Pressure Cooked Instant Pot Mushroom Risotto

Mushroom Risotto made in the Instant Pot 

Last night I made risotto in the Instant Pot! Yes, you read that right, a dish that would traditionally take time over the stove-top was cooked in the Instant Pot. The best thing was that we were able to pressure cook the risotto in the Instant Pot; thus cutting down the "hands on" actively stirring time that risotto typically needs. Now, don't get me wrong I do love making risotto the regular old fashioned way (typically in my dutch oven).  In fact, I have a recipe on this blog for a Creamy Shiitake Mushroom Risotto.  However, given that I am not currently cooking in my own kitchen, all I have for kitchen appliances is an Instant Pot that Dan received as a gift. So yesterday afternoon I ventured out in the cold Ottawa weather (it was actually quite warm compared to today's real feel of -43C) and bought all the ingredients we would need for making the risotto.

The Instant Pot that we used for this recipe is the 4 quart Lux Mini. In terms of timing, it took about 10-12 minutes of prep (washing, cutting, cooking down of onions & garlic, and stirring). Everything else was handled by the Instant Pot on pressure cooking mode. You only need to set it for 7 min pressure cook! All in all, with the time it takes to pressure, cook and de-pressure it was about 15 minutes. So, definitely super quick. 

Ingredients for Instant Pot Risotto

• 2 medium yellow onions (chopped)
• 2-3 cloves of garlic (sliced)
• 1 cup (or 1 small container) crimini mushrooms sliced (add more if you wish!)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups superfino arborio rice
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 4 cups chicken stock (we used the 30% less salt version but any chicken stock can be used)
• 1/2 cup grated pecorino romano
• 2 tablespoons of cream or milk (optional)

Recipe for Instant Pot Risotto

1. Set the Instant Pot to "sauté mode". Heat two tablespoons of olive oil (it will take 2 minutes or so to heat up ). Add garlic to start.
   
2. Once the garlic starts to sizzle add in the chopped onions. Stir often and sauté until the onions become transparent (5-6 minutes)
   
3. Add in the rice. Stir often until the rice becomes lightly golden from being "toasted" (about a minute). Then add in the white wine. Once the white wine has cooked off (30-40 seconds), stir in the mushrooms.
   
4. Add in the chicken stock. Stir until all 4 cups have been incorporated.
   
5. Turn off the "sauté mode" on the Instant Pot. Next, press "manual" mode (this is the pressure cook mode) and set it for 7 minutes. Wait until the mixture starts to boil (little bubbles will appear), stir the inside a bit and then put the lid on. Ensure the knob on the top of the lid is set to "seal" mode.
   
6. The Instant Pot will beep when it is done cooking. Once it is done, gently push the knob on the top of the lid to venting. Be careful and do not stand too close as hot steam will come out. We typically place our Instant Pot under the stove hoodrange and set the fan on high while the Instant Pot is venting.
   
7. When venting is complete, open the Instant Pot to see the 7 minute pressure cooked risotto. It will appear watery at first. Using a spoon stir vigorously. This will help to break up the starches. Next gently stir in the cheese and milk/cream if using.
   
8. Serve! Add salt and pepper to taste. For this meal we pan fried two steaks while the risotto was cooking in the Instant Pot and assembled a simple salad with a balsamic and olive oil dressing.
   

So there you have it, Pressure-cooked risotto done in the Instant Pot. Some of you may be thinking that the risotto looks great and all but how does it taste? Does it taste differently compared to stove top cooking or even in a regular pressure cooker. 

The answer is that it tastes and looks exactly the same! Yes, exactly the same. If I didn't know any better risotto cooked in the Instant pot looks visually similar to ones I have made on the stove top as well as in the regular pressure cooker. With stove top risotto you need to stand there the entire time, stirring often in order for the rice to cook evenly. Risotto cooked in a pressure cooker still needs to be monitored but doesn't require stirring for any long periods of time. The biggest difference between a stove top and electric pressure cooker (like an instant pot) is the timer on an electric pressure cooker helps makes things more precise (no need to guess when it's pressurized). Time precision is pretty important when it comes to such a short cook time (7 minutes) for risotto. Taste wise it is the same as well. The risotto, while creamy, is not mushy and has the al dente bite to it. 

Would I go back to making risotto the regular way? Now that I have made Instant Pot Risotto I am highly tempted to continue making it this way. Think about all the possibilities for being able to make risotto on a week night after work (which is what we did yesterday)! What do you think? Will you make risotto in your Instant Pot, Pressure Cooker or will you continue to make it over the stove?