Firstly, soak the dried mushrooms in water enough to cover them. With warm water it will take 10 minutes to rehydrate them.

Quickly rinse the fresh mushrooms and chop them thinly. In a pan fry 1 crushed garlic clove and rosemary in olive oil, remove when golden and add the mushrooms. Stir well and cook on high heat for 4/5 minutes, when roasted and golden remove from the heat. Keep the pan for the dried mushrooms.

Drain the dried mushrooms and keep the water. Filter the water through a fine sieve and be careful to check for dirt residue. Chop the dried mushrooms and pan fry them in the same way as you did the fresh mushrooms. Just remember to cook them for 2 minutes only.

At this stage, if the pan doesn’t have burned spots keep it for the risotto, it will have all the mushroom’s flavours inside already.

For the risotto:

Gently sweat the chopped onion in a pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, a pinch of salt, a knob of butter. Cook for about 10 minutes on low heat until golden and caramelized.

Add the carnaroli to the pan and toast the rice on low heat with a pinch of salt for about 3 minutes. This step is important to obtain a uniform al dente rice. Keep stirring the rice, so the rice does not catch on the bottom of the pan or burn. When the rice is very hot, pour half a glass of  wine in. Let the alcohol evaporate, set the cooking time to 16 minutes and add the simmering stock a ladle at a time, little by little. Stir the rice occasionally, and make sure the rice is always covered with stock. Keep cooking and do not stir with too much energy as it could break the rice grains.

When halfway through the cooking, add the retained mushroom water instead of the stock, it will really enhance the flavour to another level.

When just 2 minutes are left, add the cooked mushrooms and finish to cook. When the time is up, taste the risotto, if you’re happy with the texture remove it from the heat, if you want the rice a little bit softer, cook for another minute.

This step is called “mantecatura” to make the risotto creamier increasing its natural ooziness with the right gesture and movements.

Add the grated Grana Padano cheese and remaining butter to the rice. Stir to incorporate extra air until the risotto is nice and creamy. At this stage I like to add an extra splash of wine and if the risotto dries up, you can still add a little bit of hot stock. Season to taste.

Plate the hot risotto straight away, top with chopped parsley and freshly grated Grana Padano and enjoy.

Chef’s tips: I like to use both fresh mushrooms and dried mushrooms to have the best of both worlds in flavour and texture (I even add frozen porcini when I have them). If you have time let the dry mushroom soak in cold water for 1 h, they will be less soggy. Rinse well the fresh mushrooms and let them dry completely if you have time before cooking and remember to add any mushroom trimmings to your stock (I use vegetarian but chicken stock works too).