This herby asparagus vegan risotto is the perfect dairy free recipe to impress your friends. It’s full of flavor, rich and creamy, easy to make and perfect for meal prep.
Risotto was always one of those dishes that really intimidated me. I didn’t fully understand how to make it and thought it would be much more labor intensive than it really is.
Thankfully I learned otherwise and have been making this vegan risotto on repeat ever since! It’s made with tons of fresh herbs, asparagus, white wine, onion, and my homemade cashew parmesan for a rich and cheesy flavor.
Traditional risotto is made with parmesan cheese, chicken broth and sometimes cream which makes it very much not vegan friendly.
This recipe uses vegetable broth, no cream and cashew parmesan to keep it completely dairy free and vegan friendly. If you are not vegan, try my gluten free parmesan risotto!
Key ingredients
Rice. RIsotto is made with a base of rice, specifically arborio rice which create a creamy and delicious texture.
White wine. I love using white wine in savory recipe like this since it adds such a great flavor. The alcohol will cook off, but you’ll be left with a super savory flavor.
Onion/garlic. We’ll be sauteing these in olive oil to create a lot of flavor.
Fresh herbs. Anything goes! I used a mix of chives, parsley and thyme, but rosemary would also be delicious!
Vegetable broth. This is to cook the rice in. If you are not vegan or vegetarian, chicken broth works greate.
Parmesan. We’ll use my homemade cashew parmesan to keep this vegan, but regular parmesan also works if you are not vegan.
How to make vegan risotto
Add the diced onion, minced garlic and olive oil to a large pot or dutch oven. Saute over medium heat until the onion starts to brown, about 5-7 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring a small pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, add the asparagus and blanch for just 1 minute, then drain and set aside.
Add in the white wine to the pot with the onion and simmer until all liquid has absorbed, stirring occasionally.
Add in the rice, half of the herbs (save the rest for later), salt, pepper and bay leaves. Toast the rice for 1-2 minutes.
Add in 1 cup of the vegetable broth and simmer over low heat until absorbed, stirring frequently. Repeat this step, adding just 1 cup at a time. Once you’ve use 4 cups, stir in the cashew parmesan.
After 5 cups of broth have been used, check the rice for doneness. I usually need all 6 cups of broth, but it can vary depending on how high the heat was.
Keep adding broth, 1 cup at a time until the rice is fully cooked and the risotto is creamy.
Discard the bay leaves and stir in the lemon juice, rest of the herbs, blanched asparagus and vegan butter if using. Serve warm with extra cashew parmesan and enjoy!
What kind of rice is best for risotto?
For risotto, even vegan risotto, you want to use arborio rice, which is an Italian short grain white rice. If you can’t specifically find arborio rice, you can safely use just generic short grain white rice. You definitely don’t want to use jasmine or basmati rice for risotto because the start content is much lower and it won’t get as creamy!
I don’t recommend using brown rice! It will completely change the ratio of broth to rice and increase the cook time by quite a bit. For best results, stick to the recipe as written.
What can I use in place of parmesan cheese?
This recipe uses a dairy free cashew parmesan in place of traditional parmesan. Some recipes will call for pecorino romano cheese as well.
If you need to make this nut free, just sub the cashew parmesan with half the amount in nutritional yeast!
You can leave the cheese out entirely, but for the best flavor I do recommend some sort of substitute like nutritional yeast or a store bought vegan parmesan.
How to serve
This recipe can easily be a whole meal on its own if you want to keep it vegan or vegetarian, but I love to serve it with my lemon pepper salmon or grilled chicken and some extra greens on the side.
For extra protein but still vegan, try my lemon pepper tofu on the side!
You’ll also love..
- Lemon Asparagus Pasta
- Butternut Squash Risotto
- Mexican Green Rice
Lastly, if you want more recipes straight to your inbox, be sure tosubscribe to my email list. As always, tag me oninstagramif you make this recipe so I can see your creation.Leave a comment and rating belowand let us know how it turns out!
5 from 5 votes
Herby Vegan Risotto
by: claire cary
This herby asparagus vegan risotto is the perfect dairy free recipe to impress your friends. It's full of flavor, rich and creamy, easy to make and perfect for meal prep.
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Prep: 15 minutes mins
Cook: 30 minutes mins
Total: 45 minutes mins
6
Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ¾ cup white wine
- 2 cups arborio rice
- ½ cup fresh herbs I used chives, parsley and thyme
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 cups vegetable broth warmed
- ½ cup cashew parmesan click for recipe
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 bunch asparagus chopped
- optional: 2 tbsp vegan butter
US Customary – Metric
Instructions
Add the diced onion, minced garlic and olive oil to a large pot or dutch oven.
Saute over medium heat until the onion starts to brown, about 5-7 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring a small pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, add the asparagus and blanch for just 1 minute, then drain and set aside.
Add in the white wine to the pot with the onion and simmer until all liquid has absorbed, stirring occasionally.
Add in the rice, half of the herbs (save the rest for later), salt, pepper and bay leaves.
Toast the rice for 1-2 minutes.
Add in 1 cup of the vegetable broth and simmer over low heat until absorbed, stirring frequently. Repeat this step, adding just 1 cup at a time.
Once you've use 4 cups, stir in the cashew parmesan.
After 5 cups of broth have been used, check the rice for doneness. I usually need all 6 cups of broth, but it can vary depending on how high the heat was.
Keep adding broth, 1 cup at a time until the rice is fully cooked and the risotto is creamy.
Discard the bay leaves and stir in the lemon juice, rest of the herbs, blanched asparagus and vegan butter if using.
Serve warm with extra cashew parmesan and enjoy!
Notes
To make this nut free, sub the 1/2 cup of cashew parmesan for 1/4-1/3 cup nutritional yeast.
Brown rice will not work for this recipe. Please stick to arborio rice or another short grain white rice for best results.
Serving: 1bowl / Calories: 344kcal / Carbohydrates: 61g / Protein: 7g / Fat: 5g / Saturated Fat: 1g / Fiber: 3g / Sugar: 3g
