OYSTER MUSHROOM & CORIANDER RISOTTO

Pairs well with Jackpot Chardonnay (Currently Sold Out)

Recipe & content by: Patrick Doyle, Assistant Winemaker at

Ancient Peaks Winery

 

As an avid lover of all things food and wine, I’ve had the impression growing up that when we think of entree pairings for white wines we can easily conjure up thoughts of succulent and wonderfully spice filled Asian dishes. I’ve also come to believe that it means I’ll probably have to order out. Let’s face it, the American diner (especially in California) has been pampered by a diverse selection of high-quality Asian cuisine and even the most talented home chef finds themself limited at making stir fry. The necessary ingredients are often hard to find at a local grocers and sometimes cooking equipment is more specialized than what normal retailers may offer.

In my love for Asian food and appreciation/adoration for my wife’s amazing risotto, here is a recipe for an approachable and easily scalable risotto dish inspired by Kinoko Gohan,​ an autumnal Japanese sticky rice dish served with a selection of available mushrooms, salted seaweed garnishes, and chicken or pork.

 

INGREDIENTS:

  •  1 cup Arborio rice
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp of soy sauce
  • 2 cups of lightly chopped assorted mushrooms (oyster & shiitake are great choices)
  • 2 tsp coriander powder
  • Furikake (a seaweed, sesame, salt mixture for garnishing **carried by most grocers)
  • Flavorless cooking oil

 

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. This dish starts the same way you’d approach making a classic Italian risotto. Start up a tbsp or two of oil in whatever large and deep sauce pan you plan on cooking in. Once hot, coat the ARborio rice and simmer while stirring very frequently. The rice shouldn’t cook, but come to temperature without burning. Add 1/2 cup of the chicken broth and stir into solution. Mix in rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, and corriander.
  2. Bring the sauce pan down to a simmer and mix in the chicken broth in 1/2 cup increments over the next 30 minutes while stirring frequently. We would like the rice to always have liquid summering with it, but not to the consistency of a soup or bisque. Arborio rice is usually a 30 minute cook time, but always address the package it came in. Hard rice in a creamy dish is fun for no one, so feel free to add a bit more liquid if the rice needs to cook more.
  3. In a separate frying pan, simmer the mushrooms for 5 minutes in a very light oil mixture just to give them a little bit of color and heat. Add to rice mixture once finished.
  4. Once it’s all together in the pan, cook until the rice is soft and chewy at low-medium heat.
  5. Top fish with any type of grilled chicken, pork or tofu you’ve prepared. Sprinkle with furikake seasoning.

 

If you’re lucky enough to have a local Asian market near you, some ingredients can be swapped around or added in to make things a bit more authentic. Traditional Kinoko Gohan will use a sushi rice instead of Arborio rice, a dashi (a broth of bonito/anchovy fish flake, kombu seaweed, and mushroom) instead of chicken broth, and sometimes even a little sake!

 

The 2018 Jackpot Chardonnay is one of those rare wines that pair well with the umami and non-acid based flavors of this dish. Being made in a wine style that focuses on taming and smoothing extracted tannin through a long barrel aging phase (3 years!); this wine has a ton of texture and spice notes that are complemented by this creamy and earthy dish.