FOOD: mushroom risotto

The first time I ever heard about risotto was on one of those FOOD channel cooking shows. It seemed like a much more interesting take on rice, so my next trip to the supermarket I came home with a 1-box special with the rice and seasoning.

Add water, boil for 20 minutes. How hard could it be?
It wasn't. It was easy... too easy. I can cook dammit! Lets do it myself!

INGREDIENTS: (yields enough for 1 glutton, OR 2-3 hungry people, OR 4-5 birds) 1c Italian Arborio rice 1c white wine or cognac 1c stock (optional) chicken, veg, or duck stock
2-3c water on the boil (varies a bit)
1 large portabello mushroom chopped
1 onion finely chopped
3-4 tbsp olive oil
1-2 tbsp butter
3-4 tbsp Parmigiano-Reggiano
salt & pepper to taste
pinch of parsley to garnish

METHOD:

in a large skillet add the oil and onion. Using medium heat soften the onion until it's all gently cooked.

Turn it up to moderately high but not max) and toss in the rice and stir frequently until the rice gets a bit toasty. 2-3 minutes.

Start your timer for 20 minutes and Pour in the wine stir, wait for it to boil and then slowly add the stock so that you keep things boiling. If you're not using stock then add a pinch of salt.

Add boiling water every 2-4 minutes as the water gets absorbed. (don't overdo this... just do one cup at a time!)

After 10 minutes of boiling have passed, add the mushrooms. Stir well so they are full covered by liquid.

After 15 minutes of boiling, you probably don't need to add any more water, but you will have to start stirring more frequently. The consistency will start thickening up a bit and this is exactly what you want. (It's essentially rice porridge)

After 18 minutes add your butter and parm. STIR WELL at this point. after it's well stirred, you can stop cooking any time after once it tightens up enough to your liking. It will continue to tighten up after you take it off the heat so it's ok if it's a tiny bit loose.

Once you remove from the heat, let it rest in the pan for 2-3 minutes and then plate. Garnish with salt and pepper to taste. Add a sprinkle of parsley for colour.

EAT

Google yourself a picture. I can't photograph mine. It gets eaten too quickly. I will at some point try to document my steps and add photos as appropriate.

Stay hungry my friends!