This noodle-heavy rice pilaf is delicious on its own, but what makes it swoonworthy is the topping: caramelized mushrooms. Cooked in a generous amount of butter, the mushrooms are finished with lemon zest, lemon juice, and tender herbs, bringing a bright, zippy freshness to these roasty-toasty, earthy funghi.
The dish plays incredibly well with others—serve alongside slow-roast salmon fillets, crispy chicken thighs, pan-seared pork chops, and even your Thanksgiving turkey. If you want to bulk it up and keep the pilaf vegetarian, nestling planks of feta and tossing some extra parsley and dill on top is equally dreamy.
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What you’ll need
Dutch Oven
$133 $80 At Amazon
Citrus Juicer
$20 $15 At Amazon
Microplane Grater
$18 At Amazon
Ingredients
4–6 servings
1½
5
4
8
2
2
1½
2
2
4
2
½
½
Preparation
Step 1
Cut or tear mushrooms into large bite-size pieces (if using, crimini, slice ¼" thick or, for more delicate varieties like oyster and maitake, tear into large pieces). Place in a large bowl and set aside.
Step 2
Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium. Toast pasta, stirring constantly, until deep golden brown, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl. Reserve skillet.
Step 3
Heat 2 Tbsp. butter in a medium Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium-high. Cook shallots, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp, 8–10 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until just starting to turn golden, about 1 minute. Add rice, stir to coat in shallot mixture, and cook until edges of grains turn translucent but centers are still opaque, 2–3 minutes (cooking off some of the starches and coating the rice in fat will help the grains stay separate when they cook in the broth).
Step 4
Add pasta, thyme, bay leaves, broth, 2 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 tsp. Morton kosher salt, and ½ tsp. pepper and stir to combine. Bring to a boil. Cover pot and reduce heat to low. Cook until rice is cooked through and liquid is absorbed, 20–25 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit (still covered) 20 minutes. (Do not uncover the rice before resting—you want to keep all the steam in there.)
Step 5
Meanwhile, heat 2 Tbsp. oil in reserved skillet over medium-high until just beginning to smoke. Arrange half of reserved mushrooms in a single layer in pan and cook, undisturbed, until golden brown underneath, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, toss, and continue to cook, tossing often and reducing heat as needed to prevent scorching, until golden brown all over, about 5 minutes longer. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining mushrooms and 2 Tbsp. oil and more salt and pepper.
Step 6
Cook remaining 6 Tbsp. butter in same skillet over medium-high heat, stirring often, until it foams, then just starts to brown, about 4 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook, tossing often and spooning butter over, until butter smells nutty (it should have deepened in color even more), about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in lemon zest, lemon juice, and half of the herbs. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed.
Step 7
To serve, uncover rice pilaf and fluff with a fork. Transfer to a platter or large shallow bowl. Spoon mushrooms over and drizzle with any sauce remaining in skillet. Top with remaining herbs and season with more pepper.
How would you rate Rice Pilaf With Lemony Brown-Butter Mushrooms?
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Reviews (47)
Back to TopWow, total hidden gem of a recipe. Super unique and delicious! I would recommend using the recommended mushrooms instead of just grabbing some from the grocery store, as that's what I did the first time I made it and it really does make a difference.
Morgan M
4/17/2024
Fantastic and original. Be sure not to scorch the mushrooms which is easy to do if you do not turn down the heat after you turn the mushrooms. Mine got a bit scorched and dry but I could still use them. It would have been better if the mushrooms were softer. I suggest adding even more fresh herbs at the end than the 1/4 cup called for in the recipe. I used dill, parsley, and tarragon.
Anonymous
Boston MA
12/25/2022
Absolutely delicious!!! Was a big hit at the Friendsgiving dinner I took it to. It has become one of my go-to recipes now.
kitkat
Ann Arbor
12/30/2021
This was really tasteful! I made it for christmas eve dinner and everyone loved it!
Ana
Santo Domingo, DR
12/25/2021
Can this be made a head of time and heated up?
Anonymous
12/14/2021
This recipe is a keeper for sure! Made a double-batch in my dutch oven for Friendsgiving and the rice & pasta turned out super fluffy and flavorful with a nice texture. The tip to not open the lid is a good one- of course, I opened the lid to check for doneness, but once I felt good about pulling it off the heat, I just replaced the lid and let it heat up for a little longer to re-establish that valuable carryover steam with the lid tightly on until it was time to eat. I will say that 1 whole lemon (juice & zest) per batch seems like an awful lot. I cut back to a 1/2 lemon for my double-batch recipe and it seemed to almost border on too acidic. I think a lot of it has to do with the lemon you are using as some are more acidic, juicy, bigger, etc. I'd recommend easing into the lemon, taste as you go, so it doesn't overpower the balance with the nuttiness and earthy flavors you worked so hard to establish. Overall fantastic recipe and I will definitely be making again.
Melissa Embree
Long Beach, CA
11/30/2021
I’ve already made this 3 times. The texture of the shallots, the mushrooms and the rice is perfect. I didn’t add the lemon last time — i added extra mushrooms and it was delicious.
Cookingthedinner
11/29/2021
Made this for Friendsgiving and it was a huge hit. Many steps but worth it.
Robin
Hartford CT
11/26/2021
Delicious separate, divine together. Ran out of real butter for one of my batches of mushrooms, but even though I couldn't sizzle those ones in browned butter, the end result still tasted scrumptious. The burst of lemon came through beautifully against the richness of the rice pilaf. mwah
Tayla
Alexandria, VA
11/23/2021
I made this exactly as written and while it had a few more steps than I'd usually do it was more than worth it. The toasted pasta (I used fideos) and lemon juice and zest really made it perfect. This will be on repeat in my house.
Moira
11/14/2021
Would this work at all with vegan butter?
Aly
GA
11/13/2021
Sounds fab - I've bookmarked the page. Do you suppose the pasta could be subbed for rice noodles to make it gluten-free??
Jan
Toronto
11/12/2021
insanely good
Anonymous
11/12/2021
We made this with farro instead of rice (because we didn't have rice) and replaced the broth with equal parts white wine and water (because we didn't have broth) and we couldn't be happier with the result!! So delicious. We will be making this all the time for guests so they think that we are fancy without actually having to be fancy :) Thank you for this recipe!!
Ryan
Philadelphia
11/4/2021
@anonymous The pasta gets toasted uncooked while it is still dry and then cooks with the rice in the dutch over in step 4. Happy cooking this roasty toasty rice pilaf!
Julia
Missouri
11/2/2021