Somehow I just found your blog, and this is so cool! Can't wait to go through all the recipes!

This looks awesome!

I have a recipe for chocolate risotto that I should try in the crockpot...

thank you, amy!

cs! can you email me the chocolate recipe? I have a half box of the arborio rice left. and I do like chocolate...

xoxox
steph

Too funny that we should both choose risotto... mine has sausage!

This looks good and I will give it a try!


MJ

Sounds very good.

I found liquid smoke at Wal-Mart with the spices. It is in a brown bottle.

It sounds good and easy.

Ooohhh I LOVE risotto and I LOVE garlic, this is a must try :)

oh steph.thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe.you know that a lot of bloggers and mum's in the message board land are talking about you right????it's all good.have a great day.

I love risotto. I am going to try this in the crock pot too! I tend to also go overboard sometimes with garlic because I love garlic!

OMGosh, I just found your blog and LOVE IT. I love cockpot cooking!! LOL Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! :)

Oh man, that really should have said CROCKPOT. Probably drawing attention to it now...sorry. ....hiding under the desk....

Good Afternoon Stephanie,
"THANK YOU" for stopping by and commenting on the Hamburger Helper Recipe for the Crockpot. I have never made it in there before, but I'm sure it would work just as good. I love your Risotto recipe. I have never even had Risotto before. I've never even seen it in our local Grocery Store either. I see it being cooked on Food Network alot tho, but have never found it around here. Do you think maybe Wal-Mart's has it? Take care my friend and have a great day. May God Bless You and Yours.

Love & Hugs,
Karen H.

Oh, This looks so good!

Hi! I just stumbled on your blog somehow or other, and I'm so excited about the recipes I've found here. I'm no chef, but it looks like even I can do this! (You have an awesome sense of humor, too, by the way.)

Cooking risotto in the slow cooker sounds so much easier than in a pan on the stove top. I'm definitely going to make this recipe.

Yummy! looks like I've missed a lot of good ones down with the flu. I lost nearly 20 pounds in 3 weeks--so I guess I can start eating risotto and chicken parm. to put some back on :)!

thank you so much for all the great feedback on this recipe. It was really easy and tasted wonderful. I might do it for a side dish for Easter.

Karen, I sure hope someone chimes in about whether or not Walmart carries Arborio rice. I don't know.

jennifer, I am so terribly sorry that you've been so sick!

have a wonderful day!
steph

OK, you just changed my LIFE! I do make risotto, because I love it, but I hate being chained to the stove for 20 minutes, stirring, stirring, stirring (you get the picture).

I'm trying this ASAP!!!

I adore risotto, too, but don't really enjoy making it due to the stove sitting. I will give this a try for sure!

Sounds like a wonderful recipe! Have a great rest of the week.

Renee'
http://rmboys2.wordpress.com/

I accidentally found your blog and this is awesome! I heart my crockpot!

I didn't know you could make risotto in the crock pot! I have never made it because I didn't want to stir and stir. And stir. I will have to try this one!

I have a question about your year of crock potting -- Are you able to make other things to go with whatever you make in the crock pot? I guess I should just read more posts and find out, eh?

Sherry

I have a similar recipe for Chicken Risotto - I'm going to try yours though - it looks and sounds sooooo good. You mentioned too much garlic - there is no such thing in my eyes (LOL!!)

Thanks for the great recipes.

This was wonderful! This is the first time I have made risotto. It was easy and everyone loved it. I used 3 cloves of garlic and cooked it in the oil before adding it to the crock. It still had a very strong garlic taste. Great.

what great news, D!
I'm so glad that it worked out well for you---great thinking to saute the garlic a bit first.

--steph

Roasting the garlic first in the [toaster] oven with a bit of olive oil might help. I am not a fan of garlic but my fiancé loves garlic so we compromise and add roasted garlic to things like hummus, where the crunch would make me crazy.

I wonder if you could make a version of risotto in the crockpot on low to cook over a longer span of time.

And, I wonder if you couldn't use this wonderful appliance to make polenta, which can also be a pain in the butt on the stove (verify to make sure that's gf).

Take care and keep crockpottin'!

I like the toaster oven idea, too!

polenta is most definitely gluten free! thanks for the idea--I'd love to learn how to make some.
-steph

While mindnumbingly delicious (esp. with shrimp!)I warn you DO NOT OVERCOOK. We ended up with sort of a gluey paste, but that did not stop us from eating it all. Next time I will start it closer to dinner.

Made it tonight! It was mushy and sticky, but that's how my husband likes it. I tossed green beans in toward the end and served it with baked garlic chicken. Thanks for making risotto easy!! Even sticky mushy easy risotto is better than slightly firm time consuming slave-over-a-hot-stove-all-day risotto.

Oh this does sound good!! I have a box of arborio rice that has been sitting in my cupboard for... a while *L* I have wanted to make risotto, just not lose twenty some minutes of my life to stirring. Will definitely have to try this out! A question though: what kind of white wine did you use? I'm not a big wine drinker, but what I do drink tends to be on the sweet side. Do you recommend a drier wine?

Hey this was yummy! I will make this again. I cannot believe how easy this was.

Thanks, Stephanie!
Kelley

Steph, this was absolutely wonderful. I think next time, i will use a little less olive oil, and 1/2 the amount of salt, but that's just me. I also used the equiv. of 3 cloves garlic (minced) and found it to be perfect. My daughter even said, "you must make this cheesy rice again. it's wonderful."

thanks again,
Lisa

I am a culinary hero at my house because of this recipe. My 5 year old daughter is begging for more. My husband is throwing laurels before me. I added shrimp, spinach and some basil to make it an all-in-one meal. It took longer in my crockpot than 2.5 hours, but my husband happily finished it off on the stove to speed things along for dinner. Next time I make it, I will just plan for it to take an hour or two longer.

Thank you so much!

I made this for dinner tonight and despite overcooking it a bit it was phenomenal. I used about 3 cloves of garlic and I substituted 1/2 white grape juice and 1/2 white wine vinegar for the white wine since I didn't have any and the flavor was perfect. It went great with steak. I'll definitely be making this again- Thank you!!!

this was great! probably not as great as the authentic stovetop method, but way easier so I will definitly be making this again. I used 3 garlic cloves and it was great. Took about 2 1/2 hours on high. My family (3 & 5 yr old) really liked it!

Do you have any suggestions for doubling this recipe? My mom tried to make it, but hours later, it will still just rice and liquid. It worked beautifully in the quantity you had, but I need a little more when making 'fancy rice' for company! :)

A year later and this still rocks! Just tried it for the first time & used veggie broth. Made it a bit pink but still good, and in my superhot 6 qt crockpot, it was just starting to get brown and stick to the side at 2 hours exactly. Thanks!

I got distracted (darn web sites!) and totally overcooked this, but it was still DELICIOUS!! (and sooo easy) You're right, 5 cloves of garlic is too much. You warned us, but I thought "my family loves garlic, it will be fine!" and put it all in. It was a little strong. Next time I'll try 3 cloves. I microwaved the garlic for a bit first to soften the cloves and eliminate the "crunch." I can't wait to serve this to my family, they are going to love it!

Steph, do you think cooking risotto would work over a longer period on the low setting? If so, how/when would you recommend adding asparagus to it? I have a risotto recipe from a friend with asparagus in it that I absolutely loved! I'd love to be able to make it in a crock pot =) But I work all day, so 2 hours after I get home would be way too late! Thanks =) -Michelle

Hi Michelle,

I really, really don't know. It should work in theory, but since I haven't tried it myself, I'd hesitate to lead you astray. My suggestion would be to try on a weekend day when you're home to monitor it. If it works (totally let me know!), then you can safely do it while at work.

xoxo steph

Another thought... Maybe put it on low during lunch (as I can go home to set everything up), then switch to high when I get home and monitor until done? I would hope it wouldn't get overdone in the 4.5 hours between... I've gotten myself in the mood for risotto, ha ha, need to figure out a way ;-)

I am rarely home during the day on the weekend - why I want to switch to a 4-day work week, just way too busy!

Should I precook the asparagus a little, or just put them in and let them slowly cook along with the risotto? I suppose I could cook the asparagus entirely separately, and add them at the end, but part of the yumminess is using the asparagus water from boiling them IN the risotto, yum =)

I like the putting it on at lunch idea----that sounds better to me.

the WORST CASE scenario(s): you end up with yummy mush, or it burns. If your pot seals well, and you're not under-filling it, it shouldn't burn.

about the asparagus: I don't know! Some people really like the asparagus to have a crunch, some much prefer it wilty (my grandma). I just don't know what to tell you.

I wish I knew, but I'm dying to hear your results!

--steph

It worked, but a little overdone. I put everything in the crock pot around 1pm, and got home a little before 6. Immediately put on low, and then to warm. In the future, I will cook the asparagus separately and mix in after the risotto is done. Still very tasty though, even though it was overdone, definitely a hit! And a lot easier than sitting there stirring it constantly =)

Can I seriously come over for lunch soon? ...... your recipe sounds so yummy.....

I found this recipe for a swiss chard risotto - http://www.lesliebeck.com/recipe_detail.php?id=389 - but enjoy my crockpot much more than the intensive stirring involved in regular risotto cooking. Would you suggest putting in the chard at the beginning of the cooking or sauteeing it and adding it just before serving? I'm assuming that by the recipe, the chard would be quite wilty and mushy after all that stirring and heating, so my gut instinct is throw it in at the beginning ...

FYI, to any who are interested, I chopped up a bunch of swiss chard (or kale ... I can never remember which is which!) and threw it in at the beginning. It is DELICIOUS!

This was so good! A little stickier than we like, but still very tasty.
I added 1 cup of sliced mushrooms and half a cup of peas at the beginning and then after 2 and a half hours I added 1 sliced cooked chicken breast with the parmasean cheese.
I was tempted to up the wine to a half cup, but was good and followed the directions... maybe next time!

this was soooo yummy!! My 12yo daughter can't get enough. I had another risotto recipe that i wanted to try, but didn't want to "babysit" so I combined the two. I finely chopped 4 shallots, cloves garlic and a 1# mushrooms and sauteed all on stove top. When I added the cheese I added the mushroom mix - YUMMY!!

Thank so much. BTW did you ever get the chocolate risotto recipe?

oooh! This was great! Mine came out perfect.

I added two huge garlic cloves which was a perfect amount.

At first I had my slowcooker on low, after I reread the instructions I switched it to high and it was cooked in about an hour! My crockpot runs quite hot I think.

Next time I make this, (soon!) I'll let it go on low and see how long it takes.

Thanks! Your blog is one of my favourites!

Just wanted to thank you for your blog. I've made many of your recipes, but this is my "go-to" one on weeknights because if I look at the clock and it is 4 p.m., I know I can have a good dinner on the table in a couple of hours. I often add 3/4 cup pumpkin to the recipe and it is delicious. Thanks again for all your great recipes!

Beautiful, creamy risotto. My friends said they liked it.

Will do it again.

Mo :)

I have loved your recipes but this one was a bit off - though somehow everyone managed to force down three helpings of it! I left out most of the oil - just sauteed some shallots and 1 garlic clove in a tab of oil and butter. But it was overdone and a bit gloopy in 2 hours (don't think my slowcooker is hot). I hate to think about what it would be like in over 2 hours or with full amt of oil.

That said, it was delish but after the meal we all felt like taking long naps. Next time, I will cut the liquid by a quarter cup and check after 90minutes. My husband thinks that sauteeing the rice in the oil for 5 min before putting it all together would help as well. We'll see!

This is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO easy. Risotto always has a time consuming scariness about it, but this recipe makes it simple and devine!

Thanks HEAPS!

Just curious, is this supposed to be crazy creamy? Like almost oatmeal? It was yummy, but really soft. I wonder if my crockpot cooks to fast or I just dont' know what risotto is supposed to be like...

Oh, and thank you for your blog : )

Hi pumpkingirl--- nope, that's what risotto is like! The grains are smaller and fatter which helps them to be sticky and creamy in texture. If you think it's too gluey for your liking, you can leave the lid off and let some of the condensation evaporate before serving, but from what you describe, it sounds like you did everything correctly. :-)

I made this for dinner tonight and managed to impress my entire family (which is nice for a new cook). It was wonderful - thanks for the great recipe!

Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh...So I've only read the recipe, but I am DYING to try it, and if it works, I'm pretty sure my head will explode. I have made risotto maybe five times, and my husband always says it's amazing, but I always get little bits of not-completely cooked rice (except the first time- it somehow was perfect). Since only the first time was amazing, every other time I get so upset I almost cry.

I am trying this in just a couple of days.

Oh, for those who inquired about the wine, there is "cooking wine". Where I live you can't buy alcohol on Sundays (the day I grocery shop), so this is an easy alcohol-free, cheaper version of essentially the same thing.

This. Was. Wonderful!!!! My son ate 2 HUGE servings and there are no leftovers. Stephanie, you are genius =)

I made this last night and it was amazing. I used raw onion and sauteed them and the rice for a few minutes before dumping everything in the crock pot. I did omit the garlic too. It was perfect!

This recipe has become a staple in nour household. I stay at home with my 1-yo so stirring risotto in a pot is not an option! I make the base recipe, then add in items that I've grilled -- chicken breast, chicken sausage, red bell peppers -- and serve with a side of veggies (brocc or whatever) to make it a meal. Have served it for guests several times to rave reviews!

I made this recipe. It was good. I've only had risotto a few previous times, so I'm not sure what it's supposed to be like. But the consistency was like porridge, kind of like the mushier portions of your picture.

I really like the garlic flavor.

What are some variations I can do to change the flavor, and what adjustments to cooking time or amount of liquid (broth, wine) would I have to make? I want to try making it with a different base flavor too.

I made it again but with mushrooms, shallots, and sage.

It was fine, didn't change much of the prep work, and it added a little more flavor.

On 2nd thought, I think the mushrooms change the flavor too much. I like it, but I miss the stronger garlic and Parmesan flavor the first batch had.

I think next time, I'll only use shallots, garlic, and Parmesan.

I have my first head cold in 5 years, I'm miserable and I just want comfort food, albeit a 90-degree day in August! I'm going for this in my brand new 4-qt crockpot that I just bought and it's all your fault. This means I only have 5 of them, 2 very small ones, and 3 that are all 4 qt, but one is squatty, one is oval and one is just right, so I figure I do need them all.

Just a word of warning to others, I used my small crockpot (I think it's 1.5 quarts) and all the ingredients fit in just fine with some room at the top, but it took 3.5 hours to cook. Which meant it was done about an hour after dinner was over. I added some chopped sun dried tomatoes, and that was a tasty addition.

It is a cool fall day here and this sounds so good. I went to in to put it together and I can't. Oh I have all the ingredients, but ALL FOUR of my crockpots are dirty and it's all your fault! LOL Later, after the dishwasher is finished and then I can do custard at the same time in another crockpot. Ahhh comfort food.

Just tried this, it was amazing! I'm disabled now, and used to be one of those women who's always cooking, but my wife won't let me have my crockpot here in bed, hmph!


Anyway, I talked her through this tonight, we used half parmesan and half grana padano and it is BEAUTIFUL!



We're going to have it with chicken (baked in a bag with lemon juice and herbs) tomorrow. We both have Crohns and miss cheesy pasta so much, so this is the perfect replacement.

I also tried this recipe. I was always daunted by making the original risotto over stovetop. The flavor was subpurp, but it came out a bit mushy. I have a 6 qt slow cooker and I looked it for 2 hrs and 15 mins. I did a little research and next time I will reduce the cooking time (AKA check on it earlier) and add a little less wine to make it firmer.

But wow--the flavor was out of this world! I'm so happy to have a risotto recipe I can do! Thank you!

To make it with shrimp, when would you add the raw shrimp to the risotto?

Hi Tree Frog, I would suggest running the raw shrimp under hot water and then adding them after the risotto is pretty much finished -- keep the pot on high, and check after 30 minutes.

I would suggest using your microplane and grate the garlic into the pot instead of chopping it.