This Creamy Morel Mushroom and Prawn Risotto Recipe is loaded with mushroom flavor and is the ultimate comfort food. Seafood Risotto is hearty enough to serve as a meal or as a side with grilled steaks, grilled chicken, or seafood.
If you've never prepared risotto, it's time you did! A lot of people are intimidated at the thought of preparing risotto and resort to ordering it at their favorite Italian restaurant. Sure, making it takes a little effort, but the results are so worth it!
Pairing shrimp and morel mushrooms works beautifully in this easy-to-prepare dish.
Risotto is prepared with either short-grain Italian rice called Arborio rice or medium-grain Carnaroli rice. The starchy content of the rice gives it its classic creamy texture.
So what's the secret to a great risotto? Have more hot stock on hand than you think you'll need, and be prepared to do a lot of stirring! You can handle that, right?
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🧐 Why This Recipe Works
- This Mushroom and Prawn Risotto Recipe is super easy to prepare.
- The ingredients can be found easily, either at your local supermarket or online. If you can't find Morels, you can substitute other exotic mushrooms or even button mushrooms if you have to.
- Risotto is impressive enough to serve on special occasions but can also be prepared any day for lunch or dinner.
- Using dehydrated mushrooms allows you to include the flavorful liquid that the mushrooms rehydrate in as part of the stock.
🛒 What You Need to Make This Recipe
🔖 Recipe Ingredients and Substitutions
- Truffle Oil: If you don't have truffle oil, you can use olive oil or avocado oil instead.
- Mushrooms: Morel mushrooms are not always easy to obtain, although you can buy them on Amazon. You may substitute your favorite mushrooms.
- Shrimp: Any large shrimp can be used in this recipe. I used raw shrimp, tail-off, peeled, deveined, 31-40 count from Costco.
- Wine: If you don't have dry white wine, cooking sherry can be substituted.
- Arborio rice: I use Arborio rice to make this recipe, however, Carnaroli rice can be substituted.
- Chicken Stock: Chicken or vegetable broth can be used to prepare the risotto. Have extra on hand in case you need it.
- Peas: Not a fan of peas? Feel free to leave them out or replace them with another vegetable, for example, asparagus or spinach.
- Cheese: I used sharp Coastal Aged Cheddar from Costco, however, freshly grated parmesan or Asiago cheese can be substituted.
- Herbs: Chopped herbs can be stirred into the rice right before serving it. Think Italian parsley, mint, and basil.
- Seasoning: You only need salt and pepper to season the risotto. I used white pepper but black pepper can be substituted.
- Cream (optional): If you want your risotto extra creamy and don't mind a few extra calories, stir in ¼ cup of cream or half and half.
🍤 How to Make This Mushroom and Prawn Risotto Recipe
STEP 1: Begin by rehydrating the mushrooms, if they are dehydrated. Strain the liquid that the mushrooms rehydrated in and add it to the chicken stock. Simmer stock over low heat next to your skillet.
STEP 2: Add 1 tablespoon of truffle oil to a large, deep pan and heat over medium heat. Sauté Morel mushrooms for one minute. Add prawns and wine and cook for a few minutes or until the prawns are pink. Remove pan contents and set aside until needed.
STEP 3: Add the remaining truffle oil to the pan and sauté onions until soft. Melt butter in the pan then add Arborio rice. Toast rice for a minute or two, then add minced garlic. Stir until fragrant, then pour 1 ladleful of hot stock over rice and stir.
STEP 4: Cook risotto over low to medium heat for 15 minutes. Add more stock as it gets absorbed into the rice while you continue to stir.
Pro Tip: Be sure to scrape the sides of the pan often to submerge the grains of rice that become stuck to the pan into the broth so that they can cook evenly.
STEP 5: Add shrimp, mushrooms, salt, and white pepper. Add additional stock as needed and continue to stir for another 5 to 10 minutes, or until the rice is tender and creamy and most of the liquid is absorbed.
STEP 6: Mix in crumbled cheese and peas. For extra creamy risotto, add ¼ cup of half and half or heavy cream. Stir the mixture vigorously for a few minutes at the end then allow to thicken for a minute or two before serving.
Pro Tip: Most risotto recipes call for the rice to have a little bite or to be "al dente." Al dente simply means fully cooked yet retaining some firmness when chewed. I prefer to cook the rice until it's tender. However, you can taste the risotto as you go and pull it off when you are satisfied with the texture. Either way, the final consistency should be that of porridge.
🍚 Mushroom and Prawn Risotto Serving Suggestions
- Serve mushroom and prawn risotto with grilled meat, chicken, or seafood.
- For a lighter meal, serve the risotto with a Healthy Broccoli Salad.
- Since seafood risotto includes protein, it's filling enough to serve on its own.
Pro Tip: Did you know you can make risotto in an Instant Pot? It's true! Check out this Instant Pot mushroom risotto from Carleen at InstantPotCooking.com!
🍽 How to Store Leftover Prawn Risotto
Leftover risotto can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week. I don't recommend freezing leftover risotto because the texture of the rice degrades once frozen.
Leftover risotto will thicken, so it will need to be diluted. To reheat the risotto, add approximately ¼ cup of broth to the rice and gently stir over the stovetop.
You can also reheat the risotto in the microwave. Add ¼ cup broth and microwave for 30-45 seconds at a time. Stir until it's completely heated through.
🤷🏻♀️ Recipe FAQs
I recently watched a tv show in which a girl was asked what her favorite pasta dish was, she replied "risotto." Risotto is, in fact, prepared with Arborio rice or Carnaroli rice. Both have a high starch content. As the starch is released during the cooking process, it helps to give the risotto its velvety texture.
Chopped asparagus goes great in risotto. Fresh herbs, lemon zest, scallions, or chives can also be added along with parmesan cheese and cream. Finally, spinach or arugula can be stirred in just before serving.
Carnaroli rice and Arborio rice are two types of Italian rice used to make risotto. Carnaroli is medium-grained rice and Arborio is short-grain rice. Although they both have a high starch content, Carnaroli rice has more starch and is the traditional Italian rice for making risotto. Arborio rice is more readily available, making it more convenient to use.
The trick to making a flavorful risotto is using a stock that's rich in flavor. Next, you need some flavorful additions like garlic, shallots, veggies, and herbs. Cheese and cream make risotto even richer and more flavorful!
👩🏼🍳Pro Tips
- Starch is needed to produce a creamy texture so do not rinse or wash the rice prior to cooking it!
- Start with a rich, hot broth, to add amazing flavor and to eliminate the need to get the broth up to temperature when adding it to the risotto.
- If you use dried mushrooms, you can replace some of the chicken stock with the mushroom-flavored liquid. Be sure to strain the liquid first because no matter how well Morel mushrooms are cleaned, there's always some residual debris that gets left behind in the liquid.
- Add your favorite herbs to this Mushroom and Prawn Risotto recipe right before serving it. Chopped mint, basil, and thyme are all great options.
- Serve extra cheese on the side for those who prefer a cheesier texture.
- When you add risotto to a dish, it should mound nicely and not spread across the plate.
🍵 Related Recipes
If you like this mushroom and prawn risotto recipe, you may also like these related recipes.
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📖 Recipe
Mushroom and Prawn Risotto Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup fresh Morel mushrooms (or 1 ounce dehydrated)
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 2 tablespoon truffle oil or olive oil (divided)
- ¾ lb large prawns
- ¼ cup dry white wine
- 1 small yellow onion (minced)
- 1 cup Arborio rice (unwashed)
- 2 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- ¼ cup peas
- 2½ ounces mature English cheddar (or favorite cheese)
Optional
- ¼ cup half and half (or cream)
Instructions
- Begins by rehydrating the mushrooms, if they are dehydrated. Strain the liquid that the mushrooms rehydrated in and add it to the chicken stock. Simmer stock over low heat next to your skillet.
- Add 1 tablespoon of truffle oil to a large, deep pan and heat over medium heat. Sauté Morel mushrooms for one minute. Add prawns and wine and cook for a few minutes or until the prawns are pink. Remove pan contents and set aside until needed.
- Add the remaining truffle oil to the pan and sauté onions until soft. Melt butter in the pan then add Arborio rice. Toast rice for a minute or two, then add minced garlic. Stir until fragrant, then pour 1 ladleful of hot stock over rice and stir.
- Cook risotto over low to medium heat for 15 minutes. Add more stock as it gets absorbed into the rice while you continue to stir.
- Add shrimp, mushrooms, salt, and white pepper. Add additional stock as needed and continue to stir for another 5 to 10 minutes, or until the rice is tender and creamy and most of the liquid is absorbed.
- Mix in crumbled cheese and peas. For extra creamy risotto, add ¼ cup of half and half or heavy cream. Stir the mixture vigorously for a few minutes at the end then allow to thicken for a minute or two before serving.
Notes
- Starch is needed to produce a creamy texture so do not rinse or wash the rice prior to cooking it!
- Start with a rich, hot broth, to add amazing flavor and to eliminate the need to get the broth up to temperature when adding it to the risotto.
- If you use dried mushrooms, you can replace some of the chicken stock with the mushroom-flavored liquid. Be sure to strain the liquid first because no matter how well Morel mushrooms are cleaned, there's always some residual debris that gets left behind in the liquid.
- Be sure to scrape the sides of the pan often to submerge the grains of rice that become stuck to the pan into the broth so that they can cook evenly.
- Add your favorite herbs right before serving. Chopped mint, basil, and thyme are all great options.
- Serve extra cheese on the side for those who prefer their risotto cheesier.
- When you add risotto to a dish, it should mound nicely and not spread across the plate.
- Most risotto recipes call for the rice to have a little bite or al dente. Al dente simply means fully cooked yet retaining some firmness when chewed. In this mushroom and prawn risotto recipe, I prefer to cook the rice until it's tender. If you prefer, you can cook it for less time. Either way, the final consistency should be that of porridge.
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