Easy Chicken Risotto

My slow cooker is one of my best friends. I use it frequently, though not always to make a full meal.

The following recipe is a good example:

Ingredients:

-4 chicken thighs
-1 onion
-2 cloves of garlic
-2 cups of white wine (one for now, one for later)
-1 to 1 1/2 cups of risotto rice (recommended, but not essential, normal rice can work too)
-4-5 mushrooms of your choice (for this time I used brown button mushrooms)
-a fresh herb of your choice (this time I opted for sage, but I also sometimes use thyme or rosemary)
-1 cup of cream or a few spoons of cream cheese
-parmesan cheese

Instructions:

In the morning (I did it at 11AM), place chicken thighs, onion (roughly chopped) and garlic cloves into the slow cooker.

Add 1 cup of wine, a little white pepper and enough water to fill the pot.

You are making chicken stock so you'll want enough liquid for your risotto. Don't worry, it will cook long enough to develop a good flavor.

Leave it and allow to cook on high all day.


Around 5:30 I came back to the kitchen to start dinner.

Remove the thighs from the stock being careful to not let them fall apart (they should be very soft).


Set them aside, but do not remove the skin or take the meat off the bones! This is important as if you remove the meat too soon it will dry out.









Take the stock and either strain the onion/garlic out or (which is what I prefer to do) blend it all together. This gives it a creamier look and taste.

Chop up your mushrooms and fry lightly with a little butter or oil and the herb of your choice then add the rest of the white wine. (You can also use sherry, port, or even a little kirsch. Yum!)

Allow to simmer on low for a few minutes the add the rice.






Fry lightly then slowly spoon the stock into the rice allowing time for it to absorb before adding more stock.

Continue doing this till the rice is cooked. Keep in mind that after you're done cooking, the rice will continue to soak up some of the liquid so keep it slightly more liquid so it will be perfect by serving time.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Once the rice is cooked, add the cream (or cream cheese) and then de-bone  the chicken and add it to the risotto. Cook for another 1-2 minutes (just enough to mix in, but not enough to dry out the chicken) and your risotto is ready.

Garnish with some parmesan and enjoy!