about 2 minutes. Now you start the stirring-and-adding process. Start with the wine: add it to the rice and stir (slowly and methodically, to maximize the therapeutic aspects!) until most of the liquid is absorbed (the rice will begin to sizzle a little in the pan, signaling that it’s time to add more liquid). Salt and pepper between liquid additions. Next, add the chicken broth, about 1/2 cup at a time, following the same procedure. When you are nearing the end of the chicken stock, the risotto should be creamy and the rice pieces should be tender (not terribly hard to the bite). Stir in the mushrooms and half of the arugula at this point, adding more broth if you need to. You can also put a lid on it and steam it for a few minutes if the rice still doesn’t taste done. Mine always takes right around 20 minutes total (from when I add the first liquid to the last). Last, stir in the cheese. Serve with the remaining arugula on top.

Posted: Thursday, December 1st, 2005 at 3:17 pm Filed under: Main Dish, Vegetables, Comfort Food. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.