Portuguese wild mushroom risottoe
A Portuguese risotto is a cross between a paella and a risotto, with sharp olives and preserved lemons giving a tart contrast. Portugal has a long history of using wild mushrooms in cooking, as well as commercial foraging. You can use any kind of mushroom in this risotto – add the more delicate ones towards the end and the sturdier mushrooms at the beginning. We have added some cultivated pom pom and horse mushrooms into the mix too, to give a bit more texture.
Author: Michael Hyams & Liz O’Keefe, The Mushroom Cookbook
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 40g dried ceps
- 2 saffron threads
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- 4 garlic cloves, whole
- 1 onion, chopped
- ½ tsp sugar
- 200g St George’s mushrooms, chopped
- 100g horse or button (white) mushrooms
- 400g risotto rice
- 125ml white wine
- 1 preserved lemon, chopped, plus extra to serve
- 100g pom poms, chopped
- 200g morels, chopped
- 400g canned tomatoes, chopped
- 100g green olives, pitted
- 2½ tsp chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
- sea salt and ground black pepper
Method
- Place the dried ceps in a jug and fill with 1 litre boiling water, then add the saffron. Stand for 10 mins.
- Meanwhile, in a large pan, heat the olive oil and butter, then add the whole garlic cloves and chopped onion before sprinkling with the sugar. Sauté for 5 mins, until the onions are soft.
- Stir in the St George’s mushrooms and horse or button mushrooms and cook for 1 min.
- Season with a pinch of salt then add the rice, stirring to coat with the mixture.
- Stir in the wine and lemon then bring to a high simmer to reduce the liquid.
- Add a ladle of the cep and saffron water and reduce it down, stirring as you go.
- Remove the rehydrated dried ceps from the saffron water, chop and add to the pan.
- Continue to add the saffron water, a ladle at a time, reducing it each time while constantly stirring. This should take around 20 mins.
- Stir in the pom pom mushrooms, morel mushrooms and the canned tomatoes and reduce down again, stirring constantly for 2 mins.
- Mix in the olives and parsley, then season with salt and pepper.
- Serve.
