Curry Saffron Wild Mushroom Risotto

Creamy wild mushroom risotto with a light subtle hint of curry and saffron, Italian cheeses and cherry tomatoes, garnished with snipped chives and chive flowers.

It’s not curry like you typically think of curry … it’s a very mild, subtle curry flavor from a curry plant. I had never heard of such a thing until my yoga friend brought me one. Have you ever seen a curry plant? It looks so much like rosemary, but the leaves are softer and when you rub it between your fingers, it smells just like curry.

Have you ever gone hunting for wild mushrooms? My parents taught me how when I was young … it used to be one of my favorite springtime activities, until I moved back to the midwest and discovered that all the favored mushroom hunting spots are also over-taken with poison ivy. I’m  terribly allergic to poison ivy. Once I get it, it just does not go away. So sadly I don’t do mushroom hunting anymore …  BUT my sisters and dad all love to go mushroom hunting. One of my sisters recently went mushroom hunting and got 100 lbs. of morels. I can’t even fathom how many mushrooms that is! She brought me a bag of fresh morels and a bag of dried ones.

You can make this risotto with other wild (or domestic) wild mushrooms if you must, but if you can get your hands on morels, they are the best.

Curry Saffron Wild Mushroom Risotto

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Total Time: 40 minutes

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 1/2 cups chopped sauteed morel (or other) mushrooms
• 1 cup Arborio rice (or other rice if you can’t find Arborio … I often use Basmati)
• 2/3 cup white wine
• 1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 cup water (or mushroom juice)
• A sprig of curry plant, snipped (or substitute rosemary or 1/2 – 1 teaspoon curry powder)
• A pinch of saffron (optional … but it adds a nice flavor and color)
• 1/2 cup shredded Italian blend of cheeses
• 1/2 cup chopped sweet cherry tomatoes
• For garnish: A bit more cheese, snipped chives, chive flowers and/or a sprig of curry plant

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Instructions

1. Keep in mind mushrooms cook down a LOT so you will need a goodly amount of mushrooms. Sautee your mushrooms in 1/2 Tablespoon butter with a clove or two of chopped garlic until tender. (Add wine if needed to keep the mushrooms moist.) Season to taste with Red Robin seasoning (or your favorite seasoning) and freshly ground pepper. Measure out 1 1/2 cups of cooked mushrooms and strain off any excess liquid, if there is any, so you can use the mushroom “juice” in place of some of the water.
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, then add the rice. Stir and cook the dry rice in the butter until it’s light brown and smells heavenly toasty.
3. Add the wine and cook uncovered, stirring frequently, until the liquid is cooked away. Add the saffron and curry plant and 1/2 cup or so of the broth and again cook, stirring stirring stirring until the broth is cooked away. Repeat until the broth is gone and then keep going using water until all the liquid is used up (about 20 minutes or so). Taste the rice … is it tender yet? If not add a little more wine or water or broth and cook and stir a little longer.
4. Once the rice is about done, stir in the mushrooms and cheese and cook until the cheese is melted and everything is nice and hot. Stir in the tomatoes, sautee just briefly to release some of the tomato juices into the dish, then add salt & pepper to taste.
5. Serve garnished with a bit of shredded cheese and some snipped chives and/or chive flowers.

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Notes

RECIPE SOURCE: http://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/

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This recipe was shared at Wednesday Extravaganza and Thursday’s Treasures.