Southwest Tomatillo Vegan Risotto Recipe
If you’re looking for a tomatillo recipe that takes the sour, green fruits beyond salsa verde, this Southwest-style tomatillo vegan risotto recipe might be just what you’re looking for. The sour tomatillos are highlighted, and balanced with savory mushrooms, onions, garlic, chilis, and fresh parsley. The flavors are made a little more mild by the use of vegan butter, making the whole dish creamy and luxurious. Delicately cooked, creamy rice, bright sour, tomatillos, savory, salty, spicy and fresh notes added in, this vegan risotto recipe is above and beyond your typical green rice dish.
Click For a Print-Friendly Version
Tomatillo Recipes: Beyond Salsa Verde
Recently I bought 3 pounds of tomatillos for $1 at a local market. I love to go there and get the items that are on the best discount, even when I’m not sure what to do with them. It’s a great opportunity to really explore an ingredient, to experiment, and see what I can do to get the most out of it. The problem with tomatillos, is when I turned to Google for help, at least 90% of the recipes were for salsa verde, which is delicious, but there’s only so many salsas a person needs. This isn’t the first time I’ve struggled with the lack of tomatillo ideas- one of my first blog posts was this Tomatillo Vegetable Curry which arose from a very similar situation. But this time I decided to use the distinctive and striking flavor of tomatillos in a different manner, and went with a vegan risotto recipe.
And Now to Risotto Verde
So after all that resistance to salsa verde, I basically made risotto verde. I started by roasting onions, garlic, chili, and tomatillos, and then blending them. Which is basically salsa verde. I differed because I made my mixture a lot more watery than you would want your salsa, because we will be using this “salsa” as the broth we cook our risotto in. It turns out the salsa verde flavors are really delicious together, which is why they’re so popular. So I still used those flavors, but I applied them to a new context. This risotto verde is a perfect mix of Italian techniques with Mexican or Southwestern flavors.
The Rice: Choosing the Right Grain
There are a lot of rice purists out there, that swear by one type of rice or another, claiming only that grain can be used in a specific dish. I am not one of those, however I did use the traditional risotto rice in this recipe. Arborio rice is an Italian short-grained rice (rice comes in short, medium, and long grains) used in risotto for it’s ability to remain somewhat firm after cooking. This recipe was designed to be made with Arborio rice, because I was able to find it at an affordable price in local grocery stores (this was not the case when I was trying to find bomba rice for my paella recipe). But if you don’t have Arborio rice, don’t be put off. I’ve made risotto with all sorts of rice before, from a medium grained Chinese rice to long grained Jasmine rice that had been sitting open for over a year. And it all works, although some get a little more porridge-like than others, and the amount of liquid needed may vary. If you do want to stick to the classic, you can buy Arborio rice inexpensively on Amazon.
Want a Different Way to Use Rice? Here’s a few!
- 40 Vegan Rice Recipes from Around the World
- Vegan Brown Rice Congee (Savory Rice Porridge) with Jackfruit and Mushrooms
- Roasted Red Pepper Vegan Paella
- Wild Rice, Chili and Cacao Nib Stuffed Acorn Squash
- Spicy Jackfruit and Black Bean Stew with Bananas
Let’s Make Vegan Risotto!
A lot of people think of risotto as being something difficult and fancy- restaurant food as opposed to homecooked dinner. That’s really not true! It does take a little care and attention, but it’s totally an achievable dish for the home cook! It’s all in combining broth and rice slowly, while stirring, and the result is something so much creamier and delicious than just broth and rice. First you heat your veggies to get their flavor in your vegan risotto. Next, add the rice to coat. Now comes the stirring- By adding about half a cup of warm tomatillo broth at a time, letting the rice absorb it, and adding another half cup, you’ll achieve the desired result. I like to add my vegan butter the same way- a tablespoon or so at a time- but it’s probably an unnecessarily fussy way to do it. Never the less, the result is an amazingly creamy, vegan risotto recipe with all the bright and vibrant Southwestern flavors.
Southwest Tomatillo Vegan Risotto
Ingredients
- 1 lb. tomatillos, washed with the husks removed
- 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 2 small onions, one quartered the other diced
- 2 chili peppers, one seeded and chopped, the other whole with the stem removed
- Olive oil, for cooking
- ½ cup white wine
- 2 cups of water
- 1 tsp. vegetable bouillon
- 1 poblano pepper, diced
- 6 oz. cremini mushrooms, diced
- 1 tsp. dried Mexican oregano
- 1 tsp. dried parsley
- ½ tsp. dried thyme
- ½ tsp. dried cumin
- 1 ½ cup arborio rice (other rice can be used, but the amount of liquid needed may differ)
- 4-6 tbsp. vegan butter
- Fresh parsley, chopped
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Add the tomatillos, garlic, quartered onion, and whole chili pepper, tossing in a small amount of olive oil. Roast for 30 minutes, until the tomatillos are almost bursting, and transfer all the vegetable to a blender. Add the wine, water, and bouillon and blend until smooth.
- In a medium to large sauce pan, add a small amount of oil and add the second onion to sauté. Next mix in the mushrooms, cooking until fragrant. Add the chili and poblano, cooking for just a minute before adding the dried spices and rice. Stir, coating all of the rice in oil, before adding about half a cup of the blended tomatillo broth and about a tablespoon of vegan butter. Continue cooking by stirring frequently, and adding another half cup of liquid as the previous amount is absorbed into the rice. Add the vegan butter occasionally, so the rice remains coated and creamy. If you run out of liquid and your rice is not yet cooked, you can add a little water to finish.
- Once the rice is fully cooked, remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper. Add fresh parsley, mix, and serve.
Click For a Print-Friendly Version
Let’s hear from you…
- What are your favorite tomatillo recipes? Do you have any favorites beyond salsa verde?
- Have you made a vegan risotto recipe before? Do you find it at all different from the non-vegan versions?
- How do you feel about rice purists? Are you a rice purist? Do you think that certain dishes should be left alone, or are you more free-form with your rice selection?
Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Like this post? Pin it!
1 thought on “Southwest Tomatillo Vegan Risotto Recipe”