I’ve been on a quest lately to eat more intentionally, and keep animals a little more in mind when taking a bite out of something delicious. While I could never give up meat entirely, I’ve come to the conclusion I should eat it less- and since then have been on a search for vegetarian and pescetarian friendly recipes.
I’ve felt lighter, happier, and have even lost a few pounds as a result. For a while, I was attempting to do the low carb, high protein thing and was not seeing any notable improvements, plus it was making me feel grumpy at times. My ancestors were vegetarians for the most part, and were generally quite slender so maybe it was just a call back to my roots- or maybe it’s just my body type.
I’d also very recently made duck broth from scratch (as mentioned, I can’t go off meat entirely!), after slow cooking the remains of a duck carcass post- Friendsgiving. I figured making a risotto would be a great way to showcase the broth in an effective manner. I have a thing for mushrooms and thought it would pair well in a risotto with a rich duck flavor.
I was inspired by Jamie Oliver’s recipe for wild mushroom risotto– I made a few tweaks but followed some of the same processes and ingredients and it turned out fabulously. This paired very well with a glass of Castle Rock 2011 Pinot Noir– and I think it would pair well with any lighter bodied red wine, either a Pinot or Cab Franc. Without further ado- here is the recipe!
Wild Mushroom Risotto (Serves 3-4)
2 cups arborio rice
5 cups duck or chicken stock
3 tbls butter
2-3 Shallots, chopped
3 Celery stalks, chopped
1/4 cup white wine
1-2 tablespoons of minced oregano
4 cups chopped wild mushrooms- shitake, oyster, or chanterelle work best
juice of one lemon
1/4 cup parmesan- grated
salt to taste
pepper to taste
olive oil to taste
1. In a heavy bottomed pan or dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon of butter and add the shallots and celery on medium high heat. Wait for vegetables to soften, approximately 10 minutes. Add rice to pot and stir a couple times quickly .
Sauteed vegetables in pot
2. Then- you’ll want to add a 1/2 cup of the broth and 1/2 a cup of the wine to the rice mixture and stir it in. Turn the temp down to a simmer. You’ll keep adding the broth in 1/2 increments for roughly the next 30 minutes. Don’t add the next 1/2 cup until it looks relatively dissolved into the rice.
3. While the rice mixture is cooking, heat remaining butter in skillet and add oregano and mushrooms. Sauté them until they soften, then put them in a separate bowl to rest.
4. When the rice is “al dente” after roughly 30 minutes, remove from heat. Add the mushrooms, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and half of the parmesan to the pot, and stir a few times to get mixed in.
5. Serve the risotto immediately after in individual bowls, topped with the remaining parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil.
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