Vegan mushroom risotto | So creamy and delicious

Recipe Note

Have you got all the ingredients ready? Then nothing stands in the way of your vegan mushroom risotto!

What is risotto?

Risotto is an Italian rice dish and a true classic of Italian cuisine! The original comes from northern Italy, but risotto is now known and loved worldwide! The traditional basic ingredients are usually risotto rice (Arborio rice, a short-grain rice, is typically used), onions, garlic, white wine, broth, butter, and Parmesan. In the end, the rice is slightly firm to the bite but still soft (also called al dente) and combines with the remaining ingredients to create an incredibly creamy dish. 
Risotto is often described as the ultimate challenge in the kitchen and “super complicated.” Yet it's not difficult at all - you just have to follow the mushroom risotto recipe precisely.
If you want to prepare risotto, only one thing is important: Constant stirring. Well, and enough time. Because that's the only way your mushroom risotto (vegan) will become truly creamy and full-bodied in flavor. Risotto is therefore not a dish that you can quickly mix together in 5 minutes. Instead, it requires patience, love for the ingredients, and a generous portion of Italian joie de vivre.

Vegan mushroom risotto to suit your taste

Risotto is a popular dish and can either be served on its own as a main course or together with side dishes.
What goes well with risotto?
A fresh salad, hearty grilled vegetables, fried asparagus, antipasti, or some bread are particularly delicious with risotto.

Since we're already talking about options: Most recipes for vegan mushroom risotto offer two possibilities: Either you cook with fresh mushrooms or with dried mushrooms. With our mushroom risotto recipe, you can decide for yourself which type of mushrooms you want to use - or whether you want to combine both types:

Risotto with fresh button mushrooms: Your risotto will taste fresher, the mushrooms will have a more pleasant texture, but the flavor will be less intense.

Porcini risotto with dried mushrooms: Your risotto will have a more intense flavor, but dried mushrooms are often more expensive.

Mushroom risotto (vegan) made with dried and fresh mushrooms: Your risotto will have an intense flavor, taste fresh, and have a pleasant texture.

The type of mushroom you choose for your vegan mushroom risotto is entirely up to you: Turn our recipe into a porcini mushroom risotto recipe or opt for a creamy risotto with button mushrooms. 

Risotto without …

Especially with complex dishes containing many ingredients, the question often arises whether the recipe can also be made without ingredient A or B.

Mushroom risotto without wine?
Especially when children are eating the risotto, many people want to avoid wine. Instead, you can simply use more broth. Another insider tip is to add a little vinegar to imitate the slight acidity of the wine. Don't worry, you won't taste the vinegar in the end. So our mushroom risotto is also really delicious without wine.

Risotto without risotto rice?
That is more difficult and, to be completely honest, there is no proper way to replace risotto rice on a 1:1 basis. Your mushroom risotto (vegan or not) is best made simply with the right rice. Alternatives to risotto rice, if necessary, include barley, spelt, emmer, couscous, bulgur, millet, polenta, or long-grain or jasmine rice. However, none of these comes close to regular risotto rice.

Risotto without cheese?
Making risotto without Parmesan is relatively easy. You can simply use nutritional yeast as a flavorful substitute or, if you just want to avoid animal products, switch to vegan, plant-based alternatives. This way, your risotto recipe remains vegan but still tastes like cheese.

Risotto variations

Not a fan of mushrooms? The mushroom risotto (vegan) can easily be adapted by swapping out a few ingredients. This makes risotto a versatile recipe that can be prepared not only as the original mushroom risotto recipe, but in many different delicious variations.

Here are our 5 favorite variations:

• Risotto alla Milanese - with saffron and Parmesan, the classic version 

• Risotto agli Asparagi - a springtime version with green or white asparagus, perhaps an alternative to asparagus with hollandaise sauce?

• Risotto ai Quattro Formaggi - extra cheesy, with a blend of four (vegan) cheese varieties

• Risotto al Pomodoro - fruity and summery, with tomatoes, fresh herbs, and a little basil oil

• Risotto alla Zucca - autumnal pumpkin risotto, perfect for the cold season

The vegan mushroom risotto is clearly our favorite! Risotto with mushrooms (also known as risotto ai funghi) is the perfect mix of creaminess, flavor, and warmth.

Substitution table

How often do we want to recreate a recipe, only to find that certain ingredients are missing or that we do not like individual components? For this case, we have put together a substitution table for you so that you can adapt your vegan risotto recipe to your liking! Simply replace individual ingredients as you wish!

• risotto rice → difficult to substitute; if necessary: barley, spelt, emmer, couscous, bulgur, millet, polenta, or long-grain or jasmine rice

• fresh button mushrooms → other mushrooms

• onion → shallots

• olive oil → other plant-based oils, vegan butter

• white wine (vegan!) → non-alcoholic wine, vegetable broth & a splash of vinegar

• dried porcini mushrooms → other dried mushrooms

Our mushroom risotto is vegan, but of course you can also use animal-based ingredients if you wish!

Nutrition