Pressure Cooker Mushroom Risotto

Pressure Cooker Mushroom Risotto is a rich and delicious recipe made with the Instant Pot for an easy vegetarian dinner or hearty side dish! Fresh thyme, Parmesan and white wine take the flavors in this dish to the next level!

Easy Instant Pot Mushroom Risotto Recipe

The idea of risotto can be daunting for most people. Standing over a stove for an hour stirring and stirring until the rice is just right is not only time consuming, but overwhelming. This Pressure Cooker Mushroom Risotto takes all the guess work and labor out of this classic Italian recipe!

Mushroom risotto makes a fantastic vegetarian entree or hearty side dish. Serve it with a grilled steak, chicken or pork for an impressive meal perfect for guests.

If you are not already familiar with the Instant Pot, I highly recommend getting one. I really can’t rave enough about how easy they make so many dishes, like Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork and Quinoa in the Pressure Cooker. They are highly versatile and allow you so much flexibility. 

The Instant Pot is wonderfully versatile. Most models have a variety of functions in addition to the obvious pressure cooking. They often include,

• Rice cooker
• Slow Cooker
• Yogurt Maker
• Warming function – great for things like proofing bread.

There are so many amazing recipes you can make in your Instant Pot. From casseroles like Pressure Cooker Taco Mac & Cheese to staples like Pressure Cooker Chicken Recipes and desserts like Pressure Cooker Apple Crisp. The possibilities are endless. This Instant Pot Mushroom Risotto might just be my favorite of all though!

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Why do you use Porcini Mushrooms in Risotto

Porcini mushrooms are highly regarded for their great flavor and used extensively in Italian and French cooking. However, they are not the easiest mushroom to find fresh. Their growing season is short and you don’t typically see them on grocery shelves. 

Don’t despair! You can easily find dried Porcini mushrooms at your grocery store, typically on the specialty foods aisle. Ask the grocery clerk if you have trouble finding them. I found them in my small town grocery store, so I’m confident you can find them just about anywhere. 

To reconstitute the mushrooms place dried Porcini mushrooms in a small bowl or jar and pour enough hot water over them to just cover them. Let them reconstitute for 15 minutes. In small batches, squeeze them well with your hands to remove as much water as possible.

Porcini mushrooms have a nice meaty texture and lots of great mushroom flavor. They are closer in flavor to the wild mushrooms like morels than the sort of flavorless crimini mushrooms typically found in the veggie section. 

If you can’t find any dried porcini mushrooms, I suggest the following substitutions:

• Shitake – these are easier to find nowadays and supposedly have great health properties. They have a texture and flavor similar to porcini as well.
• Portabella – You can also find Portabella mushrooms very easily these days. Make sure to cut them down to manageable slices. 
• Mixed bags of wild dried mushrooms. Sometimes you can’t find dried Porcini, but will find mixed bags of other wild mushrooms that work very nicely. I wouldn’t be surprised if they also include some Porcini, along with morels and Chanterelles too.

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A Handy Tip For Adding More Mushroom Flavor

If you are using dried mushrooms that need to be reconstituted by soaking in water first, then save the water and use it as part of your broth measurement. The extra mushroom flavor from the water adds more flavor to your rice!

What Is Arborio Rice?

Arborio rice is considered the perfect style of rice grain for risotto. The rice has a particularly high level of starchiness and is a short fat grain. This means that it naturally creates a creamy and saucy “gravy” when you cook it. The short plump grains have a nice dense chewiness about them too. 

All that adds up to a very comforting style of rice dish!

Why Do I Saute The Rice First For Mushroom Risotto?

The quick saute of the rice accomplishes a few important things on the way to making perfect risotto. 

• First, the saute helps caramelize some of the starches, so it adds extra flavor to the rice
• Next, the saute also adds flavors from the oil or butter you use to cook it with
• Finally, during the saute, the rice gets separated and individually coated so sticking together is much less of an issue. Especially with a rice as starchy as Arborio, this makes a big difference between nice tender rice grains and your rice becoming mushy. 

More Amazing Vegetarian Recipes!

• Chimichurri Roasted Vegetable Bowl with Grilled Cheese
• Pressure Cooker Butternut Squash Soup
• Baked Honey Feta Squash & Brown Rice Salad
• Grilled Honey Goat Cheese Pizza
• Black Bean & Squash Enchiladas
• One Pot Homemade Alfredo Rigatoni

This recipe first appeared on Yellow Bliss Road