Risotto… a word that almost always gets a mouthwatering reaction. It’s creamy, rich, savory and comforting. This delicious Italian treat takes a little bit of effort and the right ratio (usually 3:1 but see later copy for more info.) of liquid to rice. One wonderful thing about risotto is the seemingly endless treatments you can add in to customize the flavor. From various stocks, to proteins, to vegetables, to spice and herb blends the options are truly countless. This versatility allows you to treat the risotto as a first course, main course, or a complimentary side item (as you’ll see in an upcoming post). Today, our treatment is a savory blend of asparagus and mushrooms for, you guessed it, Asparagus Mushroom Risotto 🙂
The link in the opening sentence will tell you all the additional fun facts about risotto. We’ll spare you the time today since you came here for the recipe and instructions. We respect that and there’s nothing we want to do more than to show you how to make this Asparagus Mushroom Risotto. It’s really ridiculously good. Let’s get to it.
Preparation: Asparagus Mushroom Risotto
A short grain, starchy rice like Arborio is the perfect application for risotto. Think lots of starch and lots of liquid absorption to create the creamy texture we all know and love. As always, gather up your ingredients out front to make life easy.
The typical ratio is about 3:1 for risotto. This recipe has a lot more to it so we used a 3.5:1 ratio with 6 cups of stock (we made from Better than Bouillon) and an additional cup of Sauvignon Blanc to go with our two cups of Arborio rice. Prep the other ingredients according to the recipe card below. Feel free to cut the mushrooms down even further if desired.
This is a 3 step process – Preparing the Asparagus and Mushrooms, Making the Risotto, and “The Final Countdown” (that’s a fun music reference for you younger folks 😀 ).
Step 1: Preparing the Asparagus and Mushrooms
Melt 1 tbsp. of butter over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and the asparagus, cook 10 – 12 minutes, stirring occasionally (see note #1). While this is cooking make the chicken stock and hold on low heat (see note #2). Set aside the mushrooms and asparagus and cover.
Step 2: Making the Risotto
Melt the remaining butter over medium heat. Cook the onions 7 – 8 minutes, or until softened. Mix well with the rice.
Add the wine and continuously stir until the liquid is absorbed. Add enough stock to just cover the rice mixture. Stir continuously and repeat addition of stock until down to the final batch.
Step 3: The Final Countdown
Add the last batch of stock. Then add the mushrooms and asparagus, continuing to stir until all of the stock is absorbed. Remove from heat, mix in the remaining ingredients, and serve.
Besides the forearm workout hopefully that wasn’t too difficult. The rewards are definitely worth it. Risotto can be intimidating for many people because of the constant attention, stirring, adding stock, and getting to the finished product. Hopefully everything was a success and you’ll be well on your way to making all kinds of creative risottos in the future.
Equipment: Asparagus Mushroom Risotto
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We recommend a quality chef knife, a cutting board, a simple heavy saute pan, a sauce pan, and a good old fashioned wooden spoon for this recipe. If you’re in the market for any of these items here are some recommendations (affiliate links):
If you liked that, try this…
- Bacon and Mushroom Risotto (similar recipe)
- Coconut Lime Cilantro Brown Rice
- Cider Vinegar and Sage Brined Pork Chops (good pairing)
- Cast Iron Pork Chops (another good pairing)
- Bacon Mushroom Gravy (rich and savory flavor profile)
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Asparagus Mushroom Risotto
Equipment
- Large Skillet, Sauce Pan, or Dutch Oven
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp. Unsalted Butter, divided 1 tbsp. for asparagus and mushrooms and 2 tbsp. for onion
- 8 oz. Cremini or Baby Bella Mushrooms, sliced Can sub others if desired. Can buy pre-sliced.
- 1 bunch Asparagus, coarse ends removed, cut into ½" pieces
- 1 Small/Medium Sweet Onion, diced
- 2 cups Arborio Rice
- 1 cup Sauvignon Blanc Or other dry white wine. If using cooking wine that will also add salt.
- 6 cups Chicken Stock We used Better than Bouillon. This contains enough salt for the dish so we did not add any additional.
- Small/Medium Lemon, zested
- ½ tsp. Ground Nutmeg
- ½ cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, freshly grated
- Fresh Ground Black Pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Melt 1 tbsp. of butter over medium heat. Add mushrooms and asparagus, cook 10 – 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. See notes. While this is cooking make the chicken stock and hold on low heat. See notes. Set aside mushrooms and asparagus, covered.
- Melt the remaining butter over medium heat. Cook onions 7 – 8 minutes, or until softened. Mix well with rice.
- Add wine and stir until absorbed. Add enough stock to cover rice mixture. Stir continuously and repeat addition of stock until down to the final batch.
- Add last batch of stock. Then add the mushrooms and asparagus, continuing to stir until stock is absorbed. Remove from heat, add remaining ingredients, and serve.
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