With just a little time and attention, this Asparagus and Mushroom Risotto is well worth trying! Creamy, satiny rice with bits of asparagus and mushrooms. You’ll feel like you’ve attained a great achievement!
Gather your ingredients so that you have everything close at hand on the counter or table.
Prepare the Ingredients
Using a knife and cutting board, trim and cut the asparagus into 1-inch pieces. Slice the mushrooms.
Mince the sweet onion and garlic.
In a medium saucepan, bring to a boil the water and bouillon cubes (or chicken broth), and then reduce to a simmer, stirring to combine.You will keep the broth on simmer for the entire process of making this dish.
Saute the Vegetables
In a large skillet or saute pan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter along with the extra-virgin olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the prepared asparagus, mushrooms, and frozen peas (if using). Season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cook until the asparagus is crisp-tender, stirring frequently, about 2-4 minutes. In testing out this dish, I've made it with and without peas. It is good either way, but I probably prefer it without. I'll leave that to your discretion.
Remove the vegetables from the pan and place in a bowl for use later.
Prepare the Base - The Soffritto
In the same pan, melt another 2 tablespoons of butter over medium-low heat. Add the minced onion and cook until tender, about 1-2 minutes, stirring often. Add to this the garlic and cook for about a minute more, being careful not to brown. Italian cooks refer to this base step of sauteing onion and garlic to a dish as soffritto, the initial steps to give a dish its greatest flavor, upon which you build.
Time to Add the Rice
Once the onion and garlic are tender, add the Arborio rice and cook on medium-low, stirring constantly until glossy and coated with oil, about 2 minutes. Make sure to stir to the edges of your pan to include every grain of rice.
Now add the wine to the rice and stir until the alcohol is absorbed, about 1 minute.
Begin ladling in the chicken broth, about a cup at a time. Stir frequently until it is absorbed.
Continue adding broth in this fashion until the rice has cooked to al dente and is creamy, approximately 20-25 minutes. Add broth, stir, cook, stir, and repeat. When you get close to al dente, you'll want to reduce the amount of broth you add each time.
I like to start tasting the rice after 20 minutes to see how it is doing. For al dente, you want the rice to be tender, but firm to the bite. When it gets close to this stage, you will gradually reduce the amount of broth you add. Your finished risotto should be slightly moist, but not runny. You may or may not use up all the chicken broth.
Once you've achieved al dente, stir in the prepared vegetables and remove from heat.
The Final Step - Mantecare
For the finishing touch, add the remaining butter and freshly grated Parmesan. Swirl vigorously to combine. Taste and add more kosher salt or freshly ground black pepper, if desired.
Transfer to a serving bowl and serve warm. Garnish with fresh parsley. Risotto is the perfect dish to go with Salmon, Chicken, or Pork. Serves 4-6.
Notes
*Unless otherwise indicated, all butter used on this recipe site is salted.**If the risotto is too thick, you may thin it with a little bit of whole milk. I have never had to do this, but please know that it is okay to do if you need to!