Mushroom risotto with chicken and chorizo

So I know its only Wednesday but I had a few bits left over from the weekend and I was finished at Uni early so I decided to go all out and make a risotto - I know! Usually its just pasta or noodles for tea of a mid week evening but I was in the mood for cooking and had some vino that needed using too.

It is quite difficult to photograph something like risotto and make it look appetising and I am aware that this looks a bit grey (on account of the mushrooms) but it really did taste very nice - especially with the chicken and chorizo. I think I need to invest in some different plates and dishes to get some more varied photographs but I've not got around to it yet having only just settled recently - I'll put it on the to do list.

I have made risotto a fair few times and usually stick to the recipe in my Gary Rhodes Keeping It Simple book - the first cookbook ever given to me by my mum one Christmas, I think I was about 13. That is the basic recipe for parmesano risotto and I would just add whatever I fancied from the fridge but Ive recently moved on to a recipe which includes using white wine as it really adds something and is super tasty (plus you can drink the rest - winner). Risotto is a pretty labour intensive dish as it requires constant stirring to release the starch in the rice to make it lovely and thick and creamy so it is a good job I had the wine to keep me company.

Ingredients
(for 2)
For the risotto:
olive oil for cooking
200g arborio rice
1/2 white onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
100-150g mushrooms, washed and sliced
100ml white wine
1 litre chicken stock (you may not need all of this)
15g butter
25g parmesan cheese, grated

1 chicken breast
1/2 chorizo ring

First heat about 2 tbsp olive oil in a deep sided saucepan on a medium heat and add the onion and garlic, frying for about 5 minutes until softened. 

Add the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper then cook for a further 5 minutes.

Now add the arborio rice and stir until it is coated with the onion and mushroom mix. Cook for about a minute. Add the wine and stir regularly until all the wine has been soaked up by the rice.

Add the stock a ladle at a time, stirring until it has gone then adding another ladle. Repeat until it looks creamy and tender. By the last ladle the rice should be almost cooked - this all takes bout 30-40 minutes.

In a separate frying pan fry the chorizo and chicken in a little olive oil - the chorizo will release its oils so you really don't need much oil. The chicken will soak up the flavours from the chorizo and taste really good. Fry until the chicken is completely cooked.

The risotto should now be thick and creamy, if it is still watery continue to cook, stirring until the moisture has gone. Take the risotto off the heat and stir in the butter and parmesan cheese then put a lid on or cover with foil and leave to stand for a couple of minutes. Check seasoning and add more salt and pepper if desired.

Serve the chicken and chorizo on top of the risotto with a sprinkling of grated parmesan and chopped parsley.