Brown Rice Mushroom Risotto

I researched for a good recipe for a Mushroom Risotto for quite some time and found most of them to be quite similar. The primary ingredients remain the same in most recipes, with a few additions or subtractions of course. Mine is quite simple, made mostly with widely available ingredients.

Typically Risottos are made using Arborio Rice, a thick variety of white rice. I used brown rice primarily because they’re more healthy and because they are more easily available. You could just as well use Arborio rice in place of brown rice. Never tried it with normal White Rice though.

Here’s what you need for 2 portions:

White Mushrooms – 1 1/2 cup, sliced

Onions – 1/2 cup, chopped

Brown Rice – 1 Tea Cup (Soak them in clean water for about 2 Hours)

Chicken/Vegetable Stock – 2 1/2 Cups + 1/4 Cup (If you don’t have chicken/vegetable stock, you can go ahead and dissolve 3/4th cube of Chicken/Vegetable Stock in 2 1/2 cups of Boiling Water)

Basil Leaves – A Handful (You could leave them out if you cannot source them. You’ll miss the flavor but they aren’t exactly indispensable)

Oregano – 2 Tablespoons

Pepper – 1 Tablespoon

Chilli Flakes – 1 Tablespoon (Optional, increase or decrease as per taste)

Salt – To taste

Olive Oil – 3 Tablespoon

Cheddar Cheese – 1/3 Cup

Parmesan Cheese – 3 Tablespoons

1. Soak the rice in water for about 2 hours prior to when you intend on starting. Wash the mushrooms really well under running water and clean each one carefully to rid them of all dirt. Slice them to about 1/2 centimeter in thickness. You might want to remove the stems if the mushrooms aren’t very fresh.
2. In a non-stick pan or skillet, put in 3 tablespoons of Olive Oil on high. Once it heats up (About a minute), put in the onions and wait for them to turn translucent. Put in the mushrooms, turn the gas to Medium, put in the Basil Leaves, Oregano, Pepper and Chilli Flakes, and cook till the Mushrooms are Cooked. Keep stirring. This shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes.
3. Once the mushrooms are cooked, put in about 1/4 cup of Stock and stir really well to de-glaze the pan and get all the flavor into the stock. Put in the rice after draining them of the water they were soaking in and mix well with the gas on high. 30 seconds in, put in 1 cup of the stock. Cover the pan/skillet and put the heat on low once the stock comes to a boil.
4. Once the stock is evaporated, put in another cup of the stock and repeat. Once this cup of stock is evaporated, check whether the rice are cooked. If you can taste the mushrooms and the rice are soft to eat, they’re done. If not, put in more stock and repeat till done. Normally it shouldn’t take more Stock to cook the rice than what is stated above, but rice are unpredictable given all the varieties available in the market. You’ll have to play it by ear, rather tongue for this one.
5. Stir in the grated Cheddar Cheese and turn the heat on high to melt the cheese and merge it with the rice. You can increase or decrease the quantity of cheese depending on you liking of the same. Once the cheese melts, serve on a plate and garnish with the grated Parmesan Cheese and dried Oregano.

I like cooking this using Chicken Stock because the flavor is fantastic using Chicken Stock instead of Vegetable Stock. Fresh Chicken Stock is far better than the Stock Cube variety and definitely adds to the overall taste of the dish.