Sale e Pepe’s Mushroom & Truffle Risotto

‘Tis the season… when truffle begins popping up on menus aplenty. With its unmistakable scent, the luxurious ingredient elevates any dish – and while the truffles themselves can be eye-wateringly expensive, infused oils are more reasonable. This recipe, created by restaurateur Markus Thesleff, who helms legendary Italian restaurant Sale e Pepe, blends white truffle oil into a porcini mushroom risotto – the perfect hearty autumnal dish, made all the better with a generous helping of parmesan.

Recipe: Risotto ai Funghi Porcini

Ingredients:

• 380ml vegetable stock
• 22gm dried porcini mushroom
• 145gm unsalted butter
• 140gm arborio rice
• 80ml dry white wine
• 5gm chopped parsley
• 26ml extra virgin olive oil 
• 3gm micro herbs (optional)
• 8ml white truffle oil 
• 48gm grated parmesan 18 months aged
• Sea salt & ground black pepper, to season

Method:

1. Reconstitute the porcini mushrooms: Add the vegetable stock and dried porcini mushrooms to a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil & reduce to a gentle simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes. Use a slotted spoon or spider strainer to remove the mushrooms from the pot, allowing all excess liquid to drain back into the pot. Keep the porcini infused stock simmering gently over low heat. Transfer reconstituted porcini mushrooms to a cutting board and finely chop.
2. Cook the aromatics: Meanwhile, begin cooking the risotto. Add the butter to a large heavy bottomed pot  with a medium heat. Once melted, add in the shallot and porcini mushrooms. Season with sea salt. Cook and stir occasionally, until softened and all the water drawn out of the mushrooms is cooked off, for about 5 minutes. 
3. Toast the arborio rice: Stir in the arborio rice. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until lightly toasted.
4. Make the mushroom risotto: Continue stirring and pour the wine into the saucepan, using a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits that may have formed at the bottom of the pan. Cook, stirring constantly, until all the wine evaporates. Reduce heat to low. Ladle the porcini infused vegetable stock into the add risotto, stirring frequently until the arborio rice absorbs all the broth between additions. Start tasting for doneness after 15 minutes. The risotto is done when the arborio rice is creamy & cooked through with a nice bite (i.e. al dente). This step will likely take 10 to 15 minutes total, and you may not need to use all the stock.
5. Finish the mushroom risotto: Once the arborio rice is perfectly al dente, finish the risotto. Stir in the remaining chopped parsley unsalted butter & the grated parmesan. Taste and season with additional salt and ground black pepper as desired.
6. Serve immediately: Serve with a light drizzling of white truffle oil, fresh herbs and extra parmesan.

Recipe from Sale e Pepe