This vegan chanterelle risotto is creamy, hearty, and so simple to make!
Don’t you love summer? There’s so much wonderful and exciting produce that’s in season. Arguably one of the most special ones, to me, are Chanterelle mushrooms. They were always a highlight for me whenever we visited our grandparents in Germany! I used to love eating them in a creamy sauce with ‘Knödel’ (German bread dumplings – perhaps another recipe to recreate in the future, veganised!), but recently, this Risotto has become one of my favourite ways to use them.
Since I love them so much, this recipe has an outrageous amount of chanterelle (I always did think the ratio of rice to mushrooms in other recipes was unacceptable hahah) and draws from cooking tips from both my German Grandma (herbs all the way!) and my Spanish Mom (lemon peel is such a sneaky way to give this recipe a bright twist!). We purposely keep the ingredients simple, to really draw the attention to the Chanterelle’s special flavour.
Modifications
I honestly love this recipe just as it is, but in traditional risotto recipes, you would add butter and parmesan at the end, right before serving. If you’d like to add homemade vegan parmesan, I have tried and loved this recipe from Proveg International. Just make it in advance and sprinkle it on your plate! We usually also make a fresh green salad to serve with the risotto.
Since chanterelle mushrooms have quite a short season, and are quite expensive, you can play around with using other types of mushrooms (such as portobello mushrooms) for this recipe too, if you like!
Please let us know in the comments below how you liked this vegan chanterelle risotto, and don’t forget to tag us on Instagram and Pinterest when you make it!
For more recipe inspiration, see the Recipes section of our blog.
Vegan Chanterelle Risotto
Ingredients
Instructions
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Peel and chop 0.5 onion and 1 garlic clove. Heat 1 TBSP oil in a pan and sauté the onion and garlic for a few minutes. Add the rice, stir to combine and sauté for another 2 or so minutes, until the rice grains become transparent.
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Add the wine and, whilst stirring, simmer until the rice absorbs the liquid. Then, add as much (warm!) vegetable stock as necessary to barely cover the rice. Keep simmering the rice and adding vegetable stock as necessary to prevent burning. Keep doing this for 25-30 Minutes, or as long as it takes for the rice to become 'al dente'.
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Whilst the rice is simmering, clean the Chanterelle mushrooms with a soft brush (avoid water, as this removes some the mushroom's aroma) and cut in bite-sized pieces. Heat around 1 TBSP of oil in a separate pan, add the chanterelle, 0.5 onion and 1 garlic clove, and sauté until tender. Add salt and pepper to taste.
The chanterelle will lose quite a bit of water - that's totally normal! We will add this to the rice later. If it's too much, you can also remove some of it. -
Once the rice and chanterelle are ready, combine them into the same pan, add the lemon peel (and porcini mushroom powder, if using) and let simmer for another few minutes, until the rice has absorbed the added liquid and the flavours have combined. Adjust salt and pepper as needed, top with chopped parsley, and serve with a fresh salad.
It's important to add the lemon peel at the very end - if you cook them to long, you risk turning them bitter! Option to add nutritional yeast,or vegan parmesan, if you like!
