Description
Learn how to make a delicious Chicken and Mushroom Risotto with this easy recipe. Perfectly creamy and flavorful, a must-try dish for any home cook!
Ingredients
- – 1 tsp – 1 tbsp olive oil (5 – 15 ml)
- – 12 oz / 350 g chicken thigh fillets, cut into bite size pieces
- – 13 oz / 400 g mushrooms, sliced (I use Swiss brown)
- – 2 tbsp / 30 g unsalted butter
- – 2 garlic cloves, minced
- – 1 onion, finely diced (brown, white, yellow)
- – 1/2 cup / 125 ml apple juice (optional – sub with water or chicken broth)
- – 1 1/4 cups / 250 g arborio risotto rice, uncooked (Note 1)
- – 4 cups (960 ml) / 1 litre chicken broth/stock
- – 1/2 cup / 35 g freshly grated vegetarian hard cheese
- – 1 – 3 tbsp / 15 – 50 g unsalted butter
- – Freshly chopped parsley
Instructions
- Warm up 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a pan or skillet over high heat. Introduce the optional beef bacon and cook until it turns golden brown. Place it in a small microwave-safe bowl.
- Keep about 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat in the pan and dispose of the rest. Add the chicken pieces and cook until they are browned and fully cooked. Move them to a different bowl.
- Put the mushrooms in the pan and cook until they achieve a light golden color. Transfer them to the bowl with the chicken.
- Lower the heat to medium and return the pan to the stove. Add unsalted butter and let it melt. Incorporate the minced garlic and diced onion, cooking for about 3 minutes or until they soften.
- Increase the heat to high, add the arborio rice, and stir until the grains start to look partly translucent, for no more than a minute.
- Pour in the apple juice and cook while scraping the bottom of the pan to lift any browned bits, until the alcohol smell dissipates, around 2 minutes.
- Decrease the heat to medium-low. Pour in approximately 3 cups of chicken broth. Let it cook uncovered, stirring just once or twice, until most of the liquid is soaked up.
- Taste the rice for texture, adding 1/2 cup of broth at a time, stirring between additions until the rice reaches your preferred tenderness.
- Towards the end, return the chicken and mushrooms to the risotto to warm them through.
- When the risotto is done, add a bit more chicken broth to give it a slightly soupy texture, then remove it from the heat.
- Crucial step: Add more unsalted butter and grated cheese, then stir energetically to activate the starch for a creamy consistency. If it thickens too much, pour in extra liquid for a soupier risotto, similar to those in upscale eateries.
- Serve immediately! Garnish with the reheated bacon and additional cheese and parsley if you like.
Notes
- For a more robust flavor, include the optional beef bacon and reserve some bacon fat for cooking the chicken and mushrooms.
- Taste the risotto for desired texture and gradually add chicken broth until the rice reaches your preferred tenderness.
- Achieve a creamy consistency by stirring in additional unsalted butter and grated cheese at the end of cooking. Garnish with reheated bacon, extra cheese, and parsley before serving.
