The Spicy Spatula

It’s been months since me or my husband have made risotto even though we love it and there’s always a big box of arborio rice on the shelf. It’s one of those weird things where you plan to make it and then you forget or you think of something else to make. It doesn’t matter that risotto is an easy recipe to make or that it’s a thirty minute vegan meal, it often doesn’t get the credit it deserves.

But recently Lidl was having a sale on frozen mushrooms. Okay, not a sale exactly but they actually had a variety of gourmet frozen mushrooms and since my love of mushrooms is very well-documented, you know I had to try them. There were porcini and chanterelle mushrooms plus a bag of mixed wild mushrooms. All were delicious and yeah, they require a little bit more finesse than their fresh counterparts, but they were worth the extra effort.

How To Make’em?

My first piece of advice is to always look to the package for instructions on how to prepare anything frozen because that will give you important details including the cooking temperature and cooking time. Once you have that you can pretty much do what you want!

With porcini mushrooms you can use them directly from frozen just as you would from fresh. Mostly.

My husband made this dish and he cooked the mushrooms first because they produce A LOT of water, which he reserved in a measuring cup and added it to the warm broth he used to ladle into the rice. Once the porcini was thisclose to being done, the onions were added to the skillet.

You can also cook them in the oven, just remember they will take more time than you think.

Why Frozen?

I’ll be the first to admit that I have an illogical bias against (most) frozen foods. I think a lot of frozen vegetables taste terrible when they are cooked, but I also understand that fresh vegetables aren’t always an option and any vegetable is better than no vegetable. But when you’re a mushroom-loving girl like me, you take what you can get when you can get them. Especially when the price is right!

How To Make Vegan Porcini Risotto

If you’ve ever made risotto then you already know what you’re doing. But just in case you don’t, here are a few tips:

*Use warm broth or water instead of cold to pull more starch from the risotto and avoid overcooking it, because no one wants gummy risotto like that time Pacey made risotto from the gang and everything went wrong.

*Stir regularly but not too frequently, just enough to keep the rice from sticking to the pan.

*Add extras like peas or nuts or even nutritional yeast once you’re sure the rice is done.

*Toast the rice a little bit in the skillet

*Set your timer for 20 minutes and when it’s over your risotto should be done

*Wine is a great de-glazer

Get your risotto fix with some of these awesome vegan risotto recipes!

*Vegan Sausage, Spinach & Mushroom Risotto
*Pumpkin Risotto
*Asian Style Risotto
*No-Meatball Creamy Curry Risotto