Mushroom Risotto

This is an Italian dish made with arborio/risotto rice. It is an easy all-in-one meal which can be cooked in half hour. 

Ingredients

120g arborio/risotto rice (don't rinse the rice as that would remove the starch from the rice which helps to make it creamy)

300g portobello mushrooms (sliced)

600ml vegetable stock (onion, celery, carrot, mushroom stems, dried porcini mushrooms, bay leaves) - keep the stock hot

1 tablespoon heavy/double cream

45g unsalted butter

1/2 large onion (diced)

2 garlic cloves (diced)

2 tablespoon herbs (e.g. thyme, dill, parsley)

100ml white wine (can replace with the stock and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice)

2-3 strips of smoked bacon (cut into 1cm strips) as toppings. This is optional.

1 spoonful of love

Method

1. In a deep saucepan / pot, lightly saute the onion, garlic and 1 tablespoon herbs in olive oil and 15g butter. 

2. Add risotto rice and stir the rice under medium heat until the rice is coated with the oil.

3. Add white wine and stir the rice until the wine has been absorbed.

4. Lower the heat to medium-low and add one ladle of hot vegetable stock into the rice. Stir the rice until the stock is absorbed. Repeat this process (about 20 minutes) until the stock is used up.

5. While cooking the rice (step 4), pan fry the bacons in a little olive oil until the sides are slightly crispy. Remove the bacons from the pan and stir fry the mushrooms in the bacon fat. Add 15g butter, dashes of black pepper and salt, and continue to stir fry until the bacon fat and butter are absorbed into the mushrooms.  

6. Remove the saucepan / pot from the heat when the rice is tender but still a little bit hard in the center. Rest the rice (covered with lid) for 5 minutes as it continues to cook in residual heat.    

7. Stir in mushrooms, followed by heavy/double cream and remaining 15g butter. Stir in grated cheese (optional).

8. Serve the risotto hot with bacon topping.