How To Make A Good Vegan Mushroom Risotto

Unless we have an Italian family, most of us usually try risotto for the first time outside the home and, if it is well done, it is for many a dish of those that remains in the memory.

Its mellowness, the firmness of the rice, the intensity of flavor, the concentrated heat … One of those recipes that one wants to immediately reproduce and offer to family or friends.

Cheese is not essential. Although the traditional recipe calls for butter and cheese, the risotto can be perfectly prepared with extra virgin olive oil and a little nutritional yeast.

Slow and easy cooking!

Preparing it is not difficult, it does not even take a long time, but it does require the care of those who cook, since the secret of its texture is in the technique.

It is best to use a homemade vegetable broth to cook the rice. It is poured very hot over the already sautéed rice, but it is added little by little, throughout the cooking, without stopping to stir.

Choose arborio rice or another with a round grain, so that it releases starch. You will find them in the integral version: they simply take a little longer to cook, so they ask for more broth. Here we suggest you add some mushrooms that give a lot of flavor, but you can choose other ingredients.

The creaminess is provided by the cooking technique itself. However, there are those who like to add a little vegetable cream or soft tofu at the end. The yeast will give it that cheesy flavor undertone.

Whole wheat risotto with shiitakes and portobello mushrooms

Ingredients for 4 people:

• 250 g of arborio brown rice
• 200g fresh shiitake mushrooms
• 150 g of portobellos
• 1 large onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 1.5 liters of vegetable broth
• 30 g of nutritional yeast
• Vegetable cream or soft tofu (optional)
• Extra virgin olive oil
• A few sprigs of chives
• Black pepper and salt

Elaboration:

1. Clean the mushrooms and cut them into thick slices. In a pan with the hot oil, sauté them.
2. Peel and finely chop the onion and garlic. In another pan, sauté them slowly in oil.
3. Meanwhile, heat the broth. When it boils, turn the heat to low and cover so it stays warm without boiling.
4. Before the onion is browned, when it is transparent, add the rice and toast it for a couple of minutes. Salt pepper.
5. Add two cups of the hot broth and stir the rice as it cooks. When the broth is consumed, with a ladle add a little more and continue stirring. Repeat, slowly, until the rice is done and the broth is absorbed. Halfway through cooking, add the mushrooms.
6. Outside of the heat, add the nutritional yeast, mix so that it is integrated and decorate with chives. If you want it even creamier, you can add a little cream or tofu before taking it off the heat.