Gluten Free Wild Mushroom and Quinoa Risotto Recipe
Updated Feb 15, 2021, Published Nov 20, 2015
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Improving your diet doesn’t have to mean making big, huge, sweeping changes. Little changes can add up to be health benefits.
I love risotto. Absolutely love it! Could probably eat it every night. But I am trying to cut back on carbs and increase my protein intake. So… I decided to make risotto out of quinoa instead of rice.
I was skeptical at first. I mean why mess with something that is just so perfect as is?
I am skeptical no more. This Gluten Free Wild Mushroom and Quinoa Risotto Recipe is wonderful – warming, woodsy, rustic, and most of all, delicious!
I used a combination of dry and fresh mushrooms – went with the fancy gourmet blend, but if all you can get is regular old mushrooms, I am sure it will still be fabulous. I used Ancient Harvest’s Harmony Blend which is a combination of white, red, and black quinoa for a real autumnal look and feel, but plain white would work just as well.
The trick here is to keep your risotto at a gentle boil while you are adding the vegetable stock and to make sure with each addition that you let the liquid cook down before adding more stock – it should never be soupy but it should never dry out completely either. As the quinoa cooks and becomes more tender, it starts to change in appearance; it will become more translucent around the edges, getting that halo effect.
Risotto takes patience. But that patience pays off big time. Grab a glass of wine, commit to the fact that you will need to stay in the kitchen for about half an hour and do a bit of stirring. It could just be one of the most peaceful half hours of your day.
Gluten Free Wild Mushroom and Quinoa Risotto Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ounce dried porcini, or other variety mushrooms
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 large shallots, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 ounces wild mushrooms, sliced
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon kosher or fine sea salt
- ¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1½ cups Ancient Harvest Harmony Blend Quinoa
- ½ cup dry sherry
- 3 cups low sodium gluten free vegetable broth, heated and kept warm
- 3 tablespoons fresh chives, chopped
Instructions
- Place the dried mushrooms in a heat-proof bowl and cover with 1 cup boiling water. Let sit for 10 minutes. Take the mushrooms out of the soaking liquid and chop roughly. Save the soaking liquid.
- In a Dutch oven or large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and cook for 2 minutes or until they start to brown. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds. Add the dried and fresh mushrooms, thyme, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms start to brown, about 5 minutes.
- Add the quinoa and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the sherry and cook, stirring, until all the sherry has evaporated.
- Add the mushroom soaking liquid and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated. Begin to add the warm vegetable broth, ½ cup at a time. Cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Before adding the broth each time, make sure the mixture is not soupy but don’t let it become too dry either. Adjust the heat as needed to keep the mixture at a gentle boil.
- After 20 minutes of adding stock, start checking the quinoa – it should be tender, but not mushy. Ideally, it should take from 25 – 35 minutes to get all the broth added and the quinoa tender.
- Stir in the chives, taste, and add salt and pepper if needed. Serve warm.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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