Recipes & How-To's
Saffron Mushroom Risotto

Saffron Mushroom Risotto

A little bit of saffron goes a long way! This delicately flavoured risotto dish is worth all the stirring it takes to get it just right.

Cook time

1 hr 5 mins

Recipe Difficulty

Easy

Yield

Serves 6

Ingredients

  • 2 pkgs (14 g each) dried porcini mushrooms (about 1 cup)
  • Boiling water
  • 8 cups no-salt-added chicken broth
  • 1 tbsp salted butter
  • 1 tbsp canola oil
  • 2 tbsp finely chopped shallot
  • 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 2 cups arborio rice
  • 1/4 cup dry white wine
  • 1 tbsp brandy
  • 1/2 tsp saffron threads
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • 2 tbsp liquid honey
  • 1 tbsp salted butter
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

Directions

  1. Place porcini mushrooms in a heatproof bowl. Pour boiling water over porcini mushrooms to cover. Let stand for 20 minutes or until tender.
  2. Drain porcini mushrooms through a sieve. Rinse porcini mushrooms and pat dry with paper towels. Chop porcini mushrooms; set aside.
  3. Heat broth to simmering in a large saucepan; keep warm.
  4. Melt 1 tbsp butter with oil in a large non-stick frypan over medium heat. Add shallot and garlic; sauté for 2 minutes.
  5. Add rice and sauté for 1 minute.
  6. Add wine, brandy and saffron; cook, stirring frequently, until almost all of liquid is absorbed. Add 1 cup hot broth and cook, stirring constantly, until almost all of liquid is absorbed.
  7. Add remaining 7 cups hot broth, 1 cup at a time, cooking and stirring constantly until rice is tender and almost all of liquid is absorbed, about 35 - 40 minutes. Remove from heat.
  8. Add porcini mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, honey, 1 tbsp butter, salt and pepper; stir until Parmesan cheese and butter are melted.

Nutritional analysis per serving

*Ingredient not included in nutritional analysis.

474 calories, 17.1 g fat, 32.2 g protein, 46.8 g carbohydrate, 2.1 g fibre, 986 mg sodium