Chanterelle risotto, preserved lemon, cured egg yolk
Risotto is a beautiful thing when prepared and served extremely simply, but it's also a great vehicle for ingredients you want to showcase. In this case I was particularly excited about chanterelle mushrooms and preserved lemon, which is one of my favorite ingredients ever with its citrus/salt kick. I was also dying to try the cured egg yolks on top - yolks are cured in salt and sugar for a few days and then dehydrated until they are firm and can be shaved with a microplane over things. They are salty and fabulous on risotto, pasta, rice, and pizza. It's also a fun "mind blown" sort of ingredient for guests (egg yolks on a microplane?!).
This version uses a pressure cooker to make a "quick" risotto that I don't think is exactly the same as a traditional stirred-lovingly-for-30-minutes version, but it is quite good, and doable while serving a long tasting menu, unlike the other version. If you have time to spare, feel free to make a more conventional risotto, it will be fabulous. This recipe is very flexible; I've also served it with crab when it's in season. Have fun with it.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
For the cured egg yolks:
140g salt (100%)
70g sugar (50%)
4 egg yolks
For the mushroom stock:
300g cremini mushrooms, sliced
Butter
15g garlic, chopped
75g shallot, chopped
5g thyme
450g beef stock
For the risotto:
160g short-grain rice (100%)
335g mushroom stock (210%)
To serve:
Chanterelle mushrooms, diced
~10g white miso
Preserved lemon peel (flesh discarded), diced
Lemon juice
Cured egg yolks, from above
Mustard flowers
Equipment:
Pressure cooker
Dehydrator
Directions
- Prepare the cured egg yolk (at least 3d in advance): Combine the salt and sugar well. Add half the mixture to the bottom of a container. Make divots with an egg and add yolks into the divots. Cover with the remaining mixture. Cover and chill 2d. Quickly rinse yolks in bowl of cold water to remove excess salt and dry on paper towels. Dehydrate at 140F for 3-3.5h or until hard and no longer wet/tacky. Chill until needed, up to 1mo.
- Prepare the mushroom stock (up to 1d in advance): Saute the mushrooms in the base of a pressure cooker with butter and salt until browning and liquid is evaporated, ~10m. Add garlic, shallots, thyme, and saute 2m. Deglaze with the beef stock. Season. Cook on high pressure for 45m. Depressurize with cold water. Strain, reduce by half, and chill.
- To serve: Preheat your serving bowls, either in a low oven or using boiling water. Combine the rice + stock in the base of a pressure cooker. Cook on high pressure for 9m; depressurize with cold water. If necessary, add liquid and/or cook longer until desired texture is achieved. Saute the chanterelles in butter until browning. Add the chanterelles, preserved lemon, and miso to the risotto and stir well to combine. Season with salt (carefully; the ingredients and garnishes are salty) and lemon juice. Add some risotto to a warmed serving bowl and grate cured egg yolk on top. Garnish with the mustard flowers.