Vegan Asparagus Risotto Recipe with Spring Vegetables

Finely the asparagus season arrived and we are in! This vegan asparagus risotto is the perfect spring dish. Packed with fresh vegetables, it's light and healthy, but still filling and satisfying. It's also easy to make, requiring just a few simple ingredients.

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This gluten-free Italian rice dish is as common here in Milano as eating pizza. After all, it is a Northern Italian dish.

This lemon asparagus risotto is the perfect springtime treat as it is made in less than 30 minutes, and everyone loves it. It just requires a handful of seasonal ingredients, and it is easy on your wallet.

You can easily adjust for as many guests as you need just by adding extra rice and veggies. This absolutely delicious dish is by far one of our favorite risotto healthy recipes, just like our easy stovetop grilled asparagus, and our 15 minutes pasta with asparagus.

If you like blanched asparagus, be sure to try out our simple and elegant white asparagus recipe, another springtime winner.

Jump to:

• 🧾 Ingredients
• 🔪 Instructions
• 📖 Variations
• 💡 Asparagus tips
• 📚 More asparagus recipes
• 🍚 More risotto recipes
• 📋 Recipe
• 🌡️ Food safety
• 💬 Reviews and Comments

🧾 Ingredients

• Carnaroli arborio rice (7 oz, 200 grams)
• Fresh asparagus
• Frozen peas
• Fresh lemon juice and zest
• Small onion
• Garlic cloves
• Vegetable broth
• Olive oil
• Nutritional yeast or vegan parm
• Fresh thyme (or your choice of fresh herbs)

Optional: dry white wine and black pepper.

See quantities and complete instructions in the recipe card.

🔪 Instructions

Getting your ingredients ready

Prepare the veggie stock - put your vegetable stock to simmer in a saucepan over low heat. If using granulated store-bought veggie stock, bring the water to a boil and prepare according to packaging instructions. I like adding fresh thyme and any leftovers from leek green tops, but it is not necessary.

Prepare the onions and garlic - peel and chop your onions. Mince the garlic cloves.

Prepare the asparagus - chop asparagus stalks woody ends. Cut into ½-inch segments on a diagonal.

In a large skillet, add one tablespoon of olive oil, and then stir-fry the asparagus with the lemon juice of a half lemon and a sprinkle of salt, until slightly golden. Remove from heat and reserve.

Making the risotto (about 15 minutes)

In the same skillet, add one tablespoon of olive oil, and stir-fry the onions, making sure they don't burn. Cook until slightly translucent, and then add the garlic. We like using a wooden spoon or a slotted spoon.

Tip: keep the hot broth simmering next to your skillet; this way, the temperature of the rice remains constant.

Add the arborio rice (or carnarolli rice), stir until lightly toasted, then add the thyme sprigs and either add wine and cook or use warm broth. Bring to a gentle simmer and stir constantly until the liquid is absorbed.

Using a ladle, keep adding broth, stirring almost constantly, one cup at a time. Keep on medium heat, and there should always be a slight simmer to prevent it from becoming gummy.

Add thyme leaves or herbs of choice.

On minute ten, add nutritional yeast to the rice mixture or (homemade vegan parmesan), followed by extra broth.

Once the rice is al dente, turn the heat to the minimum and add the frozen peas, and add the asparagus.

Add the lemon zest. Use a fine shredder to zest the whole lemon on top of the risotto (save some for garnishing).

Stir until well combined, testing a bite to ensure peas are warmed.

Taste and adjust flavor, adding a pinch of salt and pepper to taste or vegan parmesan cheese. If it has dried out, add more broth to get that creamy texture back.

Note: you don't need to use all the broth. Some rice types absorb the liquid quicker than others. Make sure you remove the risotto from the heat when the rice is al dente.

This vegan asparagus risotto is better when served immediately.

To serve, divide the creamy risotto between serving bowls, top with any remaining asparagus, and garnish with lemon zest and vegan parmesan cheese.

Instead of serving this great recipe as a main dish, you can serve it as a side dish or appetizer, reducing the serving size.

The best risotto is served immediately and al dente; otherwise, it could turn out too soggy.

It is best when fresh, though leftovers of this lemon asparagus risotto will keep covered in the fridge for 2-3 days.

Reheat the stovetop over medium heat, adding vegetable broth or water as needed to rehydrate. You can also reheat it in the microwave, adding some liquid.

📖 Variations

This lemon asparagus risotto can be customized based on some of the ingredients you have readily available and can replace it; see some suggestions.

• Risotto rice - the most critical aspect of risotto is the rice. This is because what makes risotto creamy is its starch content. To make this recipe, it is vital to use carnarolli rice (the rice of choice in Italy), or arborio rice, another popular starchy short grain. If using brown rice, be sure to pick one of these varieties. Your risotto will take longer to cook and need more liquid. Another option is using orzo. Although it is not traditional, it has become more common over time as a healthier option and contains more fiber than regular starchy rice varieties. This lemon asparagus risotto works fine with orzo; mind that, like brown rice, it will take longer to cook, so expect to spend an additional ten to fifteen minutes, and you will need about 3 extra cups of broth.
• Vegetables - the frozen peas are optional; it just adds a nice texture pop. No worries if you don't have them; feel free to add seasonal vegetables. Peas also go great with a red wine risotto.
• Mushrooms - also work well. Use about 2 oz of sliced and seared portobello mushrooms, although if you are looking for a risotto featuring mushrooms as the main ingredient, check out our creamy mushroom risotto recipe.
• Cheese - finalizing the risotto and serving it with a cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese is common. To make it vegan, we use our homemade vegan parmesan cheese, which has a nutritional yeast base. I wouldn't add nutritional yeast directly in place of the parmesan, as it emulates the parm flavor best when mixed into the risotto or the homemade parmesan cheese, which can be made with sunflower seeds or walnuts.
• Butter or oil - another common practice in making traditional risotto, such as Risotto alla Milanese, is to add even a creamier texture by dropping a piece of butter and stirring the risotto right before serving. This is called the mantecatura. This vegan asparagus risotto is super creamy, but if you want to make a vegan mantecatura, you can simply add a dollop of vegan butter or a tablespoon of olive oil. You can also replace the vegan butter with oil in the recipe's first step.
• Broth - although traditionally adding ⅓ cup dry white wine right before stirring in the broth to break up the rice grains, I have found that I get the same results with broth. If you decide to do it anyway, make sure you do it right before adding moisture to the arborio rice or carnarolli rice, using the stock.

💡 Asparagus tips

If you are not going to use your asparagus immediately, put them in a glass with water covering about 2 inches of their stock. Then place a plastic bag on top and place them in the fridge. They can last up to two weeks.

Asparagus always taste better the fresher they are, as they start losing flavor from the moment they are cut.

Always reach for asparagus with vibrant green color.

Some key flavor molecules in asparagus, for example, are water-soluble, so if you boil asparagus, they extract into the water and end up in the sink. As we do in this recipe, sauteeing the asparagus in butter or oil minimizes this loss and keeps more flavor in the vegetable. For the same reason, broccoli and beans - whose key odorants are oil soluble-retain their taste better if steamed or boiled.

I love how this is perfectly explained in one of my favorite gastronomy books, Flavor: The Science of Our Most Neglected Sense (affiliate link). [affiliate link]

The thinner the asparagus spears are, the better, as they will be more tender and less woody.

Don't overcook them; they require minimum cooking, tossing, or blanching.

📚 More asparagus recipes

If you like having your asparagus as a side dish, I'd recommend you go for easy and quick recipes like grilled asparagus with toasted almonds or buttery white asparagus.

We also like the roasted asparagus with tahini drizzle from World of Vegan.

If you enjoy having asparagus as part of your main dish, apart from this lemon asparagus risotto, you can go for a 15-minutes asparagus pasta.

🍚 More risotto recipes

We love risotto and make it at least twice per week. It is just an easy, comforting, and quick dish that can be adapted for every season, and it is always a crowd-pleaser. So it works as an easy weeknight dinner or as an elegant dinner when you are hosting.

Some of our favorite risotto recipes are the classic saffron risotto from the Lombardy area where we live, easy garlic risotto, the roasted pumpkin risotto, butternut squash risotto, and the autumn-time favorite mushroom risotto.

When we run out of fresh veggies or come back from a long trip, we reach out for our dried sun-dried tomatoes, always available in our pantry, and make a tomato risotto.

Lastly, we love our wintertime favorite lemony zucchini risotto.

⭐ If you try this recipe, let us know! 💬 Leave a comment, rate it, and don't forget to tag us @ourplantbasedworld on Instagram. Cheers!

📋 Recipe