Recipe | Mushroom Risotto

After eating some delicious leftover risotto from Carmelina (must go there in person soon), I had a craving to make my own. These days I lack the patience and mood for baking, but I'm starting to enjoy cooking again and it is somewhat therapeutic. This is a pretty easy and straight forward recipe, but it does require about an hour to cook and constant standing in front of the stove.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 45 minutes
Yield: Serves 4-6
Adapted from simplyrecipes.com  

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 cups flavorful mushrooms such as shiitake, chanterelle, or oyster mushrooms, cut into half inch to inch pieces (2 cups = about 5 mushrooms. I used a combination of shitake and oyster)
• 2/3 cup brandy, vermouth or dry white wine (used white wine)
• 5-6 cups chicken stock (used 1 can + the rest water)
• 1/3 cup of peeled and minced shallots (used onion)
• 1 3/4 cups arborio rice
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley or chives (used thyme, the only herbs on hand - a completely different taste, very distinctive)

Method

1. Bring stock to a simmer in a saucepan.
2. Melt the butter in a deep, heavy, medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and shallots and sauté about 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir to combine.
3. Add wine, bring to a boil, and reduce liquid by half, about 3-4 minutes. Add simmering stock, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring enough to keep the rice from sticking to the edges of the pan. Stir the rice almost constantly — stirring sloughs off the starch from the rice, making the creamy sauce you're looking for in a risotto. Wait until the stock is almost completely absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup. This process will take about 25 minutes. The rice should be just cooked and slightly chewy.
4. Stir in the Parmesan cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley or chives.

Notes

• Texture: Rice turned out a bit too hard -- longer cooking time next time; better microwaved the next day
• Flavor: Strong taste of thyme, want something more creamy and more mushroom taste -- use more cheese and salt, cook the mushrooms longer
  
• Overall: Success, quite satisfied with this recipe! 

Momofuku Noodle Bar (TO)

190 University Ave. 

http://momofuku.com/

I've wanted to try Momofuku ever since I read about the famous NYC restaurant a few years ago, so like many others, I was anticipating the opening of the Toronto location. Luckily there was no wait when I went over the long weekend. Simple glass building beside the Shangri-La.

The space feels like a cabin to me with the light wood and Canadian country-type music, and the servers wear regular clothes (no uniforms). A few communal tables and seating by the window, the back wall and the kitchen/bar area. Upstairs are the other three Momofuku restaurants - Nikai (bar/lounge), Daisho (family style sharing dishes) and Shoto (tasting menu).

Pork Buns ($10 for 2)

Of course I had to try the famous Pork Buns. It was very warm and felt very 'homey' when I bit into it. The pork belly is soft and does fall apart/melt in your mouth to an extent, the bun is soft and everything tied together with the hoisin sauce (kind of like Peking duck). I think it could use more scallions and cucumbers - could not taste/see it in mine.

Momofuku Ramen ($15)

The noodles were unlike anything I've eaten before - very hard/firm and slightly salty. The broth was quite oily and salty after the first few spoons. The pork shoulder and pork belly (2 pieces) were both soft, and the pickled cabbage and scallions add a good kick to cut into the fattiness/saltiness of the noodles and soup. It didn't look like it at first, but it's a pretty large and filling portion and overall it was too salty and oily. 

Kimchi Stew ($16)

Tried a bit of this and it doesn't taste like traditional kimchi. Looks thick and oily and the daikon was hard but I like the rice cakes!

Overall, I have to say that taste-wise it's not that great, but the whole concept is very refreshing and new. It's definitely a unique dining experience with a modern take on Korean, Chinese and Japanese dishes. The dishes may look Korean/Chinese/Japanese, but when you taste it, it's a different story - different in a good way, though some areas of execution can be improved. From the lucky peach name and logo to the creative twist on simple noodles and buns, it all comes down to branding and I think Momofuku is successful because it has created a niche, especially in Toronto where we need more variety and crave for something different.

Day TUM: Toronto Underground Market 1st Birthday

September 30 2012

Evergreen Brick Works

http://yumtum.ca/

Lobster Roll, $4 each @ Rock Lobster Food Co.

I was most looking forward to trying Lobster Rolls from Rock Lobster Food Co. There's so much hype over lobster rolls these days. Ever since I saw lobster rolls with big chunks of lobster and mayo on dinner rolls on Eat St., I've been wanting to try them, but this was different from what I expected. For $4 each, it was a tiny portion and couldn't really taste the lobster since it was all chopped up. The bread was okay since it was slightly burnt, but overall this roll had no taste - no wonder people were putting sriracha sauce on it! 

Churros w goat milk caramel, $3 @ La Carnita

First time trying Churros @ La Carnita. I always thought they're like cinnamon sticks, but they are harder with a crispy sugar coating. The warm caramel sauce was amazing.. I don't usually like caramel but this wasn't too sweet nor too thick, paired perfectly with the churros! If only there were more churros to finish up the sauce! This was my favorite of the food I tried. Must go to the restaurant soon to try the tacos and corn.

Curry Beef Samosa, $2 @ Mama Nashi

Fresh out of the fryer, this samosa was hot and crispy without being oily. The curry beef filling was not too spicy and had small chunks of potato just the way I like it (vs. being mashed up). A nice kick with the sweet/spicy tamarind sauce. 

Huge paella @ Pimenton. They were having technical difficulty at first but glad everything worked out. 

Seafood Paella, $5 @ Pimenton

For $5 this was a good deal considering I had 5 large shrimp, mussels, calamari and rice (compared to the tiny lobster roll). The flavor was too spicy for me but the portion size and seafood was great and it was warm and filling.

My first TUM event - it was pretty neat being at an event full of foodies! I'd expected more variety in food vendors (most were desserts/baked goods), but maybe there were more at night. Being a business grad, I love entrepreneurship and seeing the different vendors and how they started out, combining their passion for food into a small business!