Japanese short-grain rice is a versatile ingredient that works brilliantly in dishes such as rice pudding and risotto. Here we use white miso and mascarpone with a medley of Japanese mushrooms to create an umami-laden risotto that is creamy, rich and full of flavour.
Ingredients
- 6 dried shiitake mushrooms (or porcini)
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 dashi infusion bag or 1 tsp instant dashi powder (optional)
- 1 litre (1¾ pints/4 cups) hot water
- 10½oz/1½ cups (300 g) short-grain white rice
- 3½ oz (100 g) mascarpone cheese
- 2¾ oz/¼ cup (75 g) white miso (shiro miso)
- 1¾oz/¼ cup (50 g) unsalted butter
- 1 onion, chopped
- 5½ oz (150 g) Japanese mushrooms (a selection including fresh shiitake, maitake, oyster, king or shimeji), wiped clean and chopped into bite-sized pieces
- fine sea salt and freshly
- ground black pepper, to taste
- 1¾ oz (50 g) Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- micro basil, to garnish
How to Make It
- Add the dried shiitake mushrooms, sugar and dashi infusion bag or instant dashi powder, if using, to a bowl. Pour the measured hot water over and mix well. Leave the mushrooms to soak for 30 minutes.
- Wash the rice in a bowl with plenty of fresh water using a circular motion with your hand. Drain the water and repeat 3 or 4 times until the water runs clear. Transfer the rice to a sieve (strainer) and let it drain for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the mascarpone and white miso until well combined.
- Squeeze out the water from the rehydrated mushrooms, reserving the soaking liquid. Slice the rehydrated mushrooms finely. Transfer the soaking liquid to a clean pan, being careful to leave any mushroom residue or grit in the bowl. Heat the liquid until very hot, then lower the heat, cover the pan and keep it simmering until needed.
- In a pan large enough to cook the risotto, add half of the butter and the chopped onion and fry for 2 minutes until just translucent but not coloured.
- Add the drained rice and fry for a couple of minutes or until it is coated in the butter and onions. Now start adding a couple of ladles of hot mushroom-dashi stock to the rice. Use a spatula to scrape the bottom of the pan, and as the liquid is soaked up by the rice add more broth a ladle at a time and mix. After a few minutes, add the sliced rehydrated mushrooms. Continue adding more stock and mixing for exactly 15 minutes until the rice is cooked but slightly al dente. You may not need to use all the mushroom dashi stock.
- Meanwhile, in a separate pan, heat the remaining butter and fry the fresh mushrooms for a few minutes until softened and light coloured, season with sea salt and black pepper.
- Just before the 15 minutes are up, add the miso-mascarpone mix to the rice and stir until completely dissolved. Add the fried mushrooms, a generous pinch of sea salt and some black pepper. Check for seasoning and add a little more salt or pepper if needed. To serve, ladle the risotto into 4 bowls, sprinkle the Parmesan over the rice and top with the micro basil. Serve immediately.