Little pigs

June 15, 10:12 AMSF Food ExaminerAndrew Vennari

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Here is a mushroom that deserves to be called a piglet. Porcini are fat little boletus mushrooms with a flavor reminiscent of the woods and a savory taste that invites hearty, warm cooking.
In Italy there is a window of time in the fall when they are everywhere—baskets brimming with these chubby mushrooms, so many that there doesn't seem to be any way they can all be eaten before they spoil. They make a great excuse for many mushroom oriented meals and their sporadic abundance also explains why so many end up dried.
Dehydration concentrates the flavor and is a good, though not inexpensive substitute for fresh. When I saw them at Berkeley bowl the other day, in June, I got really excited (jumping up and down like a fool among the produce) and carefully chose a couple of choice specimens. They were affordably priced at around $16/lb; but I only needed a couple.
Whenever using fresh or frozen porcini make sure to look for worms, there is a certain kind that love to make their homes inside. I imagine what it would be like to carve out the middle of a giant porcini and walk throughout a fungus house.
Cut the mushrooms in half and check the interior for swirled tunnels or the squirming culprits themselves. Because the porcini are rare, I trim out the worm damaged parts and save the rest.
The power of these mushrooms comes out with heat. While plain to the nose at first, the California porcini gave off their distinct odor only after they entered my pan. I mixed them with a greater quantity of more economical crimini mushrooms and still managed to get my porcini fix.

Porcini Risotto

½ cup diced onion
¼ cup finely diced carrot
¼ cup finely diced celery
1 cup diced porcini
½ cup arborio rice per person
½ cup dry white wine
4-5 cups good, hot stock
fresh herbs
S&P to taste
grana, for grating

Sweat the mirepoix in olive oil or butter. Stir in the rice until it smells toasted and add the mushrooms. Next add the wine and stir until it has evaporated. Add a couple ladles of hot stock and stir until the rice absorbs it almost completely; repeat this process with another ladle and continue until the risotto is tender and creamy, but each grain still retains their individual texture. At the end add herbs and some of the grana. Serve with more cheese on top.