Spare Spoons Kitchen
Porcini
Risotto
A deep, woodsy mushroom risotto — dried porcini for backbone (and their liquid-gold soaking water), fresh mushrooms for body, finished glossy and creamy. Made the classic stovetop way, or nearly hands-off in the Instant Pot.
Ingredients
Before you start
Get these into the state the recipe asks for first — the steps that use them won't wait.
- Stock, warmed and held at a bare simmer — cold stock stalls the rice every time you add a ladle
- Porcini soaking liquid, strained (coffee filter or doubled cheesecloth) — it carries grit, and you want it clean before it goes in the pot
- Parmigiano grated, and the finishing butter cold and cut — the mantecatura happens off the heat in under a minute, which is no time to be grating cheese
Method
Cook's notes
Mind the grit. Dried porcini shed sand as they soak, and their soaking liquid is far too good to pour down the drain — so strain it rather than skip it. A coffee filter or a doubled layer of cheesecloth catches the silt; leave the last cloudy spoonful in the bowl either way.
Two mushrooms, two jobs. The dried porcini bring deep, woodsy flavor and that priceless soaking liquid; the fresh cremini bring meaty texture and body. Together they make a fuller risotto than either alone — and a small handful of dried porcini is all you need, since they're intense.
The mantecatura is non-negotiable. Beating cold butter and Parmigiano in off the heat is what makes risotto glossy and creamy — cold butter emulsifies better than melted. Grate the cheese yourself if you can: pre-grated Parmigiano is coated with anti-caking agents that stay faintly gritty exactly where you want it silkiest.
Go by the rice, not the clock. You may not need all the liquid, or you may want a splash more — the rice decides. It's done when it's creamy and al dente: tender with a slight bite at the center.
All'onda — serve it loose. Proper risotto spreads and ripples like a wave; it firms as it sits, so loosen with a splash of hot stock right before serving.
Rice matters. Use a short-grain risotto rice — Arborio is the common one; Carnaroli holds its bite even better. Don't rinse it: that surface starch is what makes risotto creamy.
Serve it: lovely on its own, or as a bed under a seared steak, scallops, or roast chicken. A little extra Parmigiano and a few drops of good olive oil — or truffle oil — at the table gild it.
Stovetop vs. Instant Pot: the stovetop way (ladling in liquid) gives the most control and silkiest texture; the Instant Pot is nearly hands-off and remarkably good — just don't skip browning the mushrooms or the finishing butter and cheese.
Easier, if you like
- Don't stand there stirring — use the Instant Pot. The method selector above swaps in the pressure-cooker version: 6 minutes sealed instead of 20 minutes of ladling. The finish is identical, and the finish is where risotto is actually made.
- No fresh mushrooms? Double the dried porcini (about 2 oz) and lean on a splash more of that soaking liquid — you'll lose some of the meaty texture but keep all the deep flavor.
- Skip the stock: Better Than Bouillon (Roasted Chicken, or the Vegan-certified No Chicken / mushroom base) — 1 tsp per cup of hot water. It lives in the fridge door, so this recipe stops requiring a shopping trip.
- Cook it ahead — the restaurant trick. Take it to about 12 minutes (still firm, still soupy), spread it thin on a sheet pan to stop the cooking, and refrigerate up to a day. At dinner, tip it back into the pan with a cup of hot stock and finish — 6–8 minutes. This is how you serve risotto and talk to your guests.
Gluten-free as written; vegetarian and vegan paths
Vegetarian: use vegetable stock and a vegetarian hard cheese in place of the Parmigiano (traditional Parmigiano is made with animal rennet).
Vegan: vegetable stock, olive oil or plant butter, and a spoon of nutritional yeast or a vegan parmesan — the porcini carry it.
Gluten-free: naturally gluten-free (it's rice); just use a gluten-free stock.