Paprika-laced shrimp risotto with wild mushrooms and peas

Confession: I made this recipe a few months ago off the top of my head and I don’t remember exactly how I did it. This is my best attempt to retrace my steps.

Preparing the shrimp

Fill a skillet with about 1 inch of white wine. Add 1 T hot paprika and bring to a simmer. Add about 30 uncooked shrimp, cover and cook for several minutes until shrimp are no longer translucent. Remove shrimp and run under cold water briefly to stop cooking. Keep remaining wine mixture hot.

Preparing the mushrooms

In a bowl, re-hydrate ½ cup dehydrated wild mushrooms according to package directions. Drain the mushrooms and set aside, reserving 1 cup of the water used for steeping. Pour this water into a pot and add approximately 6 cups of vegetable stock, then heat and keep hot on stove.

Preparing the rice

Finely chop ½ cooking onion, then sauté in a large saucepan over medium heat in a mixture of oil and butter until translucent, stirring frequently using a wooden spoon. Add 2 cups of uncooked Arborio rice and cook until also somewhat translucent, stirring regularly. Pour the hot wine mixture used to cook the shrimp over the rice and onions, and stir. Once almost fully absorbed by the rice, add a ladleful of the hot stock mixture and stir as it absorbs. Repeat this step one ladleful at a time, stirring constantly. When adding the last ladle of stock, also add the re-hydrated mushrooms and ½ cup of peas.

Over time, the rice will take on a creamy consistency. The overall cooking time for the rice will be about 30 minutes, and 2 cups of rice should absorb about 8 cups of liquid. You may need a little more or a little less (if you run out of stock, use hot water). The cooked rice is done when it is al dente.

Remove from heat and stir in shrimp, a few tablespoons of grated Parmesan and a few tablespoons of cream. Season to taste.

{The shrimp after simmering in a mixture of white wine and paprika}

{Mixture of stock and mushroom liquid, being kept hot}

{Sauteing the onions}

{Sauteing the Arborio rice}

{Adding the hot stock to the rice}

{Adding the mushrooms and peas}

{Final product}