Mixed Mushroom and Leek Risotto
This creamy vegan risotto is well worth your time.
First things first: have you cooked with leeks before? Because if you haven’t, you need a crash course before we jump into this recipe. To prepare a leek, wash it thoroughly, then cut off root section and place cut-side down in a glass of cold water. This will help to release any dirt trapped inside the leek. Leave it to soak for a good 10-15 minutes. Then you can begin cutting it. Thinly slice the white part of the leek and save the rest for your compost bin or broth bag (if you make your own broth).
Second: you must keep your risotto covered as it cooks. If you don’t, all the broth will evaporate instead of absorbing into the rice. I only say this because the first time I made risotto, the recipe did not say to cover the rice mixture. So I didn’t. After two hours of stirring rock-hard rice, I finally got wise and put the lid on my pan. An hour and a half later, dinner was ready. May my stupidity spare you from the same fate.
Mixed Mushroom and Leek Risotto
Healthy, oil-free, vegan risotto
Makes: 4 Servings
Prep time:
Cook time:
- 8oz crimini mushrooms, washed and sliced
- 8 oz oyster mushrooms, washed and shredded
- 2 large leeks, thinly sliced
- 1 medium shallot, diced
- 2 cups brown rice
- 2 Tbsp miso paste
- ⅓ cup white wine
- 2 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
- 2 32oz boxes low sodium vegetable broth
- ½ cup soaked cashews
- 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- salt and pepper, to taste
- parsley, chopped (for garnish)
- vegan parmesan (for garnish)
- Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the leek and shallot and saute until fragrant (use small splashes of vegetable broth to keep from sticking).
- Add the mushrooms, soy sauce, and thyme. Cook until the mushrooms are tender.
- While the mushroom mixture cooks, prepare your broth mixture: in a large pot, wisk the miso paste with about 1 cup of vegetable broth until it dissolves. Then add the white wine and another 4 cups of broth. Stir to combine and bring to a gentle simmer. Then turn the heat to low and keep covered.
- Once the mushrooms have cooked, remove the mixture from the pan and set aside in a separate bowl.
- Deglaze the pan with some of the broth mixture, then add back to pot.
- Wipe your pan clean and bring back up to medium heat. Then add the rice.
- Toast the rice over medium heat until it begins to smell nutty and turns golden brown.
- Add 1-2 large ladles of the broth mixture and stir to combine. Cover and simmer over medium heat.
- Once most of the broth has absorbed into the rice, add another ladle or two, stir, and cover again. Repeat this process until the rice is tender, stirring frequently to keep from sticking. This will probably take over an hour and will use most (if not all) of the broth mixture.
- Once the rice is almost tender, blend the soaked cashews with ¼ cup broth and the nutritional yeast. Blend until creamy (add more broth if needed). Then stir the cashew cream into the rice.
- Stir the mushroom mixture into the rice. Allow to simmer, uncovered, for a bit longer if the mixture becomes too wet. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Garnish with parsley, vegan parmesan, and red pepper flakes.
- Serve with cooked veggies or a side salad and enjoy!
There is something so satisfying about risotto. Through the magic of the slow cooking process, you can take plain old rice and turn it into a decadent dish. This recipe is lacking the saturated fat and cholesterol found in typical risotto. Instead, it gets its richness from blended cashews and packs an umami punch from the soy sauce, mushrooms, and miso paste.
I use brown rice simply because I always have it in the pantry, but this recipe would work just as well with the traditional Arborio rice. I would venture to guess that you would need less broth with the Arborio rice, though. This is the perfect recipe to make during a restful weekend day at home, or for a holiday meal where non-vegan relatives look skeptically at your contribution.