Mushroom and courgette risotto in the Thermomix

Traditionally, it's not the quickest dish: you have to sauté the rice, gradually add hot broth, stirring constantly until it becomes creamy… The Italians call this "mantecare" at the end, with butter and Parmesan cheese to bind everything together. It takes time and patience, and you often end up with a tired arm!

But with the Thermomix, frankly, it's a revolution: the machine handles the cooking and the stirring, and in the end you have a super creamy, fragrant risotto, without having spent 20 minutes stirring. The result is on par with homemade, and you can go about your business while it cooks.

A fun little fact about its origins, because it's not actually that old: rice didn't originate in Italy at all. It arrived with the Arabs in the Middle Ages, first in Sicily around the 13th or 14th century (they had brought it back from Asia through trade). From there, it gradually spread northward, especially to the Po Valley – the flat, humid plains, with plenty of river water, were perfect for rice paddies. Even today, it's the largest rice-producing area in Europe, around Vercelli, Novara, and so on.

Initially, it was cooked more as a porridge or as a simple side dish. The true risotto technique, with the rice sautéed, the broth gradually added, and the finishing touch of mantecatura, really developed later, especially around Milan in the 19th century. The first recipe truly recognized as a "risotto" dates from around 1809, and Pellegrino Artusi includes 12 of them in his seminal 1891 book. As for risotto alla milanese with saffron, there's this amusing legend from 1574: a glassblower's apprentice (nicknamed "Zafferano" because he used saffron everywhere to color the stained-glass windows of the Duomo) supposedly added saffron to the rice at his boss's daughter's wedding, allegedly as a joke… and everyone loved it! Whether it's true or not, it's still a great story.

So, with this mushroom and zucchini version, it's delicious, melt-in-your-mouth tender, and the homemade vegetable stock really makes all the difference. It works as a main course or a side dish, and even the kids are among the first to ask for seconds!

Chardonnay or a white wine from the Rhône (Viognier or Grenache Blanc) or the Southwest (Bergerac or Gaillac) are generally recommended. The latter being the mildest, we recommend them for this Thermomix risotto recipe with mushrooms and zucchini.

Place 1 shallot, 20 grams of butter, 100 grams of white button mushrooms and 1 zucchini cut into pieces in the Thermomix. Mix for 10 seconds / speed 4. Then scrape down the sides of the bowl with the spatula.

Add 250 grams of risotto rice and 60 grams of white wine to the Thermomix. Sauté for 3 minutes / 120°C / speed 1.

Add 590 grams of water, 1 tablespoon of vegetable stock, 1 teaspoon of salt, and a pinch of pepper to the Thermomix. Cook for 15 minutes at 100°C on speed 1 with the simmering basket in place of the measuring cup on the bowl lid to prevent splashing.

Add 2 tablespoons of thick cream and 2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese to the Thermomix. Stir for 30 seconds.

karine_nette rated this recipe 5/5, 2 years and 7 months ago: Excellent!!! Very easy and quick recipe to make. The risotto is really creamy and served with scallops, the dish was a hit with everyone…

Khadikoi rated this recipe 5/5, 7 years and 3 months ago: Delicious. Substituted water for the wine. Thank you!

Cricri7172 rated this recipe 5/5, 5 years and 3 months ago: Excellent recipe for a very creamy risotto… I love it .

Sofia gave this recipe 5/5, 7 years and 1 month ago: "Top-notch recipe! I blended the zucchini and butter together, then added the frozen shallots and sliced ​​mushrooms (I wanted them to stay 'whole'). For the rest, I followed the recipe exactly ."

Muyato rated this recipe 5/5, 3 weeks and 4 days ago: Delicious! I didn't have any white wine, so I substituted the liquid released by the shrimp. I also used some vegetable stock I had in my cupboard. The result was really very tasty! A recipe I will gladly make again .

lilytomamel rated this recipe 5/5, 3 years and 2 months ago: Great recipe, thank you so much! I didn't change a thing. Made with a zucchini from the garden but no fresh mushrooms, I used a can of mushrooms. My 12-year-old said the zucchini/parmesan combination wasn't great but the two little ones (4 years old and 20 months old) loved it I'll definitely make it again