What Is Risotto?

Vegan risotto. Is there such a thing? Yes, you can eat vegan and enjoy this Mushroom and Asparagus Risotto! If you aren’t familiar with risotto, it is a Northern Italian rice dish made with the short grain Arborio Rice, is a perfect rib-sticking dish for anytime of year, but I love it particularly in the fall and for the holidays. Risotto may seem intimidating. You’ve heard it takes a lot of time. Well, it takes some time, but if you can stir, you can make risotto. And in less than an hour you can make enough for a feast or to last for the week.

Easy to Make Vegan

This Mushroom and Asparagus Risotto recipe is adapted from The Gourmet Cookbook. We just substitute olive oil for the butter and leave off the parmesan cheese. By itself, risotto is so creamy no one notices the difference. In fact, Lori declares this tastes just like non-vegan risotto. With this version, however, her stomach doesn’t get that heavy, queasy feeling she recalls from eating non-vegan risotto in the days before she adopted a plant-based diet.

Experiment

Once you have the basic cooking process figured out, you can experiment by substituting peas or other greens, such as kale or spinach, for the asparagus. Or try red wine in lieu of part of the stock. Just like any rice, your imagination is the only limit with risotto.

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John Robinette

John is married to Lori and father of two awesome young men all of whom he shares his passion for the environment. When he is not Chief Strategy Officer for Sister Eden he loves to cook and read and be outdoors and fantasizes about hiking the Appalachian Trail. Other essays by John about life, death, and love can be found at his blog Hole in the Sun.

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Latest posts by John Robinette (see all)

• Irish Whiskey Chocolate Cream Pie - March 14, 2017
• Mushroom and Asparagus Risotto | Vegan Risotto - November 15, 2016
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