Recipe: Souped-up Store-Bought Mushroom Risotto
For a Lenten meatless Friday dinner
It’s Lenten season again, which means almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. It also means abstaining from meat.1 In the quarter-century since I converted to Catholicism, I have gotten pretty good about remembering that “penitential practice,” but I confess that I still all too often obey the letter of that precept but not its spirit. Hence, Friday dinners during Lent may feature seafood, but sometimes it’s shrimp or scallops.2
This week I decided to have a Friday dinner that would stick a little closer to the spirit of the season; namely, mushroom risotto.
I have made traditional risotto with all the blasted stirring, but it’s a lot of work. So I made some shortcuts.
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms (a lot of supermarket mushrooms come from China but I source mine—and all my other dried mushroom needs, as well as some fresh—from a domestic supplier who sources them from the US and Europe: Oregon Mushrooms)
1/2 cup white wine (I keep 187 ml bottles of Sutter Home Pinot Grigio in my pantry; I wouldn’t drink it alone but it does fine in cooking)
1 teaspoon olive oil (I use California Olive Ranch Global Blend as my everyday oil)
2 tablespoons truffle butter, divided (I use Urbani White Truffle Butter)
1 medium shallot, diced finely
2 cloves garlic, sliced very thin3
water as needed
2 tablespoons Better than Bouillon reduced sodium roasted chicken base4
one package of Alessi Imported Risotto con Funghi Porcini
1/2 tablespoon dried Italian parsley
1/2 tablespoon freeze-dried chives
lots of freshly grated Parmesan (use the real Italian stuff)
Reconstitute the porcini mushrooms by soaking them in 1 hot water for 20 minutes. Strain the mushrooms, reserving the liquid. Rinse the mushrooms and then roughly chop them. Set aside.
Strain the reserved liquid through a very fine strainer (a Matcha sifter works well) or an unbleached coffee filter to remove any grit (there will be some). Add enough water to bring the total volume up to 2 1/2 cups.
Set your your multicooker (I use a Zavor LUX LCD 6 quart model) to saute.
When the multicooker signals that it’s reached temperature, add the olive oil and half the truffle butter. When they melt add the shallots. Saute until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for about 45 seconds. Add the risotto mix and stir to combine. Add the reserved porcini mushrooms and the dried herbs. Stir to combine.
Add the white wine and allow to reduce to a glaze, stirring a few times.
Add the water and bring to a boil. Add the bouillon base. Stir once more. Put the lid on the multicooker with the valve set to “pressure.” Stop the saute function. Choose the risotto function (it’s under the Grains menu).
When the multicooker announces that it’s finished, unplug it and allow it to sit for 10 minutes. This allows what’s known as a “natural release.”
Remove the lid. If all has gone well the risotto should resemble porridge, neither runny nor stiff. If the risotto is too dry, as a few tablespoons of water (or cream). If it’s too runny, plug the multicooker back in and set it to saute. Cook until it’s the right texture.
Transfer the risotto to plates, top with some Parmesan cheese, putting more cheese in a small bowl on the table for your spouse or date to add if they want.
The extra porcinis and other additions provide a depth and complexity of flavor that effectively disguise the store-bought basis. It’ll taste (almost) like you slaved over it for the hours risotto from scratch requires.
A small side salad makes a nice addition. I combined arugula, spinach, sliced cherry tomatoes, shallot rings, and truffled goat cheese with a light vinaigrette.
Leftovers make a good midnight snack.
But now I must confess that, having striven to honor the spirit as well as the letter of the Lenten penitential observance, I then pushed the boat right out by serving a Sea Smoke Ten Pinot Noir.5 As a young wine (2023 vintage), it’s bigger and more intense than a typical Pinot Noir. It’ll age well (and probably needs to). Nevertheless, it’s already a delicious blend of flavor associations, including blueberries, blackcurrants, and herbs.
Technically, although the Church does not require Catholics to abstain from meat on Fridays the rest of the year, it does recommend “works of voluntary self-denial and personal penance.” I confess that I tend to forget that admonition more often than not.
Or even lobster tails.
You want to try to emulate that scene from Goodfellas:
Better than Bouillon did well in a Cook’s Illustrated taste test, plus as they note “it’s less expensive than buying liquid broth and convenient to store and use over time.”
Be patient. God isn’t finished with me yet.