Cheat the time over the stove with this slow cooker mushroom risotto. No more babysitting and endless stirring for hours. Just set and forget and come back to a creamy and rich risotto!
If there’s any dish that’s perfect for the slow cooker, it’s risotto. The last time I made risotto the traditional way was five years ago. I did not enjoy it. Standing over the stovetop for almost 20 minutes constantly stirring is no fun.
That’s why throwing everything in the slow cooker and letting it do its own thing for an hour and a half feels so good. That’s literally all I did. No babysitting. No hand cramps. Just set and forget.
And you’ll end up with this rich, creamy, earthy risotto which tastes like you lovingly slaved over it at the stovetop. No one will ever know the difference. Let’s start cooking.
SLOW COOKER MUSHROOM RISOTTO RECIPE TIPS
I used portobello mushrooms for this recipe because they’re my favorite but you can use others. Melt the butter and sauté your onions and mushrooms until the mushrooms cook down. It’ll release a little liquid and that needs to be cooked off too. Towards the end, add in your garlic.
Then we add some arborio rice. This short-grain rice is usually what is used for risotto. I found it easily enough at the grain aisle. If you can’t find any, sub another short grain. It won’t taste entirely the same but it’ll work.
Mix it all together and let the uncooked rice absorb the creaminess. Then transfer it to a slow cooker. Spray your slow cooker with cooking spray if it isn’t non-stick. Once the rice is added, pour in your chicken broth and add salt and pepper to taste. Then set it for an hour and a half on high.
Time may vary a little on your slow cooker so just eyeball it, and around the end of the time I suggested, see if the liquids have been absorbed by the rice and if the rice is al dente. I didn’t try this on low heat because I’m not sure if slow cooking rice too long would make it mushy. If you do try it out on low, let us know how long it took you and the result!
Once it’s al dente, mix in the peas and shredded Parmesan cheese. You’ll want to add the peas at the tail end or they might split. They’re very fragile. On that same note, stir gently when mixing the peas!
And that’s it! I served it with some lemon pepper salmon. Throw in a salad if that works for you. Enjoy!
MORE MUSHROOM RECIPES TO TRY
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Slow Cooker Mushroom Risotto
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 8 1x
Description
Cheat the time over the stove with this slow cooker mushroom risotto. Enjoy a homecooked, rich, creamy and easy-to-make risotto.
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 8 oz. portabella mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 1 shallot/ 1/4 yellow onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1 3/4 cups Arborio rice
- 4 cups chicken broth
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup peas
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Melt the butter and cook mushrooms, shallots and garlic over medium high heat for 5 minutes or until mushrooms have browned and liquid has evaporated
- Add in rice, stirring to coat for 2 minutes
- Spray the slow cooker with cooking spray and add rice mixture
- Pour in broth and season with salt and pepper to taste
- Stir to combine and cook on high for 1 hour 30 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed
- Once it’s cooked, stir in peas and Parmesan cheese and mix well
- Dish and serve hot
Notes
Cooking times may vary a little depending on slow cooker brands. Some run extremely hot. For this recipe, I used Crock-Pot.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hour 45 mins
Comments & Reviews
Tried this recipe yesterday with some slight adaptations, including using vegetable stock instead of chicken, & I love it, no more stirring risotto! Why have I not tried this before? 🙂 Thank you
I know, right?! Glad to have solved the dreaded babysitting a risotto over the stove top problem for you!
Bit late to the party here but I just made this in my crock pot! Great recipe to help me get started – thank you! I put a little too much liquid in as I based on metric cups (not US cups) so it took longer to reduce and was on the gluggy side 🙁 But so delicious and easy. I used 3 types of nushrooms (Swiss, shiitake and oyster) and added fresh lemon thyme to mine for some extra flavour – will try sage next time. Big thumbs up!
Oh you’re making me hungry with all this talk of lemon thyme and sage. Excellent additions! And all those types of mushrooms, YUM! I would have to say oyster would be my favorite.
I have made this numerous times with brown rice and everyone loves it everytime; toddlers, teens and adults. Tonight I’m going to try a suggestion above with nutritional yeast.
Toddlers, teens, adults just rolls off the tongue. Happy to have a multi-generational liked recipe in your family!
I have been wanted to try this recipe for a while as I love risotto but can’t be bothered with all the stirring. I made two minor modifications for a slightly better nutrient profile reducing the butter by half and omitting the cheese and replacing with 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast. My crockpot runs hot so I figured it would take less than 90 minutes and it did take only 45. It turned out great and my husband loved it. This is a keeper. thanks for sharing.
I get you, the babysitting on the stove top is a huge turn off. I remember that the first time I did it the traditional way. Glad you enjoyed the results building off the recipe!
Can I cook this on low for longer?
You should be able to although I personally haven’t tried it. The general rule of thumb is to double the cooking time when on low. Good luck!
When you put the broth in the slow cooker does it have to be hot as in the stovetop recipes?
Room temperature broth is fine, Ruth. Good luck!
I am a vegetarian. Can I use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth?
Sure you can, Kam! Substituting the broth won’t break the recipe. Good luck!
Made it with brown rice and enjoyed it. Both my friend, husband and 2yo son enjoyed it too. Trying again tonight with the right rice.
Nice to hear it worked out well with brown rice too. Hope you enjoyed it the second time round, Belinda.
Does anyone know if I wanted to double this– do I need to cook it longer?
I would think it would need to cook a little longer, not double the time though. Try an extra 30 minutes or so. This would also depend on your slow cooker since they tend to cook on different heat settings based on brand.
Can you tell me the equivalent weight of the rice in ounces? Thanks!
It works out to be 14 ounces.
I used organic brown rice and cooked for 2 hours and 15 minutes. I added frozen peas at the end with the parmesan. The rice was just a TAD underdone, but it was still very good. I also just used 3 TBS of butter, but all other measurements were right on. I also served it with sauteed broccoli and garlic in lemon, seasoned with crushed red pepper and parmesan. It was a perfect compliment. I really liked this meal. I subbed the brown rice to make it a bit healthier.
Thanks for chiming in about the slight changes needed to use brown rice. It definitely takes longer to cook than others. Lemon seasoned greens sounds like the perfect light side for a rich risotto!
Made this tonight. It took a bit longer but eventually liquids were absorbed. I am super picky about risotto because I don’t like it when it’s clumpy and super sticky. Unfortunately that’s what it ended up being. It was ok but I probably will not try this again.
Sorry to hear that, Marie. One tip I do recommend is once it’s fully cooked, remove the lid and let it air out and breathe. It’s the same concept as cooking rice in a rice cooker. When it first comes out, the rice is stick and clumpy. I tend to remove the lid and let all the steam out, stir it all up and let it air out for 5-10 minutes. It turns out better that way.
Wish I’d listened to this. Same issue. It tastes good but the texture is off!
Thank you for sharing this recipe! I made it exactly as you instructed. It turned out delicious. I ended up needing to leave it on high for about an hour and 45 mins. One thing I think I may do differently in the future is use less butter when sautéing the mushrooms. It turned out to be a lot of butter for me and I had to cook them down for about 15 minutes in the pan. Still a wonderful recipe. Thank you again!
Thanks for letting me know, Allison! Some slow cookers cook faster/slower/hotter than others. I honestly don’t know why there isn’t a standard or something. It bugs me! One thing I did learn though was that taking the lid off the slow cooker during cooking increases the cooking time needed by 20-30 minutes, so that’s always good to know. I’m glad you figured out how to customize this to your tastes the next time you make it and you’re very welcome!
Is there anything that can replace the peas?
You could try spinach or leeks? If using spinach, stir it in towards the end like you will with the peas as they get tough when overcooked. If you use leeks, saute them along with the mushrooms in the first step.
Do you use frozen peas or fresh?
I used canned green peas for this one. Since we’re adding it in towards the end, there won’t be enough residual heat to heat up and warm the frozen type. Happy cooking, Laura!
Thank you! Hoping it turns out nicely for xmas eve dinner!
Hi Farah! The last time I made risotto was about a year ago – it was mushroom with sugar snap peas. And the reason(s) I haven’t made it since are exactly what you stated, too labor intensive! I am so happy to see this recipe! I will definitely be making this soon!
Hi hi Dorothy! I know, right? The whole time making this I was thinking “Now this is what a slow cooker was made for!” It’s the perfect solution.