Ingredients
- 1-ounce dried morel mushrooms
- 1/2 pound fresh porcini or cremini mushrooms
- 4 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
- 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
- 2 ounces pancetta, diced
- 1/2 cup chopped shallots (3 shallots)
- 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving
Directions
Place the dried morels in a bowl and pour 2 cups boiling water over them. Set aside for 30 minutes. Scoop the morels from the water with a slotted spoon, reserving the liquid. You should have 2 cups; if not, add water to make 2 cups. Drain the morels and rinse once more. If some of the mushrooms are large, cut into 2 or 3 pieces. Pour the mushroom liquid through a coffee filter or paper towel, discarding the gritty solids. Set the mushrooms and the liquid aside separately.
Meanwhile, remove and discard the stems of the porcini and rub any dirt off the caps with a damp paper towel. Dont rinse them! Slice thickly and set aside.
In a small saucepan, heat the chicken stock with the 2 cups of reserved mushroom liquid and bring to a simmer.
In a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the pancetta and shallots over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Add the morels and porcini and saute for another 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains with butter. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add 2 full ladles of the chicken stock mixture to the rice plus the saffron, salt, and pepper. Stir and simmer over low heat until the stock is absorbed, 5 to 10 minutes. Continue to add the stock mixture, 2 ladles at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a little dry before adding more of the stock mixture. Continue until the rice is cooked through, but still al dente, about 25 to 30 minutes total. When done, the risotto should be thick and creamy and not at all dry. Off the heat, stir in the Parmesan cheese. Serve hot in bowls with extra cheese.

















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By Devon Guarderas
Birdsboro, PA
on March 10, 2013
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This is my fifth attempt at making risotto. Every other time, I followed the recipes to the T and ended up with incredibly creamy, flavorful.....crunchy (not al dente rice. I have no idea how people get their risotto done in 25-30 minutes. I followed the recipe and my risotto took 45 minutes to be done. It was still just a bit hard, so I removed it from the heat and covered my le creuset pan for 5 minutes after adding the parm, and then it was perfect. I read through all the reviews here, and I can't believe only a few other people have that same problem. I wonder what we are doing wrong. My stock is hot, my risotto pan heavy and wide, doing 2 ladles of stock a time once the other liquid is about gone... oh well, it was delicious nonetheless! The mushroom flavor is extraordinary! I used Giada's recipe for arancini with the leftovers. I am going to try Ina's spring green risotto again with the longer cooking time and hope for better results than my last attempt!
By cwmorledge_7492303
Forrest City, AR
on March 02, 2013
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Savory, earthy, hearty... the ultimate mushroom risotto in our opinion! Thanks Ina!
By conniemagnani_1...
Portersvile, 78
on February 28, 2013
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This is an amazing recipe !! My entire family LOVES it. My oldest daughter is a vegetarian, so I just make the pancetta and everybody just adds however much they want on top - delish!! Thank you Ina, for your wonderfully simple and elegant recipes.
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