Chicken & Mushroom Risotto

One of my most favourite comforting bowls of yum? Chicken & Mushroom Risotto.

It’s warming, hearty and delicious. What’s not to love?

And the best part about this recipe is that you can really make it your own and try out different flavour combinations. 

For example, if you’re not feeling mushrooms and onions, try out…

• Asparagus & leeks
• Butternut squash & sage
• Shrimp & lemon

The combinations are endless – and all equally delicious.

Can Rice Be Causing Your Symptoms?

While rice is naturally gluten-free, many of our clients in The Clear Skin Solution have issues digesting it. Additionally, rice may cause “cross-reactivity” in those that are celiac or have gluten sensitivity. Cross-reactivity happens when the body confuses certain foods for gluten. 

The immune system makes antibodies which target intruders (that the body thinks is there to harm you). For those with a sensitivity, the immune system has “tagged” gluten as an intruder.

Unfortunately, the immune system can misidentify other molecule structures as invaders. If the structure is similar to the one your antibodies are hunting – it also gets slapped with a bad guy sticker.

So if your immune system is scanning for gluten, foods that have a similar structure can be incorrectly labelled as bad, too. Foods like dairy, corn, millet, oats, yeast and rice have a similar protein structure to gluten.

Once these foods are flagged, the immune system responds to the intruders. Pro-inflammatory chemicals are released into the body which increases systemic inflammation levels.

If you’re still struggling with symptoms even after removing gluten, you may want to consider temporarily avoiding these foods, too.

When it comes to acne, inflammation plays a major role in its development. Reducing inflammation through anti-inflammatory foods and gut healing will go a long way in resolving stubborn breakouts.

The Magic of Mushrooms

Scientists are still debating how many species of mushrooms exist. Some report tens of thousands and some report 2M+. While we won’t be discussing all the individual mushroom species and their benefits, we will focus on one of my favourites.

Shiitakes.

Native to East Asia, shiitakes are part of the Lentinula edodes species. They’ve been used in traditional herbal medicine for thousands of years thanks to their big-time health benefits.

So, let’s list a few perks to the shiitake mushroom…

• Contain all eight essential amino acids which are the building blocks of protein.
• Contain the essential fatty acid, linoleic acid, that helps improve digestion and lessen food allergies/sensitivities.
• Good source of selenium that fights acne and lessens scarring severity.
• Source of zinc that helps heal breakouts and acts as a natural androgen blocker.
• Specific fibres in shiitakes help reduce gut inflammation.
• Provide a good amount of food-based vitamin D.
• Source of B vitamins to support adrenal health.
• Supports the immune system.
• Reduces inflammation.
• Combats cancer cells.
• Contains antimicrobial properties.

Looking for other ways to enjoy this powerhouse mushroom? Try it in my Simple Tomato, Spinach & Shiitake Mushroom Frittata or add them to my Ginger Beef Stir-Fry.

Chicken & Mushroom Risotto (Grain/Dairy-Free)

A hearty and flavourful risotto made grain and dairy-free.

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Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes minutes

Author: Katie Stewart

Ingredients

For the chicken:

• 1 tbsp avocado oil for searing
• 2 organic chicken breasts cut into ½” chunks
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp paprika
• Sea salt to taste

For the risotto:

• 1 tbsp avocado oil
• 1 medium onion diced
• 2 cups mushrooms of choice sliced (I used a medley of shiitake, oyster and cremini)
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 8 oz. cassava rice* see notes - about 1 ¼ cup
• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
• 4-6 cups broth of choice* see notes - I used bone broth
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp onion powder

To finish:

• ¼ cup nutritional yeast
• ¼ cup fresh parsley chopped
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Sea salt to taste

Instructions

• For the chicken: Heat avocado oil over medium-high heat in a large pan. Add chicken and sprinkle with Italian seasoning, paprika and sea sat. Cook until nicely browned and cooked through. Remove from pan and set aside.
• For the risotto: In the same pan, add additional avocado oil, onion, mushrooms and garlic. Saute on medium-low until onions are translucent and mixture is fragrant – stirring often (about 7 minutes).
• Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the cassava rice along with the apple cider vinegar to the mushroom mixture.
• Stir constantly until the vinegar evaporates.
• Add Italian seasoning, onion powder and cooked chicken.
• Pour in 1 cup of broth to the pan at a time -- adding more as it absorbs.. Stirring often and scraping the bottom to prevent the mixture from sticking.
• Once the cassava rice is fully cooked, remove from heat and fold in nutritional yeast and parsley. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt.
• Serve immediately.

Notes

I used Jovial’s Grain-Free Cassava Orzo. Alternatively, quinoa can be used – you may need to adjust the amount of broth required. For the chicken, you can cook as directed, use your preferred method of cooking, or use leftovers from a previous meal.

Sources:

Anwar H;Suchodolski JS;Ullah MI;Hussain G;Shabbir MZ;Mustafa I;Sohail MU; (n.d.). Shiitake culinary-medicinal mushroom, Lentinus Edodes (agaricomycetes), supplementation alters gut microbiome and corrects dyslipidemia in rats. International journal of medicinal mushrooms. Retrieved November 4, 2022, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30806258/

Bowe, W. P., & Logan, A. C. (2011, January 31). Acne vulgaris, probiotics and the gut-brain-skin axis – back to the future? – gut pathogens. BioMed Central. Retrieved November 4, 2022, from https://gutpathogens.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1757-4749-3-1#citeas

Ciric L;Tymon A;Zaura E;Lingström P;Stauder M;Papetti A;Signoretto C;Pratten J;Wilson M;Spratt D; (n.d.). In vitro assessment of Shiitake Mushroom (Lentinula Edodes) extract for its antigingivitis activity. Journal of biomedicine & biotechnology. Retrieved November 4, 2022, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21966183/

Cross-reactivity defined. American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology. (n.d.). Retrieved November 4, 2022, from https://www.aaaai.org/tools-for-the-public/allergy,-asthma-immunology-glossary/cross-reactivity-defined

Dai X;Stanilka JM;Rowe CA;Esteves EA;Nieves C;Spaiser SJ;Christman MC;Langkamp-Henken B;Percival SS; (n.d.). Consuming Lentinula edodes (shiitake) mushrooms daily improves human immunity: A randomized dietary intervention in healthy young adults. Journal of the American College of Nutrition. Retrieved November 4, 2022, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25866155/

Fang N;Li Q;Yu S;Zhang J;He L;Ronis MJ;Badger TM; (n.d.). Inhibition of growth and induction of apoptosis in human cancer cell lines by an ethyl acetate fraction from shiitake mushrooms. Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.). Retrieved November 4, 2022, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16566671/

LE;, M. G. E. (n.d.). Erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase activity in acne vulgaris and the effect of selenium and vitamin E treatment. Acta dermato-venereologica. Retrieved November 4, 2022, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6203294/

NIAID-Sponsored Expert Panel, Boyce, J. A., Assa’ad, A., Burks, A. W., Jones, S. M., Sampson, H. A., Wood, R. A., Plaut, M., Cooper, S. F., Fenton, M. J., Arshad, S. H., Bahna, S. L., Beck, L. A., Byrd-Bredbenner, C., Camargo, C. A., Eichenfield, L., Furuta, G. T., Hanifin, J. M., Jones, C., … Schwaninger, J. M. (2010, December). Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of food allergy in the United States: Report of the NIAID-sponsored expert panel. The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology. Retrieved November 4, 2022, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4241964/Wong, A., Zhang, B., Jiang, M., Gong, E., Zhang, Y., & Lee, S. W. (n.d.). Oxidative stress in acne vulgaris – semantic scholar. Retrieved November 5, 2022, from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/b95b/511060d3716fab8fe80695eae4e8e9bdd7fd.pdf